Tuesday, January 06, 2004
It only makes sense to have an FAQ about me, since you are reading my blog.
The information here may enlighten, delight or bore you to tears. Newly updated 2/25/08
Just who is PJ Gach?
Am currently a style writer for EDGE Publications- online lifestyle weekly. Readership is 750,000 cumulative from all 12 city sites- NYC, Boston, Dallas, LA, SF, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale,Philly, Chicago, Providence, Ptown, and New England. It's a GLBT with a 65% - 35% split. I've also written for Metro.Pop magazine on fashion and a few other places as well.
I'm based in New York City. In the past I was a freelance entertainment/ music reporter. I've written for teen mags (Bop, Teen Beat, Tiger Beat, Chili (Sweden)), mainstream music mags (JAM, Slant (UK),Rolling Stone mag and dot com, written about music and/or the music scene for Ft.Lauderdale's New Times, Baltimore's City Paper, Fort Worth Weekly and The New York Post.
I've also written Op Eds for the Post--loads of fun, esp. the hate mail, as well as a few feature articles for them.
I've written two articles about sex for Drill magazine and hope to do more of them, as they're really enjoyable to do and you get to see all sorts of interesting things.
I've been an entertainment editor for a weekly paper, wrote for my college paper and am always writing or pitching something or other.
If you're looking for a fashionable writer, drop me a line. One caveat - I don't work for free, I'm not a charity.
Where am I?
I live in Manhattan. I love it. I was born in the city, across the street from Gracie Mansion (the mayor's residence) and grew up on Long Island. That's Long Island, not Longuyland...bucko.
Where am I from?
I grew up in a town that had lots of pretty houses and trees and very weird people. One of the reasons I don't like hanging out in the Upper East Side is that it reminds me too much of where I grew up. Y'know where the women get blonder as they get older. And as of 11/07 I went blonde too!
When I was 8, I promised myself that I would live in the Village. I'm currently living in the Upper West Side and am slowly moving down there.
How did I get into music?
I don't know. I've always been aware of it. I had an older sister and would wander into her room (of course when she wasn't there) and play her radio and stereo. When I was 11, I discovered FM and would call the DJ's late at night asking them how they got into the biz.
When I was 12, I had this fantasy about working for the CIA and as a cover being a radio DJ. See what happens when you let small children watch James Bond movies.
I'd sit up late at night and write down all the songs and artists that I heard and liked. I read lots of music magazines, but if you had said to me that I was going to be a writer when I grew up, I'd laugh at you. I had plans.
I wanted to be a marine biologist--really. At the last moment, I panicked..yes, I was accepted to the school of my choice for marine bio, but I wondered, did I really want to spend the rest of my life with fish?
I picked my college blind...I stuck my finger in a book and where it landed is where I went. During student orientation, I walked into the college radio station and was lost.
Majored in Communications and ended up as a radio DJ for a number of years. Lived in a lot of places and was always pining for NYC.
Why'd you switch from music to style writing?
Well grasshopper, I grew up with a mother who adored fashion in all it's many faceted glories. She had gone to two design schools, and was a stylist for a line before I was born. Shopping with her was always a learning experience. I'd point to something and tell her I like that, the next thing I knew, we were examining its construction. I've spent my whole life studying fashion history, trends and construction; it was about damn time I followed my passion.
As for beauty- I'm a woman, place me near cosmetics and oooh! It's just like opening a mega box of crayons.
How did I get into writing?
I've been writing since I knew how to scribble. I started out as a poet and in fifth grade I was asked by my teacher to tour the other fifth grade classes and recite my poetry. At that time I was very shy, that coupled with my classmates calling me "professor" made me turn it down.
My mother was always exhorting me to write and become a writer when I grew up. However, I wanted adventures and thought that being a writer meant that you were stuck all day in a room. Alone. Every day. No adventures.
In college I joined my college paper and within the month was awarded an editorship. This is not as amazing as it sounds. It was college. Remember college people???? Yeah, thought so. I seriously considered switching out my major and talked to my adviser. When I told him that I wanted to become a journalist instead of radio, he looked at me and said, "yeah, so does everyone else." Sadly, at that time I was still a good girl who didn't speak up enough. So I didn't make my opportunity then.
When I was living in FL, I fell into writing in '95. Next thing I know I'm an Entertainment Editor and that spring had my first nationally pub'd article. Decided I wanted to play with the big dogs and moved back home.
Oh yeah, writers have adventures. Lots of them.
Why am I writing a blog?
For lots of different reasons. I wanted a place to play--to just write about things that I felt like writing about at the moment. I live (I think) a pretty interesting life and wanted to share some of the adventures that I've had.
I did make a promise to myself and it's also in one of the first entries of the blog that there are topics that I will never discuss-namely serious work stuff and some aspects of my life. Not everything I do is fodder for the blog, I do have a sense of discretion. I also want to live a long time.
I also wanted a place where editors could see a different persona. It's not very often that I get to write in the first person and I decided to create my own opportunity.
What else am I doing?
Have finished book, am starting to send it out and am biting my nails. It's something that I fell into after going to a birthday brunch. A discussion turned into a book idea, but that's how it happens. It's creative non-fiction. I never thought I could sit still long enough to write one, but there ya go...
Any strange experiences since writing the blog?
Gee, I'm glad you asked that question. Yes, I met someone who wanted to go on a date with me because I am writing one. On the date I realized that he had read the whole thing and spent most of the evening asking me about the various men I dated. Very peculiar.
Do you have any questions or comments that you want to share?
