Reprintable Interview Questions - The Magazine & The Message

How did the magazine get started, and how did it evolve?

When I was a teenager I read a lot of magazines, really wanted to be a magazine editor. When I was 14, living in Port Hope (just outside of Toronto), I got hooked up to the Internet and started a simple website with a collection of my articles, by posting on a free site. It started out as a very early form of a blog, but with long articles. In 1995, when I was 15, I taught myself code and web design by trial and error, and evolved my articles into HILARY Magazine (www.hilary.com). It was the first online magazine in the english language and was created to let people voice their opinions in a fun, magazine-style format. Today, the magazine focuses on luxury lifestyle, fashion and female empowerment, and I have over 30 contributors, full time staff and a base in New York City.

Your articles in HILARY Magazine (www.hilary.com) are outspoken and refreshing. Why do you write about women's issues?

I started HILARY Magazine because I was tired of magazines with superficial articles about makeup, dating, and fashion spreads that make women readers feel unattractive and unacceptable in their normal form. I tried to write articles that I thought would be interesting and would somehow benefit the reader. My goal has been to publish articles that are entertaining but also hopefully thought-provoking.

I have been asked on several occasions to speak to groups of high school girls, and I've really enjoyed the experience. By talking about my business and experiences, I hoped, by example, to motivate them and help them understand that they can do whatever they want to with their life, that they are in the drivers seat. I try to teach them to look at potential road-blocks as speed bumps and not to slow down.

Women are still shying away from careers in science and technology, even though as girls they start off interested and excelling in those areas. I think the students I spoke to saw me as a role model because I'm someone that is young enough that they can relate to and that has a successful career in technology. It's really encouraging to see the drive and hope in these girls in their early teens. All they need is a little encouragement and someone to tell them that they accomplish anything that they set out to do if they believe in themselves and stick to it.

What message do you want to send, and to whom?

I want to send a message of empowerment. I hope that some of my articles will make my readers stop and consider issues break away from stereotypes and prejudices. For example, I often write articles on body image, women's issues and the females in the media. I wanted to expose the truth about the images in magazines so that women understand what's happening in the media and advertising and that the photos of the supposedly perfect models are not a realistic portrayal of women - or even something that a normal women should aspire to. I wanted to get across that women should be accepting of themselves and society should move away from being so image conscious and objectifying women. The inner person is where people should be devoting their development time.

Do you believe that your magazine influences the fashion industry or it's primary function to reflect the industry?

I'd like to think that HILARY Magazine could somehow influence the fashion industry through setting a trend in articles that are positive-image focused, but realistically, the fashion industry is so huge and diverse that the most I can hope for is that our readers will get some empowerment along with their entertainment. ...and if some of the articles at HILARY Magazine make a young woman reader think more positively about herself and body image so that she won't be so vulnerable to the media's onslaught of digitally altered ads, then I'll feel the magazine has accomplished something worthwhile.

How do you choose what celebs to interview?

I prefer to put actresses on the cover when they are promoting a film that fits with the philosophy of the magazine. For example, a while back, Charlize Theron was in Toronto promoting North Country, which is a fantastic film that's really empowering for women. I interviewed her and did a special issue covering the theme of female empowerment and female entrepreneurs.

Print magazines put a lot of effort into getting the perfect cover. How do you feel about getting the perfect cover for your magazine?

I personally don't feel that same pressure that a print magazine might have, I guess because when someone comes to hilary.com it's because they are looking for something specific or they are a regular reader already. I think print magazines put more emphasis on the cover because it's a selling tool for them. People choose to pick up a print magazine based on the cover, but on the web the cover is more of an afterthought and I put more of an emphasis on creating captivating content.

What do you consider the single most important aspect/area of Hilary.com in terms of driving readership?

I think the most important thing to get people to come back is having content that's diverse and fun to read, and that's updated daily. I also try to focus on making complex and important world issues easy to understand and fun to read. RSS feeds help a lot too... so does syndicating an article "teaser" that links back to hilary.com

How often do you rotate content on hilary.com? if it's monthly, what day does it turn over?

A lot of new content is added daily, but every two months we'll do a special issue that focuses on a certain theme, like "Gadgets for Girls" or "Jet-Set Vacation Hotspots". We add a bunch of articles at once, do a new cover, and send out a newsletter mailing. We work hard to update and add new and entertaining content on a daily basis which keeps readers returning for the latest articles and news.

How hands-on are you with hilary.com?

I am very hands-on with every area of the magazine, but my favorites are working on the strategy, art direction and choosing the article topics. Even though now Hilary.com is an established business, it is still a real pleasure to work on. I have so much fun I don't think I can categorize what I do as "work."