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I'm thrilled to share this week's #FriendsOfTheStudio profile: Abby Bielagus, Editor-in-Chief of Boston Common Magazine! Stay tuned on Instagram all week for photos from our shoot, and to learn how she got her start in journalism, which magazines from the 90s she is still saving to this day—and about her life as an Editor-in-Chief!

“I grew up in the woods of southern New Hampshire. When I talk about my childhood, it sounds like I'm reading from the pages of an old-timey book. My brother and sister and I would run wild in the land around our house. We had a treehouse and one of our favorite games was something we made up called the lava monster. We pretended the orange fallen pine needles on the ground was lava and we had to avoid it all costs and get to the treehouse safely. I used to ride my bike around the neighborhood, pretending it was a horse named Wild Strawberry. In high school I was less of a weirdo, but all of those imaginative games translated into a love of theater and I acted in plays until college. I also played soccer, field hockey and basketball so I was able to move between the world of the jocks and the arty kids and had friends in both social circles.”

“I’ve always loved magazines. I still have a trunk of old Seventeens and Sassys at my parents' house that I cannot part with. And it's funny, my mom recently found an old journal of mine in my childhood bedroom and (once I got over the fact that she read it), I was really surprised to learn that I mention in the pages that I want to grow up and write for a magazine. So apparently from a really young age, that was what I wanted to do.”

"Although things started off promising, my career path certainly had some detours. I was an English major in college and when I graduated I got a job at the now defunct Boston Phoenix as an editorial assistant. My only responsibilities were really just to answer the phone and deliver mail. Because I had always done well with my writing in school and was so determined to write for a glossy, I assumed that I would graduate and immediately be writing feature stories. As an arrogant 22 year-old, I could not believe I was doing such menial tasks. I didn't know then that you need to put the time in and learn. So I quit the job and became an editor at a book publisher called Bedford/St. Martin's. It was a really lovely, cushy job with far-out deadlines and quirky academics, but it wasn't really my speed. In my heart, I still wanted desperately to be writing for a magazine.

So, I started pitching people in town to freelance and actually Jonathan Soroff was one of the first editors to take a chance on me. He hired me to help write blurbs for the Improper Bostonians's “Best Of” list. After that I got some assignments for the Globe magazine and a website called Daily Candy. But again, my arrogance and impatience got the best of me. Things weren't moving as quickly as I wanted them to, so I gave up again. This time I quit publishing all together and took a job as a wardrobe stylist's assistant. I had always loved fashion and figured I would try and have a career in that industry instead.

After assisting for a little while, I signed with an agency and began building my own client list, which included Boston Magazine. One day I was in the offices for a photo shoot and the photo editor mentioned that their lifestyle editor had recently given her notice. I jokingly said "hire me!" And they were like, "sure, apply." I went through the interview process and got the job. I worked at Boston Magazine as the lifestyle editor for three years and then recently became the Editor-in-Chief of Boston Common magazine. It's funny because despite the twists and turns, I never really lost sight of what I wanted to do. And actually looking back, having those varied experiences actually helped me get where I am today. I learned to be a better editor because of my job at Bedford/St. Martin's and having the styling background really helped me get the lifestyle editor job.”

“In my current role I am responsible for determining the local content for Boston Common magazine, both the written and the visuals. I assign some stories, write some myself, edit everything and work with photo editors to secure art, which sometimes means producing a photo shoot. I have to conceive the stories and am responsible for the look and feel of the pages. I also have to make sure all the deadlines are met and pages are moving in a timely manner so all gets to the printer on time every month. Outside of the office, I represent the magazine at various social events around town.”

“Since my role is still relatively new at Boston Common, I would say the most favorite feature that pops into my head is the photo essay that I did for Boston Magazine last year called "The New Creative Guard." In it we showcased artists and creatives in the city who have chosen to stay here and have successful careers, as opposed to fleeing for LA or NYC. I loved being able to interview these dynamic people and help create stunning portraits of them. Plus, it was just cool to feature people in fields that are not typically thought of as very Boston - a dancer, a hip-hop artist, a bag maker, a shoe designer, and a muralist just to name a few.“

“My favorite part of the job is being able to celebrate the city I live in. I get to be one of its storytellers and can control the narrative in a small way. I also get to constantly learn more about the people that make this place great and discover cool nooks and crannies sometimes before anyone else. There's really nothing I don't like about my job, to be honest. This is what I've always wanted to do and I feel really grateful that I get to do it.”

“Boston is home. For many years I thought I needed to leave, that it was lame to stay in the place that you're from. But I don't feel that way anymore, I like living here. I also think that the city is on the brink of a change. It's growing and attracting a different type of person and I would say its transforming from some of its old stereotypes. It's an exciting thing to see.“

“My friends are literally everything to me. And it's funny because it's a group that formed when we were adults. We didn't go to school together, we didn't grow up together, we all met about ten years ago when we were working at Toro and Coppa respectively, and trying to figure out how to make our dreams come true and navigate adulthood. They're such a creative, smart, unique and supportive group of people and I'm so proud to say that we all did what we set out to do. One of my friends, Adam Larson owns his own design and branding firm Adam&Co, another friend, John Stoddard, built a farm on the top of the Boston Design Center and the Boston Medical Center, another friend Alexandra Ryan is the styling director at Rue La La, my friend Emily Isenberg owns her own business called Isenberg Projects, and everyone knows Tiffany Faison. :) I could go on and on about everyone's accomplishments—I literally would not be the person I am today without them.”

“I rescued my dog Charlie 11 years ago when I had just started working at Bedford/St. Martin's. I walked into the Animal Rescue League in the south end, on my lunch break because it was right  near my office. I saw Charlie, we went outside and played ball for like 10 minutes and when we walked back in, I heard a woman say that she had seen him on PetFinder and was there to adopt him. In what felt like an out-of-body experience, I heard myself say "I'm adopting him." The shelter was like "Well, we'll see." I filled out all the paperwork, was accepted and literally took him home that afternoon. I didn't even have a leash and had to borrow one from the shelter. It was the best impulsive decision I have ever made. I joke that he's my life partner, but honestly, I never thought I could love a creature more.”