Naima Mora's Blog, page 3
March 27, 2013
Cassondra Hamm: Slice of Life
Slice of Life. Cassondra Hamm: Fan Profile of the Week. Sharing a former reader/fan profile, the experience of cutting and getting lost , a profound story of courage. This is a story of pushing past the pain we find and inflict on ourselves, in search of the truth of who we are. Thank you so very much, Cassondra, for braving the truth. – Naima
I’m in the bathtub with all the lights turned off. The water, once so hot it turned my skin a bright red, is now cold. I don’t know how long I have been here, but I know I have done enough damage to myself that the bath water has a pinkish hue to it. Guilt. Shame. Remorse. Pain. Release. Accomplishment. Fear. Pride.
Cassondra Hamm: Fan profile of the Week – Naima Mora Online.
The strongest, most overwhelming feeling of all, control. I lift my chin, take a deep breath, and look at my left forearm. Bright, red blood drips from the reopened scars that have been healing for the past eleven years. I drag my fingers across the new wounds and lift them up to my lips to taste the metallic elixir of my pain. All the things that were tearing me up from the inside, are now tangible. I can see, feel, smell and taste them. They are right there, on the outside. God that is so much better.
I started it, I am now stopping it. One more deep breath and that will do. I wrap the straight blade in toilet paper and toss it into the trash. I surround my body with a soft white towel and check the damage. Well. That’s a good two weeks of bandages and long sleeves no matter the weather. It is also a good two years of MAC concealer. And so it is.
I first came across the release of the razor at the not so innocent age of sixteen. Childhood had chewed me up and spit me out and left me alone to deal with unimaginable loss and trauma. Now I don’t know what it was like in your house growing up, but in mine we did not talk about anything. If we didn’t talk about it, it didn’t happen. It simply ceased to exist and we just slapped a pretty smile and lots of mood altering chemicals on the ugly and la la laaaaaaaa.
All better! Don’t talk. Don’t feel. Don’t trust. Always look at the good. Most importantly, always look good. This conditioned me to bottle things up. Remain silent. I didn’t want to make any waves in an already tumultuous household. It was my core belief that there just wasn’t any space, and I surely had no place to express my experience of the shitstorm around me. The lost child.
I know. Poor baby! Everyone say it together with me, “Awwwwwwwww!!”
The thing about keeping every true emotion bottled up is this; no matter how many people I have in my life, I feel so very alone. So it was at sixteen, a Junior in High school with a ton of friends, a killer boyfriend who adored me, and a mother who was doing the very best she knew how, that I discovered the drag and tear of sharp implements across my skin for emotional control.
With each swipe, my head stopped screaming. All the thoughts and feelings of being out of control stopped. One, two, tree, down. One, two, three, across. Always a pattern. Always in threes. It hurt, sure. However I knew exactly where it hurt, and why. I started when I wanted to, I stopped when I felt done. It was mine, and it was so easily explained. I hurt because I was cut. I sure as shit didn’t need an eighty dollar an hour therapist and a prescription for lithium to explain that to me.
Just like any unhealthy activity one engages in to mask feelings, it stopped working as well. The cuts became deeper. The cuts became more visible. The cuts became more frequent. Scars run across my arm like railroad tracks and I catch people noticing them, and becoming so very uncomfortable. When my daughter became old enough to notice and ask me, “Mommy what happened to your arm?” the only thing I could think to say was, “I got in a fight with Wolverine. Don’t worry, Mommy kicked his butt.” This is my standard answer for inquisitive children. Who, by the way, are the only people brave enough to ask.
I spend ten minutes a day mixing concealer and foundation to cover my scars. Sometimes I wear bracelets and watches all the way up to my elbow. I have tattooed over my scars, wrapped them up in a bandana, and worn long sleeves in one hundred degree weather. I am more often than not so very consumed by the shame of looking “crazy”.
I know I am not crazy. I am just a human. Trying to work out this life.
We all have scars. We are all wounded. Some of us, more wounded than others. Some of us, less equipped to deal with the wounds than others. This world is a gnarly place, and until one finds one’s authentic purpose in it, things are really confusing. We all tend to our wounds in our own way. Some of us drink. Some of us starve. Some of us eat. Some of us find Jesus. Some of us sleep with anyone and everyone. Some of us paint. Some of us write. Some of us skydive. Some of us get sober. Some of us do all of the above.
And some of us, cut. That is just the reality. I am not condoning, promoting, shaming, or judging any of the above mentioned activities. I am simply speaking my truth. I’m doing this thing where I am not bottling things up anymore.
See how that works?
