helena frith powell

  • Lifestyle
  • Women
  • Beauty
  • France
  • Contact

Miss Dep-Ed

19th April 2010 by Helena 4 Comments  

When I took on the job of staff writer at The National, I thought I would never want to do anything else. It seemed a perfect role; roaming around asking questions and not having any real responsibility. I hadn’t worked as an editor since I edited a magazine called Central European for Euromoney many years ago. The only person I edited was Rupert; not that he needs it.

All this has now changed. Mo, my friend and deputy editor of the magazine, was promoted a few weeks ago. I put myself forward for her job and was asked to do a trial. I found editing enormous fun. And what is even more fun is coming up with good ideas that you then don’t have to write, and having some say in how the magazine is run.

From not really wanting to be an editor, I suddenly wanted it more than I had wanted anything in a long time. I worked hard, tried to make things run smoothly and made an effort to learn all I needed to. I had an interview with Rachel the editor.

D-day came on Sunday. I was a bag of nerves. Rachel went in to see the big editor. When she came back she took the other leading candidate outside for a chat.

‘Is that good or bad?’ I texted Rupes.
‘Good,’ he replied.

I could barely breathe. I had a Yogi tea to calm my nerves. ‘For every loss,’ read the message, ‘there is an equal gain’. I’m doomed, I thought, it’s a sign. ‘For every gain,’ it went on, ‘there is an equal loss.’ OK so whatever happens I’m doomed.

After what seemed like a year Rachel came back and took me outside. My heart was beating so fast I was sure she would be able to hear it. We stood opposite each other.

“I’d like to offer you the job of deputy editor,” she said. I threw my arms around her. Possibly not the most traditional response, but she took it well.

So now I am planning ideas to commission. I am onto a piece drawing on our correspondents from the region about women to watch in the Middle East.

I am a very happy ‘dep-ed’ as Rupes calls me. Story ideas welcome…..

Copyright: Helena Frith Powell 2010


Filed Under: Abu Dhabi, Work, blog -->

4 thoughts on Miss Dep-Ed

  • Jacques says:
    19th April 2010 at 11:14 pm

    Félicitations,
    Bises
    Jacques

  • Meriel says:
    20th April 2010 at 3:11 am

    Oh that is wonderful news Helena! Congratulations! I hope you to continue to enjoy the role.

    Meriel

  • Nina says:
    20th April 2010 at 4:47 am

    Congratulations! You`ll be the best editor they have ever had.

  • helena says:
    14th May 2010 at 4:57 am

    Thank you! Hx

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Helena Frith Powell was born in Sweden to a Swedish mother and Italian father, but grew up mainly in England. She is the author of eleven books, translated into several languages including Chinese and Russian. She wrote the French Mistress column The Sunday Times about life in France for several years. She is a regular contributor to the Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday, The Times, Daily Telegraph, Tatler Magazine and Harper’s Bazaar.

Helena has been the editor of four magazines, including M Magazine, a supplement for the Abu Dhabi-based National Newspaper and FIVE, a high-end fashion glossy, also published in Abu Dhabi. Helena was also editor-in-chief of 360 Life, a quarterly glossy magazine published with the Sports 360 Newspaper in Dubai, part of the Chalhoub Group.

Helena contributes regularly to UK-based newspapers and magazines and holds a Masters in Creative Writing from the University of Cambridge. She is working on a thriller set in Sweden as well as a novel about the relationship between Virginia Woolf and Katherine Mansfield called Sense of an Echo.

In 2022 her short story The Japanese Gardener came second in the Fish Publishing Short Story Prize. One of her stories was also shortlisted for the Bridport Short Story Prize. When she’s not writing, she works as a headhunter for the media and entertainment industry for the Sucherman Group. 

Helena, who was educated at Durham University, lives in the Languedoc region of France with her husband Rupert and their three children.

Bibliography

More France Please, we’re British; Gibson Square 2004

Two Lipsticks and a Lover 2005; Gibson Square (hardback)

All You Need to be Impossibly French; (US version of above) Penguin 2006

Two Lipsticks and a Lover; Arrow Books (paperback) 2007

Ciao Bella Gibson Square; (hardback) 2006

Ciao Bella Gibson Square; (paperback) 2007

So Chic! (French version of Two Lipsticks) Leduc Editions 2008 (also translated into Chinese, Russian and Thai)

More, More France; Gibson Square 2009

To Hell in High Heels; Arrow Books 2009 (also translated into Polish)

The Viva Mayr Diet; Harper Collins 2009

Love in a Warm Climate; Gibson Square 2011

The Ex-Factor; Gibson Square 2013

Smart Women Don’t Get Wrinkles; Gibson Square 2016

The Arnolfini Marriage; Amazon Kindle December 2016

Smart Women Don’t Get Wrinkles (paperback); Gibson Square spring 2018

The Longest Night; Gibson Square spring 2019

 

 

© 2023 Helena Frith Powell
Website by Web Inclusion
/* ----------------------------------------- */ /* Content Template: content-template-for-layout-for-header-and-footer-layout - start */ /* ----------------------------------------- */ .helenaHero .mainTitle h1{ font-size:3em; -webkit-transition: all 0.8s; -moz-transition: all 0.8s; -ms-transition: all 0.8s; -o-transition: all 0.8s; transition: all 0.8s; margin-top:-100%; padding-top:100px; padding-bottom:50px; margin:0; } .scrolled .helenaHero .mainTitle h1{ font-size:1.2em; padding-top:30px; padding-bottom:20px; } /* ----------------------------------------- */ /* Content Template: content-template-for-layout-for-header-and-footer-layout - end */ /* ----------------------------------------- */ /* ----------------------------------------- */ /* Content Template: 17hfp_about - start */ /* ----------------------------------------- */ .HFPA-section{ width:100%; background:#eee; } .HFPA-Image{ background-position:center right; background-repeat:no-repeat; height:276px; width:100%; -webkit-filter: grayscale(100%); /* Safari 6.0 - 9.0 */ filter: grayscale(100%); } .HFPA-Text{ padding:20px 10px; } /* ----------------------------------------- */ /* Content Template: 17hfp_about - end */ /* ----------------------------------------- */ /* ----------------------------------------- */ /* Content Template: 17footer - start */ /* ----------------------------------------- */ .footIt{ background:#222; padding:20px 10px; } /* ----------------------------------------- */ /* Content Template: 17footer - end */ /* ----------------------------------------- */