ABOUT

So what do you actually do?

I write informative and insightful articles for clients and publications on a range of topics. This can either be using my own knowledge and expertise in an area or researching entirely new topics.

What has your career path been?

After graduating from university, I moved back to Dubai until May 2017 and started as an intern for Ahlan! Magazine and Cosmopolitan Middle East.

I then landed my first paid role as Junior Writer at Good Taste Magazine where I was in charge of the Fashion, Lifestyle, Travel and Interiors sections. I was later promoted to Digital Writer at La Femme Magazine, a luxury women's lifestyle magazine, where I wrote all of the content for the website and the Fashion News for the magazine. My next role was Assistant Editor at BBC Good Food Middle East, where I helped produce the majority of the magazine along with creating entire supplements single-handedly (there were many late nights). 

My role then took quite a pivot as I was made the Deputy Editor of Hospitality Business Middle East, a b2b hospitality publication in Dubai, which meant I had to learn about the industry from scratch. 

Following that, I returned to lifestyle writing and became the Assistant Editor of Ahlan! Magazine (where I had my first stint in journalism as a 14-year-old). I wrote the Fashion, Lifestyle and Reviews sections, as well as producing online content and the daily newsletter.

In May 2017, I moved back to London and worked as an Online Showbiz Reporter at OK!. I was writing a minimum of eight showbiz stories daily, while meeting my target of 1.2 million views per month and landing exclusives with celebrities weekly.

At this point, the journalism industry had worn me down slightly (blame crazy deadlines and a lot of pressure), so I decided to pivot into Digital PR.

I did this for three years, working my way up to a Digital PR Manager role, which entailed coming up with creative campaign concepts for clients and landing top-tier coverage. 

However, in September 2020, I decided to go back to my roots and pursue my passion again. It's now November 2020 and I'm a Freelance Content Writer and Journalist. 

What is the best part of your job?

I've recently taken the plunge to go freelance and I can already tell it's been one of the best decisions I've made!

I love feeling passionate about the work I do every day again, so while it has been a lot of hard work and there have already been some late nights, I'm enjoying every minute of it.

Why do you do your job?

I was inspired to become a journalist at just 14! At school, in Dubai, we had to do two weeks of work experience, and my dad set me up with an internship at a UAE-based leading publication called Ahlan!. 

I wrote articles about celebrities, including one about a feud between Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan (my first byline!), along with helping on fashion and beauty shoots. 

In my reference letter for my teacher, the Editor said 'I would make a great journalist' and was an 'excellent writer', and that's all it took for stubborn 14-year-old me to make my mind up. 

I pursued it with a passion and studied Journalism BA (Hons) at Kingston University before interning at Ahlan! and Cosmopolitan Middle East, which led to me landing my first role as a Junior Writer at Good Taste Magazine.

One piece of advice for someone starting in your role?

If you're looking to get into journalism or content writing, my main piece of advice is to read as much as you possibly can on a range of topics.

Keep trying to enhance your vocabulary and strengthen your writing style, while also learning as much as you can from others in the industry. If I can squeeze in a second bit of advice it'd be utilising Twitter to network!

Check out Surena’s socials below!

DAY IN THE LIFE

I tend to be at my desk for 9am to 9:30am, as I'm trying to maintain as much routine as possible despite now working for myself.

I'll start by checking my emails, having a scroll through Twitter and working on any admin bits that need attention. If it's a particularly nice sunny day, I do try to start my day with a nice long walk through Hampstead Heath or other parks in London once or twice a week. 

Once I've got those things out of the way, I tend to properly start writing at around 10:30 to 11am. I'm easily distracted so I try to adhere to the pomodoro technique (25 minutes of work with a 5 minute break), but if it's a day where I'm struggling to focus I'll just listen to my mind and do as much as I can when I can.

Networking is an essential part of my work and livelihood, so I tend to spend a fair amount of time on it during the day. When I announced that I was going freelance on Twitter, I was fortunate enough to have all of my current clients approach me (rather than the other way around) as I had unintentionally been networking and putting myself out there.

The Twitter community is immensely supportive, so reaching out to people for help with comments for articles or even Twitter polls is actually part of my working day. I also help to promote my own articles for one of my clients, which can take up a surprising amount of time when it comes to replying to tweets. 

If I'm really inspired and on a roll, I can sometimes end up writing until quite late as night so that I can get all my thoughts out of my head. However, I endeavour to switch off at 6:30pm at the latest most days. 

As London's currently in lockdown, my evening often consists of watching TV shows, knitting (a new lockdown hobby), talking to friends, listening to music and just generally unwinding. I'm also trying to improve my kitchen skills so I do try to whip up nice meals when I get a chance.