I am not, nor have I ever been a sad sack emo broad. The purpose of my writing this is to hopefully erase images of long black bangs covering eyes, and too tight skinny jeans from your conditioned awareness of self mutilators. This isn’t WHO I am, this is a PART of who I am. It is a part of the story that makes me, me. I am not a tragic chick. I am a chick with some scars. Just like yours. The only difference between you and I is that mine are on the outside for all to see. So look, don’t look. Ask, or look down when I catch you staring. It’s all good. It’s all me. I am a perfect and holy child of God. Whole, perfect, and complete exactly the way I am.
To live an authentic life, to allow those in my life to get to know and begin to love the whole, real me, it is of total importance that I embrace my scars today. This is the first step towards my loving myself. To erase the guilt and shame I hold close to my heart about my past, I am taking the masks and make up off my scars, and therefore myself.
I cannot logically request the loves around me to see me, and not just look at me, while hiding. I believe Mya Angelou said it best when she claimed, “I do not trust people who don’t love themselves and yet tell me, ‘I love you.’ There is an African saying which is: “Be careful when a naked person offers you a shirt.”
In celebrating my scars, I don’t feel any pull to create new ones. I guess that is what I hear referred to as a spiritual awakening. God, spirit, Sacred Grandmother Tree, whatever. Thank you. Thank you for relieving me of the obsession to control and allowing me to feel my feelings today.
These feelings of peace, love, contentment, gratitude and acceptance, are overwhelming. In a good way! A non-slicey way.
My name is Cassondra Hamm, and this is just one of my stories. What’s yours?
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March 26, 2013
Never Give Up, Never Give Up!
I began this book writing adventure in 2010. One could say that I’ve been working up to it for a while longer than that. I have always loved writing. I still have my poems and short stories I wrote when I was ten years old. By the time I was taking Advanced Placement English in my junior and senior year of high school, I had decided firmly that I wanted writing to be a large part of my life.
I attempted writing an autobiography a year after winning America’s Next Top Model. After three boring chapters, I decided it was a good attempt but I had not yet lived enough to write the book I wanted to write. Fast-forward a couple of years. Having gone through a few more throes of life, and it became clear to me that I wanted to write something inspiring for people. I wanted to give something to young people who were going through the same things I had gone through, and am still experiencing.
I decided to write Model Behavior based on my years in the fashion industry. I sat down and it poured out page after page. (My next project is already underway – Model Citizen capturing the perspectives of young people all over the world about what challanges and inspires them, about leadership and our role in a global society). It hardly seems like the time has passed.
Write. Write. Write.
When the time is right, the time is write (and still when the time is wrong, write)! I put six months into the first several drafts of my first book. When I was satisfied, it was time to find an editor. An amazing business acquaintance turned awesome friend (fashion designer Richard Hallmarq) introduced me to Kathryn Mattingly, who graciously accepted the project of editing my book!
Next step, graphic design. I joined forces with my uber talented twin sister Nia Mora, who shot the cover and worked with me intensely on the graphic design and core layout of the book. A year later and it was complete! A finished manuscript outfitted with beautiful graphics, a sure sale to a literary agent, right? Wrong.
I searched for another six months for a literary agent or publishing house that would be interested and all I found were closed doors. Until one day, one opened. I met Tracy of Possibility Publishing. She loved the idea of my book and had even more ideas for its release! Now, the book is published and I am following my dream of becoming an author.
In short, I never gave up. Even when it seemed like an impossible dream, I persevered to make it come true. If I had stopped, I am sure I would have been angered about life and disappointed with myself for giving up. To keep my balance I had to keep moving- keep pushing forward!
What’s next for me or you as we make our way down the road on our journey? One thing I know: we’ll get there if we keep going and know that what is in us to accomplish is within our reach.
Tell me about your latest experience with never giving up – share your story here in my Fan Corner.
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Ps…sharing a few more pics from my latest adventures!
With Mark S. Allen and the gang from Good Day in Sacramento at my recent Fashion Week adventure. They were really warm and wonderful!
Me and Jack Head at JackFM in Sacramento! Plus love the outfit Masha from Violet Muse Boutique graciously gave me to wear!
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March 4, 2013
Life and Death: What Matters Most
Me and my grandmother Elizabeth Catlett.
As I come off the launch of my book tour in NorCalif and from being an ambassador to Saramento Fashion Week, I am reminded of the things that matter by the amazing people I met and the organizations with whom I am proud to be establishing relationships with where our shared values for what’s important drive our work and our lives.
I wrote the following column originally late last year after the passing of my grandmother, but I realize it has new meaning even now.
-Naima
Connecting with people through words…
My grandmother has been a huge influence in my life. She taught me so many life lessons that I treasure dearly. My grandmother Elizabeth Catlett was a sculptor and a lithographer, a tremendous artist, woman, human being and grandmother.
