#MediaMonday – Shana Schwarz
Today’s #MediaMonday is extra special to me, as we profile Mrs. Shana Schwarz. I first met Shana in high school, though she was a year younger than me and did not attend Horizon. She was, however, the high school sweetheart of one of my favorite buddies of all time, Mark Schwarz.
And the love of his life.
Well, until they married and had three adorable children – two of them twins. So, the loves of both of their lives increased three-fold.
Somehow, with three little ones at home plus Mark, she has managed a great writing career that is only just getting started. Oh, and she is getting her Master degree, too.
So, today’s #MediaMonday comes to us from Shana Schwarz, who is cover story and features writer for So Scottsdale, Scottsdale Health and Uptown Magazine as well as features writer, film critic, events editor and social media editor for AZ Lifestyle Magazine.
So, Shana, time to share!
What do you want to tell the blogosphere about yourself today?
In case you can’t tell by my list of titles, I’m a bit all over the place. I’ve been writing about movies for various publications for 14 years, starting with The Arizona Republic when I was 17-years-old, and am now a member of the Phoenix Film Critics Society. I love sharing my passion for movies, but I also really enjoy telling great stories about local folks doing amazing things.
I grew up on the west side of Phoenix and graduated from Cortez High School followed by ASU where I majored in Journalism, with an emphasis in Media Analysis and Criticism and a minor in Film Studies. I worked at KOOL 94.5 in college and then for a local PR firm that handles movie screenings for local press. From there, I followed a boy (whom I later married) to Southern California where I worked as a media buyer for a few years before taking a really cool job running adult kickball leagues for the World Adult Kickball Association. I spent 2013 with the Arizona Diamondbacks monitoring and posting to the team Twitter feed.
I’ve learned a lot from every job, but have always loved writing more than anything. While I finish up my master’s degree in Instructional Technology and stay home with my 5-year-old daughter and 2-year-old boy/girl twins, I’ve been lucky to write each month for the great local outlets mentioned above. I’m hoping to teach online in a journalism or film department after I graduate from the University of Colorado this May and will eventually finish one or more of the five novels that I’ve started (no, really, I will).
When I’m not working or doing homework, I am hanging with my family, playing volleyball, watching The Voice (and getting up the nerve to audition), seeing movies or local plays, sweating my face off at Studio Fit, or reading.
I am the most obnoxiously optimistic person you’ll ever meet and love to give back to my community whenever I can. I turned devastating loss at a young age into a desire to make the world a better place one life at a time. My favorite charity projects are the wish I granted with Make-a-Wish in 2010 and the money I raised for two great groups for my 30th birthday by shaving my head.
My dream in life is to become famous for something (most likely writing) so that Dancing with the Stars and Celebrity Jeopardy will invite me to compete. Did I mention I’m really, really, super-duper, unabashedly nerdy?
As for story submissions, I’m not the decision-maker for my outlets (except for my Pop Culture and Family Travel pages on Examiner.com), but my editors certainly don’t mind when I come to them with good ideas. If you’ve got a cool place or person in Scottsdale or the Uptown area, send me a few notes on why our readers might be interested.
For AZ Lifestyle, we are always looking for local arts, culture and charities to highlight, as well as events. For our monthly calendar submissions, send me a 60- to 80-word blurb at least six weeks in advance of the event month. Include a high resolution image if you’ve got it and I’ll be your new best friend.
Email me at shanaschwarz@yahoo.com or find me on Facebook. I have a personal Twitter page, but since I run pages for a few local business, I’m rarely on it personally. Want to pitch me an idea, offer me a job, or hear about the time that I met George Clooney at the Oscars? Call me at 310-955-8099.
