Sasee Gets Personal with Editor Sarah Elaine Hawkinson

Q: When you were offered the position as Editor of Sasee Magazine in 2020 we were smack down in the middle of the pandemic. What was your vision going into that year?

“With all of the hardship over the previous six months, I was so ready for a positive. I also had so much creative energy and was thrilled to finally put it to some good use. Not to mention that after graduating from college, I didn’t have a clue what my next step was. For over a year, I interviewed for countless jobs that were not what I call an ‘exciting career.’ Editor of Sasee, on the other hand, has been incredibly dynamic and creative. I am all for empowering women and I have always wanted to make my living by doing something that truly sparked joy within me so when this job opportunity presented itself, I was most definitely excited and inspired to get started.”

Q: Explain how you choose the content that goes into Sasee each month?

“Choosing the content starts with the editorial calendar. I create the themes for the whole year which sets the tone for each monthly issue. One of the first steps I take to begin a new issue is to read all of our free-lance writer’s submissions and pick the top 10-15 stories that flow well with our monthly theme and I give those to our publisher to read. After she selects her favorites, I edit and submit them. Our entire Sasee team has a meeting to discuss which local woman and/or business would be best for me to interview and write a story on that is parallel to our theme. We also have special advertorial features each month that I write on a selected advertiser. One of my favorite, yet most time-consuming aspects is finding artwork for the cover. As you can see, Sasee loves bold, beautiful pieces of women.”

Q: What has been your biggest challenge since beginning this journey at Sasee?

“Ironically enough, the actual writing. I have always been great with words when speaking but I had not physically written my thoughts down very often before this job. I am not sure Sasee readers know this, but my major was not English during college – I have a business degree. Re-educating myself on specific grammar has been a learning curve. You can also see from my answers here that I sometimes am a woman of ‘too many’ words and editing myself down in word length can be a challenge. I do strongly believe my business education helps me with certain areas of my work now, but classroom learning does not solely get you where you need to be. When it comes to facing challenges, it’s skills like creativity, work ethic, and a positive attitude that help me succeed. I believe those types of characteristics are what land you a position you truly love and deserve.”

Q: When you tell your friends you are the Editor of Sasee Magazine, what is their response?

“They are so excited and love receiving their Sasee’s every month in the mail or hand-delivered by me. I am unbelievably grateful to have supportive friends and family. I also love meeting new people who recognize me from the magazine, and we get to bond over how much we adore Sasee and all of the wonderful inspiration she creates within our community.”