Growing up, I remember going to her and my grandfather’s gallery openings and how veryone was always so impressed with her work. It was normal for me – I had been seeing her artwork my whole life. I didn’t realize the impact she was making on people until I was much older, or realize how it would drive me toward my values as an adult.
When we visited our home in Mexico, I remember her working in her studio diligently day after day, hour after hour. She showed me what it meant to devote your life to your artwork. She showed me that it is okay to want to be an artist and make it into a career. She showed me that it is okay to follow the yearning of your heart to become happy.
Listening to stories of her life and struggles that she faced taught me how you can overcome obstacles and become victorious. Listening to the stories of all of you that you submit to me and to those of people I am beginning to meet at book signings and events I attend around the country, I am always reminded of my grandmother and her origins, of how hers began with slavery and how lucky so many of us are to be advancing beyond the horror of that reality.
Elizabeth Catlett’s work.
She told me stories of her own grandmother who was a slave, how one day while my twin sister, Nia, and I were visiting my grandparents in Mexico, she decided she would sculpt a piece of art modeled after my head.
She took some photos of me and a few months later, I saw the result. It was beautiful. In that moment, she taught me that I was beautiful, and to look inside for that beauty.
She taught me to hang my jacket up when I came home, too, and other assorted important things like table manners, Spanish, and how to be proud of myself.
Hers was a journey of constant efforts at revealing the beauty of women. In one-way or another, she helped shape me into a feminist.
My grandmother also showed me love. I loved her and still love her. My grandmother passed away peacefully on April 2, 2012 at our home in Cuernavaca, Mexico. She and my grandfather Francisco Mora built that home for us. In her death I realized how much she had impacted the world and in turn how deeply she had impacted me. Everything she taught me lives on in my own life and our relationship continues. It is my turn to bare the flag of compassion and humanism. I intend to make her proud!
A wonderful young fan at Sacramento book signing…so awesome to connect with the dreams when we’re young!
As I look share my experiences of meeting new people and hear their stories, I am reminded of what truly matters most. I wonder, what might have been the thing to help you understand the importance of that lesson?
I would love it if you would share that with me here at my Fan Corner. Send me your photo so I can profile you!
To learn more about Elizabeth Catlett, visit the New York Times for her passing obituary, and her website.
To get the latest copy of my book in print or on iTunes, please visit the “Get My Book” page here.
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March 1, 2013
A Few Highlights From Kick-Off Of My Book Tour – Model Behavior!
This past week I was in Sacramento as the ambassador of Sacramento Fashion Week – and I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to support my second home of Sacramento! To the producers of #SacFashionWeek, the sponsors, the models, the amazing people who dedicate themselves to raising the bar in this region for fashion and design, as well as for business that also has a social impact – thank you so very much for supporting me, my new book, and for helping me connect with young people in your community!
Me and the students of Valley High in Sacramento from Elk Grove Unified School District!
I plan to write a great deal more about my experiences with readers, fans, the students from Valley High School, and about the great partnerships I had/look forward to growing with the Junior League and Nicolas’ Garden in the next few weeks, but I wanted to get these links of covered events and a few photos out there to share the amazing week we had celebrating fashion, business, children’s health, and my new book in print Model Behavior.
Vamping it up with C31 Good Day Sacramento morning show crew! Thanks Good Day!
Please get a copy of my book in print now and help me support the Junior League Kid’s in the Kitchen campaign by ordering online at: Model Behavior In Print. March 5th $1.00 of every book sold under our special promotional title purchase price ($10.00) will go the Junior League closest to the purchase location.
For more information about the Junior League see the link below!
More next week – have a wonderful weekend everyone and thanks again for such a warm and wonderful welcome in Northern California!
My best-
Naima
Check out these great people and experiences I had in sacramento!
http://www.v1011fm.com/pages/big-al.html?article=11007745
http://www.kfbk.com/pages/p_walsh.html?article=11007664
http://www.examiner.com/article/sacramento-s-fashion-week-kicks-off-feb-24
http://sacramentopress.com/headline/79754/SACFW_aims_to_transform
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February 22, 2013
Official Press Release: Naima Mora Ambassador to Sacramento Fashion Week
Friends and press….about Sacramento Fashion Week!
Here I am interviewing as the official spokesperson for my childhood ballet school Ballet Renaissance Alumni Association. Looking forward to this role for Sacramento Fashion Week!
The following are the details of my upcoming week in Sacramento (February 25th – February 28th) and the messages I carry about positive body image and healthy lifestyle choices, about the importance of the impact fashion and design actually has in the Sacramento region’s economy, and how by buying my new book Model Behavior, you are helping me to partner and support organizations such as the Junior League and Nicolas Garden, two amazing efforts that are helping kids become healthier through healthy eating, recipes, and cooking tools!
