By Brianna Adkins
Before actually speaking to Shammara Lawrence, I believed that I knew who she was in a sense. As a body positive columnist for Teen Vogue and a powerful freelance badass, she was a woman I looked up to; she was a phenomenal woman. Upon glancing at a person’s social media persona, you have this idea in your mind that you know who someone is. When I talked to Lawrence over the phone, I realized I truly had no idea who she was, but I was ecstatic to learn more.
If there was one thing that was clear during our conversation, it was that Shammara Lawrence’s story deserved to be published, but only in her own words. This is her narrative, this is her voice, and this is who she is.
Lawrence began her story in high school. It’s arguably the place where most young women cultivate their future dreams and motivations. At this point in her life, Lawrence only had one ideal future set in her mind: fashion design.
She went to a specialized fashion design and arts high school in New York City. Instead of your typical class load, she had the opportunity to take more artistic classes thanks to the school she attended. While other students were studying calculus and composition, she had the opportunity to study fashion along with the previous two.
“At that time in my life I really thought that I wanted to be a fashion designer. That was my ideal career,” Lawrence explains as she muses about her teenage self. “I grew up watching Project Runway. I admired the designers on the show. I wanted to be like them. The thought of doing it just brought me a lot of joy.”
As much as the idea of a life of a fashion designer excited her younger self, Lawrence knew deep down inside of her that something was missing. That’s when a switch flipped in her head.
“Somewhere between junior and senior year of high school, I sort of came to the realization that I wasn’t good enough to be a designer. It just wasn’t what I wanted to do professionally—or at all,” she confesses. “Every time I had to go to sewing class, especially during senior year when we were preparing for the senior fashion show, I dreaded it.”
After enjoying her English classes, yet dreading her sewing ones, Lawrence decided to take a look around at those around her. While they were loving the experience of fashion design, she just wanted to write. Although she came to this realization, she still didn’t know what she wanted to do upon graduating.
As a New York University bound student in the upcoming months after graduation, she came to the conclusion that she didn’t want to just stick herself into a defined major. She joined the Gallatin school within the university where she would have the freedom to choose her own schedule from a “mixed bag of classes.” She had the opportunity to explore classes centered in fashion, women’s studies, and even social issues. Through this path she eventually led herself to a clearing.
“In all of the haziness, I sort of realized that I would actually be really good at editorial work at a women’s centered magazine.”
As a big reader of women’s magazines, Lawrence remembers when she would “always make these collages on my wall, or scrapbooks, from pictures I would cut out from magazines.”
That’s when she decided to pursue that passion as a career. As an intern at Elle, Marie Claire, and other editorial positions, that’s where she began to flourish.
“I honestly don’t know if I would be in the place that I am now if it wasn’t for those experiences,” Lawrence admits. “[I] was I able to grow my connections and my social network of people that I could reach out to.”
But it took more than just connections and networking events to grow her editorial horizons. There were many obstacles that attempted to keep her restricted from reaching her goals.
“To be in this industry and be successful takes a lot of grit and determination. It isn’t all glitz and glamour like you see on Instagram,” she explains.
Many newsrooms are filled with affluent individuals, because they can afford to take the unpaid internships that others can't afford to. It tips the scale in their favor, and denies others the advantage they need in order to get a foot in the industry.
“I wish more internships in media were paid. They’re not. I think that’s really disappointing, because that really opens the door to perpetuating the system that only people that can afford to take internships can do them… and then end up rising through the ranks,” she states.
This frustrates many people, and Lawrence is one of them. When newsrooms become the same, they leave out narratives. She felt that exclusion far before she entered the workforce.
“At the time I never saw anyone that looked like myself really reflected in the pages I was reading, or the sites that I was visiting,” she states. “I always thought that the industry could do better. [I thought] it could benefit, or just be a more fun and inviting place to be, if diversity were a priority.”
This lack of diversity in media created—and still creates—a gap that Lawrence couldn’t see herself crossing. When it came time to graduate from college, it affected her job search.
“I thought I could find a job a month or two out of college,” she divulges. “It took me far longer.”
After emailing numerous editorial staffers and hearing nothing back, Lawrence felt the exclusion more than ever. That is, until she reached out to Phillip Picardi—the then Digital Editorial Director of Teen Vogue—for an informational interview and got a response.
Although Picardi got too busy with meetings at the time to speak with her, Lawrence still received a hug from him and was introduced to other members of the Teen Vogue team. She was encouraged to apply for the assistant position a few weeks later.
She had the opportunity to be interviewed in order to become Elaine Welteroth and Picardi’s assistant a few weeks out of college, but didn’t receive the job.
“I was completely distraught,” she confesses. “It was my dream job to work for Teen Vogue.”
The let down wasn’t even close to the end of her time there, though. After being invited to pitch stories for Teen Vogue, Lawrence took her time to create stories she knew would be perfect for the platform. In between that time, she reached out to a temporary creative work agency for jobs to make some sort of income. During this portion of her career she used odd jobs and freelance writing jobs at the publication to build her experience for her resume. She began doing this on a daily basis until the editorial magazine reached back out to her.
Lawrence quotes: “one day [they] just reached out and asked, ‘hey are you free to interview Zendaya?’”
That was one of the many highlights of Lawrence’s budding career. But it didn’t slow down there—it went to immediate success thanks to her determination, hard work, and before-mentioned grit.
Condé Nast reached out to her and explained that Phillip Picardi was looking for an assistant and said, “he wants to hire you.”
That kickstarted her first ever full-time job in the editorial career.
Although her experience working as an assistant was a blast, Lawrence explains that she had a different idea in the back of her mind on what she wanted to do. She wanted to write a book, curate more articles for Teen Vogue, and write for other publications. That’s when she made the bold move to go back to being a freelancer.
“I knew deep down that I just wouldn’t have time to pursue all of these ideas that I had,” Lawrence explains.
Before she left, one of the column ideas that she had pitched to her team before leaving was a plus size fashion column she continues to run. She’s making important strides in body positive media and plus size fashion to this day.
“I’m having so much fun as a freelance writer. I’m in control of my own schedule,” she gushes about the freedom she has as her own boss.
“I’m still learning. I don’t have all of the answers,” she admits. “I think I will probably always be teaching myself different things about what it is to be a writer, and what my role really means in this day and age. One thing that I am very very passionate about, though, when it comes to having the platform that I do and the column that I do at Teen Vogue, is to amplify other voices that often are silenced.”
This woman will continue to be a positive and transparent force in the media and editorial industry for the rest of her life.
“I never in a million years would think that I would be in the position that I am now at just 24 years old, but I am,” she states.
Overall, Lawrence attributes her success to “grinding day in and day out.” Even when she considers letting go of that dream, she eventually comes back to the conclusion that she belongs here. She’s making sure she has the space to be creative on her own terms while also giving a voice to those who feel ignored.
If there’s one thing to be sure about, it’s this: Shammara Lawrence isn’t going anywhere.
All photos are from Shammara Lawrence's Instagram: @itsshammara