Five days before West Palm Beach Magazine’s new Spring issue went to layout, I found myself perched on a sofa in my home office, going over the final drafts of my travel feature story about Costa ‘Este Resort & Spa, and the feature On Cooking Classes: The Magic of Mixing and Matching Flavors. By then, I had poured over the transcripts for Michael Hackman, owner and executive chef of Aioli Restaurant, and Jamal Lake, owner and executive chef of Ganache Bakery, as well as Costa’s General Manager, Chad Olson. And what I extracted was good.
And yet, that Monday afternoon, as I went back over the stories, my adventures as a young journalist in nineties South Florida, and my life as a writer, came rushing back. I worked as a make-up artist as I pursued my writing career at the University of Miami? I drafted the first five pages of Brush of Evil, a screenplay for my last screenwriting class at the U in the bath?
Among the greatest pleasures of a writer is the opportunity to recall those crazy times or a conversation that feels at once spontaneous and timeless. I experienced a similar pleasure while first reading the final drafts of these pieces that will appear in the Spring issue.
The manic highs and lows of working at Talent Times Magazine in South Beach—an all-consuming newsroom filled with drama and crazy stories of its own. The comfort and happiness that I felt like a new writer covering my favorite beats: music, fashion, literature, and arts & entertainment.
Ordinary stories about a fashion agency owner; a bad-ass woman director named Mo Fitzgibbon; and an inspiring piece about an underwater cinematographer and his love for the sea. The drama behind the scenes, on the set of Striptease, a 1996 American black comedy film written, co-produced, and directed by Andrew Bergman, and starring Demi Moore, Armand Assante, and Ving Rhames. A glimpse into the private world of a wanna-be musician scraping by in Miami Beach. An exclusive interview with Gloria and Emilio Estefan—to this day, the worst and best interview I’ve ever conducted.
Good, because I won an award for "the best article" that year in Miami's media circles, and bad because I was a novice journalist and I’m sure Gloria and Emilio saw right through that during my awkward questioning. At the end of the interview, I remember how Emilio reminded Gloria of a dentist appointment he had that afternoon—my clue to end the conversation, thank them for their time, and graciously bid my goodbyes.
The life of a writer is not easy unless you're Stephen King. But even this prolific American writer has had horror stories of his own. Behind the glamour and adventures, the getaway travel trips, fancy dinners, and totally awesome interviews, there's a real story that needs to get written. The hours are long and the pay is not often good. Not very good at all, unless of course, you're Stephen King. But, in the end, there's a story. And for me, that's all that matters.
I haven’t seen the cover of this next issue, but I’m sure it will be good. They often capture something about our town and the season we are in.
—Maritza Cosano, Writer