I am honored to be an official part of Sacramento Fashion Week, and am grateful to all the extraordinary promotional partners and people who have opened their arms and hearts to me and my team at PMG. I can’t wait for February 25th! See you all in Sacramento….
My warmest thanks- Naima!
My Itinerary 2/25 – 2/28
Monday February 25th
5:00P – 6P Sacramento State University – The Industry Forum Panel; Reception w/CSU students: book table, networking, and student design Association.
Tuesday February 26th
6:45A Good Day Sac
7:00A -9A On Air – Good Day
9:30A Reelz Interview w/Mark S. Allen
TBD NPR/INSIGHT
12:30P IADT – Mentoring @ Modeling 101
1:00P – 3P IADT – book signing
Wednesday February 27th
12:00P Sacramento Business Journal Interview – Ed Goldman
6:00 – 11P Official Book Signing & Meet & Greet After Party hosted by Possibility Media Group, Face It Salon & Boutique @1122 19th St
Thursday February 28th
8 AM V FM101 – Big Al Interview 1545 River Park Drive, SUITE 500 | Sacramento, CA
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February 15, 2013
America’s Favorite Next Top Model Naima Mora In Sacramento February 25th – 28th @ Sacramento Fashion Week
#SacLovesNaimaMora
Releases Literary Project -“Model Life Series” & Book, Model Behavior
All-Time Favorite Winner from Bravo’s Long-Running Reality Television Series Focuses on Messages of Healthy Living and Redefining Beauty From the Inside Out With Her New “Model Life Series”
– In Sacramento Feb 25th through the 28th for Sacramento Fashion Week and the Launch of Her new Print Book Tour with “Model Behavior” -
An eBook, print book, Facebook & engagement blog for fans, the first in a 5-Year New Media Project by local publisher/creative agency Possibility Media Group.
Naima will be participating and appearing at the following venues and events the week of February 25th through the 28th. Please contact the media representative at the end of this release for scheduling press, media, print interview, or book signing appearances while in town:
The Fashion Industry Forum at Sac State University [University Union] (6000 J Street, Sacramento, CA) at 6pm Monday Feb. 25th and at the reception following. Book signing, photo op, industry discussion; discussion moderated by Possibility Media’s founding publisher Tracy Saville.
Teaching young models February 26th at the “Runway Modeling 101” fashion boot camp at the International Academy of Design & Technology (2450 Del Paso Road, Sacramento, CA). Book signing, photo ops to follow.
Naima Mora Official Meet & Greet Reception, Sponsored by Possibility Books & Cherie Scalzi of FaceIt, Wednesday, Feb 27th, FaceIt Salon & Boutique (1122 19th Street, Sacramento, CA). Talk, book signing, photo op, champagne reception, open to the public and encouraged. 6 – 9 pm.
News Facts, Social Media for the book, facts and story on Naima’s career, her blog, and an inside look at her first book below.
News Facts
• Naima Mora has reached international fame and broken into the world of fashion after winning the title of America’s Next Top Model (Cycle 4). She remains an all time ‘fan favorite’ and has shot spreads and landed on the covers of many high profile magazines. She has walked the runway for some of fashion’s top designers and been the face of world known cosmetic lines such as Cover Girl® and Sheer Cover®.
◦ About The Book: Published by Possibility Books of Sacramento, the iTunes iBook is available by searching Naima Mora Model Behavior, $5.99. Released August of 2012 along with her band’s video release “Never Cease Us.” This edition is multi-media, including narration by Naima, her music video, and an extraordinary collection of photographs from top fashion photographers. The print edition of Model Behavior released February 15th, and will be available at venues the week of February 25th in Sacramento and is available for purchase online via PB’s current distributor Itasca Books for $8.99.
. Model Behavior, the 1st of several titles in her series “Model Life Series” – redefining for young people around the globe what beauty and a healthy body/soul/mind image is – messages include:
The importance of health for beauty – it is beautiful to be healthy. That in achieving your dreams, setting the goals you have in life and working toward them with discipline and intention is what makes character. Her celebrity experiences grounds the truth of her message in the great disparity between what people think of celebrity, the modeling lifestyle, and external beauty – and what the truth of these realities is really all about.
Next Book In Series: Global Leadership – Her follow up book for 2014 “Model Citizen” builds in true stories from young readers around the world and the truth of their experiences and lives, wrapped around their perspectives and advice for what makes a “model citizen” of the world, redefining the truth of how young people really see leadership and the mantles of what being a citizen in the world really means. Highlighting world business and government leader’s children through interviews by Naima, and providing a rare snapshot of a vision for model citizenry – a rare, iconoclastic view of what the millennials of today are really thinking and what they really face.