Feel free to drop me a line. I'll answer if it's not rude or indecent. Just click on the email thing
The information here may enlighten, delight or bore you to tears. Newly updated 2/25/08
Just who is PJ Gach?
Am currently a style writer for EDGE Publications- online lifestyle weekly. Readership is 750,000 cumulative from all 12 city sites- NYC, Boston, Dallas, LA, SF, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale,Philly, Chicago, Providence, Ptown, and New England. It's a GLBT with a 65% - 35% split. I've also written for Metro.Pop magazine on fashion and a few other places as well.
I'm based in New York City. In the past I was a freelance entertainment/ music reporter. I've written for teen mags (Bop, Teen Beat, Tiger Beat, Chili (Sweden)), mainstream music mags (JAM, Slant (UK),Rolling Stone mag and dot com, written about music and/or the music scene for Ft.Lauderdale's New Times, Baltimore's City Paper, Fort Worth Weekly and The New York Post.
I've also written Op Eds for the Post--loads of fun, esp. the hate mail, as well as a few feature articles for them.
I've written two articles about sex for Drill magazine and hope to do more of them, as they're really enjoyable to do and you get to see all sorts of interesting things.
I've been an entertainment editor for a weekly paper, wrote for my college paper and am always writing or pitching something or other.
If you're looking for a fashionable writer, drop me a line. One caveat - I don't work for free, I'm not a charity.
Where am I?
I live in Manhattan. I love it. I was born in the city, across the street from Gracie Mansion (the mayor's residence) and grew up on Long Island. That's Long Island, not Longuyland...bucko.
Where am I from?
I grew up in a town that had lots of pretty houses and trees and very weird people. One of the reasons I don't like hanging out in the Upper East Side is that it reminds me too much of where I grew up. Y'know where the women get blonder as they get older. And as of 11/07 I went blonde too!
When I was 8, I promised myself that I would live in the Village. I'm currently living in the Upper West Side and am slowly moving down there.
How did I get into music?
I don't know. I've always been aware of it. I had an older sister and would wander into her room (of course when she wasn't there) and play her radio and stereo. When I was 11, I discovered FM and would call the DJ's late at night asking them how they got into the biz.
When I was 12, I had this fantasy about working for the CIA and as a cover being a radio DJ. See what happens when you let small children watch James Bond movies.
I'd sit up late at night and write down all the songs and artists that I heard and liked. I read lots of music magazines, but if you had said to me that I was going to be a writer when I grew up, I'd laugh at you. I had plans.
I wanted to be a marine biologist--really. At the last moment, I panicked..yes, I was accepted to the school of my choice for marine bio, but I wondered, did I really want to spend the rest of my life with fish?
I picked my college blind...I stuck my finger in a book and where it landed is where I went. During student orientation, I walked into the college radio station and was lost.
Majored in Communications and ended up as a radio DJ for a number of years. Lived in a lot of places and was always pining for NYC.
Why'd you switch from music to style writing?
Well grasshopper, I grew up with a mother who adored fashion in all it's many faceted glories. She had gone to two design schools, and was a stylist for a line before I was born. Shopping with her was always a learning experience. I'd point to something and tell her I like that, the next thing I knew, we were examining its construction. I've spent my whole life studying fashion history, trends and construction; it was about damn time I followed my passion.
As for beauty- I'm a woman, place me near cosmetics and oooh! It's just like opening a mega box of crayons.
How did I get into writing?
I've been writing since I knew how to scribble. I started out as a poet and in fifth grade I was asked by my teacher to tour the other fifth grade classes and recite my poetry. At that time I was very shy, that coupled with my classmates calling me "professor" made me turn it down.
My mother was always exhorting me to write and become a writer when I grew up. However, I wanted adventures and thought that being a writer meant that you were stuck all day in a room. Alone. Every day. No adventures.
In college I joined my college paper and within the month was awarded an editorship. This is not as amazing as it sounds. It was college. Remember college people???? Yeah, thought so. I seriously considered switching out my major and talked to my adviser. When I told him that I wanted to become a journalist instead of radio, he looked at me and said, "yeah, so does everyone else." Sadly, at that time I was still a good girl who didn't speak up enough. So I didn't make my opportunity then.
When I was living in FL, I fell into writing in '95. Next thing I know I'm an Entertainment Editor and that spring had my first nationally pub'd article. Decided I wanted to play with the big dogs and moved back home.
Oh yeah, writers have adventures. Lots of them.
Why am I writing a blog?
For lots of different reasons. I wanted a place to play--to just write about things that I felt like writing about at the moment. I live (I think) a pretty interesting life and wanted to share some of the adventures that I've had.
I did make a promise to myself and it's also in one of the first entries of the blog that there are topics that I will never discuss-namely serious work stuff and some aspects of my life. Not everything I do is fodder for the blog, I do have a sense of discretion. I also want to live a long time.
I also wanted a place where editors could see a different persona. It's not very often that I get to write in the first person and I decided to create my own opportunity.
What else am I doing?
Have finished book, am starting to send it out and am biting my nails. It's something that I fell into after going to a birthday brunch. A discussion turned into a book idea, but that's how it happens. It's creative non-fiction. I never thought I could sit still long enough to write one, but there ya go...
Any strange experiences since writing the blog?
Gee, I'm glad you asked that question. Yes, I met someone who wanted to go on a date with me because I am writing one. On the date I realized that he had read the whole thing and spent most of the evening asking me about the various men I dated. Very peculiar.
Do you have any questions or comments that you want to share?
Feel free to drop me a line. I'll answer if it's not rude or indecent. Just click on the email thing