Business Story – Naima asks us to consider how the popular vision of celebrity model-hood is flawed & what a new economy/new media metaphor for success looks like: she has had to work very hard in everything she’s achieved; she has not gotten by just on her looks – she is the renaissance role model for entrepreneurial life in a post-digital age – the new media authentic millennial/young adult taking her life seriously and her passions and careers in music, her literary aspirations, and changing people’s lives with her work seriously and diligently.
Local Story Angle: Naima is a big supporter of Sacramento, local fashion design colleges, a close friend of Richard Hallmarq now appearing on Project Runway, and is sincerely dedicated to her huge fan base here locally and to supporting all who come creatively from the region.
Possibility Media Group is a “new media” creative agency and publishing company that specializes in working with creatives and companies whose content and technology (print, mobile and web-social) drive significant social impacts while also achieving profit/business objectives. Naima Mora is a perfect example of the kind of authors and strategic business opportunities they work with, due in large part to the authentically powerful integrity of Naima’s message and the real impact she leaves on young people through her work in the world – through her model behavior.
Social Media For This Book
Blog: Naima Mora Online - http://naimamoraonline.com/
Facebook Writer’s Page: https://www.facebook.com/NaimaMoraModelBehavior
Official Twitter: @Naimamora
Other Background:
◦ TV - Naima has made cameos on hit television shows (Veronica Mars, 2005; The Tyra Banks Show, 2005, 2006); Jensen!, 2006; E! True Hollywood Stort, 2006, and more). IMDB Link: .
◦ Recognition - Her awards for exceptional achievement, outstanding leadership, and dedication to improving the quality of life include: ‘The Spirit of Detroit’ Award, ‘The California Legislature Assembly’ Certificate of Recognition, and the prestigious ‘Key to the City of Cincinnati, Ohio.’ She is also an avid supporter of Willie Mae Rock Camp For Girls.
◦ Her Literary & Performing Career Intention - With Naima Model Behavior and her future books, including Model Citizen (due out 1st QT 2013 including fan/reader stories collected from 7/18/2012 – 10/19/2013), Naima hopes to inspire others to recognize their true potential and achieve their hopes and dreams. Naima continues to model and perform on television, and she is currently the lead vocalist of the rock band ‘Galaxy Of Tar.’
◦ Naima’s Blog Community – Become a Model Citizen by submitting your story, follow the latest events of her music and literary adventures, get Naima’s weekly posts and expert and celebrity guest posts in your in-box, and be profiled online and in her upcoming digital eBook “Model Citizen” for Nook and Kindle/Android users. The public can subscribe free and submit their story for publication at http://naimamoraonline.com/. Naima’s Music: Galaxy of Tar - http://galaxyoftar.bandcamp.com/
Quotes Attributable to Naima Mora
• Why she wanted to write the book: “I wanted to write something both encouraging and inspiring for young people. Something simplistic and beautiful to remind them that success and confidence lies within the simple idea that you really can achieve your dreams – with hard work and belief in your own potential and inner beauty.”
• Not Just Another Model-Turned Author: “Reality Television has become a Pop fad in our culture, allowing many people to become famous overnight. A person’s self worth is often determined by whether or not they are famous via television or have otherwise become a viral sensation.
I want to offer something real behind a reality TV experience, as in how to be true to one’s self once the lights are off and the camera is no longer rolling. It is my desire that young people have a reason to believe in themselves based on their own individual beauty from the inside out.”
What Reviewers Have Said
“Her ability to use the hard times in her life and the mistakes that she made as lessons, as opposed to excuses, and to have the strength to then share her story so that she may hopefully inspire others to reach their full potential is empowering.”— Hailey Woodman /Age 16, Springfield, OR
“It’s always been a pleasure working with and watching Naima grow within the fashion industry. I am very proud of her for her new accomplishment “Model Behavior” and I think it’s great that she is taking her career one step further by inspiring people!”— Nigel Barker/Fashion Photographer, Actor www.nigelbarker.tv/blog
“Great insight on what Naima experienced both professionally and personally. A must read!”—Jerris Madison/Creative Director, OBVIOUS Magazine www.obviousmag.com
“Though many know her from “America’s Next Top Model,” Naima Mora’s debut on the literary scene offers an alternative and rare look behind the mask of fame. “Model Behavior” exposes the raw emotions fueling Mora’s ascent to greatness, and shows us that behind the glitz and the glitter, there’s also a great deal of grit behind Mora’s picture-perfect looks. It’s a radiant morsel of self-help positivity, anchored by Mora’s genuine, unpretentious, and charming perspectives on beauty that showcase her ability to transform a would-be cookie-cutter platform on reality television into a beacon of inspiration for people of all ages who seek to better their lives.”—Joey Nolfi/Staff Writer East End Fashion Magazine & Editor of Popsmut – www.eastendfashionmagazine.com/ www.popsmut.wordpress.com
Related Links
http://naimamoraonline.com/bookings/
http://naimamoraonline.com/press/
https://www.facebook.com/NaimaMoraModelBehavior
http://galaxyoftar.bandcamp.com/
Suggested Tags: #SacLovesNaimaMora, Naima Mora, Naima Mora Model Behavior, Model Behavior, Naima Mora Online, health and wellness, inspirational book, youth, music, eBook, Galaxy of Tar, positive self-image, personal potential, healthy relationships, personal power, success, mind and body, overcomin life challenge
Media Representative/Publisher: About Possibility Media Group, Inc. (Possibility Books, Creative & Enterprise) is a Sacramento-based new media company providing local and global content, web and mobile, publishing, and 360-degree profit-driven social impact marketing, sales, and product solutions. PMG drives new media approaches to helping brands, creatives, and traditional companies, organizations, and charitable or social enterprises – doing good while doing well.
PMG creates and drives winning content, business and media and promotional strategies, social/mobile/web technology and innovative partnering with advertisers around people, ideas, story, and social impact to deliver both profit and social and human impact results. Founders are Sacramento-committed to creating jobs locally and leading technology innovation in the media and publishing space. Naima Mora provided the impetus for PMG to find it’s place in the world, and is committed to telling the stories she feels strongly about, to helping young people redefine what healthy living and socially conscious intentions look like. Naima Mora changes the world every day, and PMG is proud to support her dreams. For more info: www.possibilitymediagroup.com .
Tracy Saville, Publisher/Founder – 916-717-3250 or tracy.saville@possibilitymediagroup.com
For Press & Media, please contact Drisha Leggitt. 916-206-2553. drisha@luhdorff.net.
Or submit a query at: http://naimamoraonline.com/bookings/.
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February 18, 2013
Smile! You Can Change the World…
This week I officially launch the print tour of my book Model Behavior, beginning in Sacramento, CA at Sac Fashion Week. I just came off the runway in New York at Fashion Week there, and I am so excited to be sharing knowledge and inspiration with would-be models, designers and creatives in the industry.
Me on alumni day of my old ballet school Ballet Renaissance in Detroit. Notice the smiles…
I’ll be on a Fashion Industry Forum panel Monday night February 25th, on Good Day Sacramento (C31) and appearing in other media and radio outlet interviews that same week. If you are local please join me at my exclusive book signing reception where you can get a photo with me and hang out together at the Face It Salon & Boutique in Midtown, and help us raise some funds for programs for kids and healthy body image. More details coming in the next few days…but all of which makes me smile!!
This week’s column is appropriate for we need not wait for a single moment before starting to improve the world. We can start with simple, yet extremely affective actions. If I have said it once, I have said it a million times, “Smile! You’d be surprised at how this little thing can change your whole day.” (Naima Mora: Model Behavior) You’d be surprised at how this little thing can change someone else’s whole day!
I believe that as human beings who live collectively together, we are responsible for one another on a daily basis. When we act selfishly, thinking only of ourselves, we refute the fact that we are part of an environment and that our actions have a deep impact on that environment. When others around us are happy, we are happy too! When I happen to pass a stranger who seems sad, I give them a smile. I hope that in this small gesture I can make their day a little happier. A small act is never too small when it is based on compassion and love!
Our joy and happiness comes from the inside out. It comes from our heart, a miraculous thing that can produce endless amounts of joy and happiness. So, why not share it?
We need not wait a single moment before starting to improve the world. What is that one thing you love to do so much, but never have time for? When you get home late at night after work and all you want to do is watch TV and sack out, use the time instead to invest in that project you’ve been putting off. It makes you happy, so why not? When we are happy by doing what makes us happy, we become a life that is energized – creation in its purest form. So no matter how tired we are, we begin changing ourselves on a much deeper level- thus changing our environment and improving the world. Because when we are happy, others around us become happy too!
Join me by smiling and thinking about what you could be doing with your life or career to change the world…share your ideas with me here!
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January 30, 2013
Model Tips: Starting Your Modeling Career
I have met so many young people in my travels around the country and the world who want to pursue a modeling career, and they just don’t know where to begin! In this installment of my Model Tips, I want to discuss exactly how to begin your modeling career. Here are some key tips on exactly where to begin.
Starting Your Modeling Career
If there is one thing I can say about how to start a modeling career, it is that it has no definite step by step procedure. There are however some very important general steps you can take to begin your modeling career.
The first step is this. Start taking photos. Most models start off their career doing mostly test shoots. A test shoot is when a group of industry want-to-be-professionals come together to produce a photo shoot with the sole purpose of making images to put into their personal portfolios. In every town and city around the world there are photographers, designers, makeup artists and hairstylists that need models to work with.
You can start by taking some simple snap shots of yourself; it doesn’t have to be professionally done. Have mom or your best friend take some simple beautiful photos of you in natural light while smiling and looking like your beautiful self. Print those photos and take them to some of the local talent you may want to work with. If there is a hair salon you enjoy going to, take them your photos and mention that you would like to model for the next set of promotional photos they will need for their business.
If there is a local designer whose clothes you love, go about the same process. You can reach out to anyone like this and the chances are, they will most likely be more than willing to work with you! Remember to get High Resolution (or HiRes) copies of the images from any photo shoot so that you can add them to your own personal portfolio.
A lot of models also find other industry professionals on internet social networks and set up test shoots with them from there. Having a few of your best photos on your social network page may not be bad idea. Just make sure they are tasteful and represent you the best. Also, if you are younger or feel unsure of the test shoot always bring someone with you. Bring mom or a sister to set with you and don’t be embarrassed of this. You always want to protect your safety first!
The second thing you may want to do is take the photos you have gathered of yourself to a local modeling or talent agency. People underestimate the references you can find online, but the internet is a great way to start the search for these local modeling/talent agencies. Simply search for “Modeling and Talent Agencies in (your city here)”. A list should come up with some information.
Chapter One Title Page from Model Behavior
Take some time to investigate if they have working models that their company represents. Look at what kind of work those models have done. This will give a reflection of the type of clientele the agency works with. Usually clients will return to an agency in the future for more models to work with, giving you the possibility of a casting, go see or actually booking the job!
Contact them and move forward with a meeting with your local Modeling or Talent Agency and from there you can decide if it is a good fit for you.
Many models want to take their career a little further than the city they live in. In this case, I would do the same research on the city you want to live move to for pursuing your modeling career.
In the United States, New York City is the most important fashion driven city. The next is Los Angeles and the third is Miami. In that order the demand for a more commercial look increases and the demand for more a high fashion look decreases. All in all, I strongly believe the city that would offer the most work for a model would be New York City.
You can research the Modeling and Talent Agencies in these cities. Usually they will have a “Board” of their models on their website which includes images of all the models they represent.
Check out their Board of models and see if you would fit in well with that agency. They should also have listed some information on how they accept submission portfolios. Contact them and submit your photos. You can also take a weeklong trip and visit the city of choice you may be interested in to see if you like it.
This will give you the opportunity to go in to the agencies you have been researching for a one-on-one meeting. Not every agency will be interested in representing you. But that’s ok. Someone will!
Don’t forget “Boutique” agencies. These are smaller, newer agencies that have a limited board and are usually more open to accepting new models to represent. They are agencies that can help you begin your professional modeling career with more attention to you. These agencies may have a board of only fifty models where larger agencies may have a board of five hundred.
Lastly, if you decide to move on and sign a contract with an agency they may provide Model Housing. This is an apartment or house that is shared with other models that the agency represents. It is not a bad living situation to start off with, but a lot of agencies will ask for a small rent payment that will be taken out of your future check.
Most importantly, if any agency asks for a lot of money up front IT IS A SCAM! A reputable agency should be able to provide you with Composition Cards (model business cards with some images of you and your sizing information), test shoots, a valid portfolio and model housing without asking the cost of it upfront.
This is the agency’s investment in your talent. It is a risk for them as they are starting you off as a “New Face”, or literally a new face in the fashion industry. The cost of these amenities will be taken out of your check once you start booking work.
I hope this helps out for all of those aspiring models out there in the world! GOOD LUCK!!! For more advice on building a career as a model in the fashion industry and other great tips, please consider purchasing my book MODEL BEHAVIOR!
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You Need To Drink More Water
In “Model Behavior” one of the important points is to take care of your health. A healthy mind, body and spirit is essential to being in top condition for following those dreams down some occasionally gnarly paths. You must be fit to meet the challenge! This article by Shereen Jegtvig explains the importance of staying hydrated. Drink that water! – Naima
Why Drinking Water is Important for Your Health
By Shereen Jegtvig, About.com Guide
Updated July 11, 2012
About.com Health’s Disease and Condition content is reviewed by our Medical review Board
Blood, muscles, lungs, and brain all contain water. You need water to regulate body temperature and to provide the means for nutrients to travel to your organs and tissues. It also helps transport oxygen to your cells, removes waste, and protects your joints and organs. Taking in too little water or losing too much water leads to dehydration. Symptoms of mild dehydration include thirst, pains in joints and muscles, lower back pain, headaches and constipation.
A strong odor to your urine, along with a yellow or amber color, may indicate that you may not be getting enough water. Note that riboflavin, a B vitamin, will make your urine bright yellow when you take dietary supplements that contain large amounts of riboflavin. Certain medications can change the color of urine as well.
You lose water through urination, respiration, and by sweating, and you lose more water when you’re active than when you’re sedentary. Diuretics, such as caffeine pills, certain medications and alcohol may increase the amount of water your body loses. Lost fluids must be replaced by the fluids in the foods you eat and the beverages you drink.
How much water do you need to drink? At least twenty percent of the water you need comes from the foods you eat. The rest comes from the beverages you drink. Some experts believe you can estimate the amount of water you need by taking your weight in pounds and dividing that number in half.
That gives you the number of ounces you may want to drink each day. For example, if you weigh 160 pounds, you might want to drink at least 80 ounces of water or other fluids per day. Other factors include amount of physical activity and the climate where you are located. My hydration calculator can help you determine how much water you need to drink each day.
Water is probably the best choice for rehydration because it’s cheap and has no calories or added ingredients. Sweetened soft drinks and sodas have added sugar that adds extra calories but no additional nutritional value. Sports drinks contain minerals that may help keep your electrolytes in balance, which is good for recovering after a hard work out, but look out for added sugar and calories that you may not want.
Fruit and vegetable juices can be a good choice because they have vitamins and minerals your body needs (read labels, however — vegetable juices may be high in sodium). Caffeinated beverages like tea and coffee count too, but too much caffeine can make you feel jittery.
Sources:
Armstrong LE, Pumerantz AC, Roti MW, Judelson DA, Watson G, Dias JC, Sokmen B, Casa DJ, Maresh CM, Lieberman H, Kellogg M. “Fluid, electrolyte, and renal indices of hydration during 11 days of controlled caffeine consumption.” Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2005 Jun;15(3):252-65.
Institute of Medicine of the National Academies. “Dietary Reference Intakes: Water, Potassium, Sodium, Chloride, and Sulfate.” Accessed March 15, 2007. .
Spigt MG, Kuijper EC, Schayck CP, Troost J, Knipschild PG, Linssen VM, Knottnerus JA. “Increasing the daily water intake for the prophylactic treatment of headache: a pilot trial.” Eur J Neurol. 2005 Sep;12(9):715-8.
This article can be found at: http://nutrition.about.com/od/hydrationwater/a/waterarticle.htm
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January 23, 2013
My New Album! Galaxy of Tar
Dear fans and friends,
My band Galaxy Of Tar just released our new album BARRETA. You can download the single for free at our website www.GalaxyOfTar.com We are now touring the west coast and our next show will be at Pehrspace on February 1st in Los Angeles,CA.
BARRETA released February 19th and is available now – along with cool merchandise like awesome T-Shirts, stickers and hard press cd’s of BARRETA.
My sister Ife also did debut her new album “Fire Inside Of Me” February 5th. Billboard.com (Billboard Magazine) just released an awesome article covering her new music video “Tell Yo Papa” in support of the album. The video is an awesome rocked-out homage to women and Detroit Rock City, Motor City where we grew up.
My sister Ife has been one of my most important influences in following my dreams and pursuing my career. Her creativity, grace and fearlessness has always inspired me to be strong and believe in myself.
Here is the link to the Billboard.com article! Follow me on Twitter @naimamora and tell me what you think of my music!
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Galaxy of Tar’s New Single & My Sister’s Album
Dear fans and friends,
My band Galaxy Of Tar just released our new single “1% Of Static” from our forth coming album BARRETA. You can download the single for free at our website www.GalaxyOfTar.com We are now touring the west coast and our next show will be at Pehrspace on February 1st in Los Angeles,CA.
BARRETA is coming February 19th along with cool merchandise like awesome T-Shirts, stickers and hard press cd’s of BARRETA. I will keep you posted!
My sister Ife is also debuting her new album “Fire Inside Of Me” February 5th. Billboard.com (Billboard Magazine) just released an awesome article covering her new music video “Tell Yo Papa” in support of the album. The video is an awesome rocked-out homage to women and Detroit Rock City, Motor City where we grew up.
My sister Ife has been one of my most important influences in following my dreams and pursuing my career. Her creativity, grace and fearlessness has always inspired me to be strong and believe in myself.
Here is the link to the Billboard.com article!
The post Galaxy of Tar’s New Single & My Sister’s Album appeared first on Naima Mora Online.
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