High Society

"I used to be a socialite and now I just write a lot" is a certainly a statement that makes you sit up and take notice. It was one of the first things that drew me to the blog and after reading a few posts I was hooked. Social Writers contains everything that I need in a blog; music (lots of it), films, TV, sport and entertainment news and it is also written from a lighthearted perspective but minus the snark.  It is produced by a close knit team of four people, three of which are freelance journalists and one who is a bloggert. The socialites aka Kaydine, Reah, Richard and Karlito who collate their stories from various sources in an attempt to keep us all entertained. I caught up with the four of them to find out what life is like post socialite life.

What is the concept behind Social Writers and how did you come up with the name? 

Kaydine: The concept behind Social Writers was that I am a freelance journalist and many people call me a socialite/social butterfly - so I combined the two terms and created Social Writers. So the blog combines the things we encounter whilst out socialising, whether it be at an event or on Twitter, and things we want to write about. 

What made you start blogging?

Kaydine: I started blogging to keep my creative juices flowing as I was making the transition from journalism to PR as my choice of career. A lot of publications were shutting down, so I decided blogging was a way for me to continue writing, and it gave me an opportunity to write about topics I was passionate about.
Reah: I wanted to write about the things that interest me, on a regular basis, in the hope that others would also find it interesting
Richard: I was introduced to blogging at University and took a short course in it which I enjoyed. The idea of giving anybody a platform for which they can tackle issues that affect society, culture or whatever their particular interest is, excites me.
Karlito: I've had an overly keen interest in everything to do with entertainment, and a very creative and over-active imagination. I also have no kind of journalism training whatsoever but I think sometimes you are presented with opportunites that you can't let pass by, so I decided to take a chance with Social Writers and I haven't looked back since. 

How many people are behind Social Writers?
Kaydine: There are four people behind Social Writers; Karlito, who turned into a blogger overnight with no experience in blogging or journalism, and two of my friends, Reah and Richard, that I went to university with who are also freelance journalists. 

How do you think bloggers have made an impact on the media?

Karlito: I think it gives a wider range of people a voice and also reaches out to more consumers as not everyone watches the news or picks up papers and magazines on a daily basis. I also think it keeps established writers in major companies on their toes as a lot of independent writers are better than them but just didn't get the same lucky break(s). I guess you could say bloggers (should) have one ear to the 'street' as they say and therefore could be more in touch.
Kaydine: Bloggers have become a big part of the media: people no longer have to turn to traditional media outlets to read a story, they can read a story on a blog seconds after the story has been broken. Blogs allow people to have a voice and to share views.Richard: Bloggers have had a major impact on media due to the fact blogging offers something quite rewarding that a newspaper cannot. There’s a true sense of freedom of speech when it comes to blogging because  when given a PC, a web page, YouTube, and some pictures, you can truly let the mind run free without anybody telling you cannot share your views.  The views can sometimes dangerous, and may not be everyones cup of tea but hey that’s the fun of it all.
Reah: Bloggers have made an incredible impact on the media. Blogging has created user generated content, people no longer have to rely on tradition forms of media outlets ( newspapers, the evening news ect) to inform them on worldly events. Anyone can become a blogger and write about things that interests them and other like minded people, that you may not find in your daily newspaper.  Thus creating the 'citizen journalist'. Therefore this has created a huge pressure on the media, because blogging has created an increase in the speed of how people actively receive news and as such, has placed a level of power in the hands of the average blogger. Not that I would want to go on any further... 

What do you do when you are not blogging?
Reah: Looking for things to blog, ( if I don't write, then I aint right! lol), listening to music, reading, eating, partake in the usual Facebook and Twitter banter,oh and I do a spot of living in between.
Kaydine: When I'm not blogging I'm getting on with my job as a Digital Liaison Officer (Online Publicist), tweeting away, or I'm catching up on all the TV shows that I've missed, dining out or socializing with friends. 
Karlito: I'm a youth and community worker so I do a lot of programme planning/activity organising for young people and help families with day-to-day problems/queries. Also partake in everything i write about, i.e.- music, films, theatre, fashion/shopping, clubbing & socialising etc...
Richard: When im not blogging im busy studying sports journalism, playing football, training at the gym, politicking about artists music and fashion, writing about artists music and fashion and generally living life like its golden. 

Describe a typical day.
Kaydine: Wake up, check my Blackberry for emails or Blackberry Messenger messages, make my way to work. Check my emails again, Twitter, Facebook etc and then I spend the rest of my day working on client projects, emailing/ringing bloggers, attending meetings and brainstorms and stuffing my face with food. After work if I don't have an event to work at or attend, I'll either go home and put my feet up in front of the TV, or you'll find me somewhere in central London dining out.Reah: I am up by 9.00am and washed and dressed. I check and reply to my emails. In between work, I roam the internet and hound my trusted news sources for the latest scoop. Check my favourite blogs and news site. Download music sent to me by my music affiliates via emails and blog links. Eventually I blog.
Richard: Wake up. Check the BBC site email accounts and media outlets for press releases. Try to write a to do list. Go for a 3 mile run. Return. Go to school. Read papers on the way for stories and depending on if those stories hold weight, blog in between lectures. Read more on train home. Hit the gym, then come home. Check email accounts. Sleep.
Karlito: A typical day usually consists of keeping up to date with the entertainment and gossip world, work deadlines and meetings, tweeting, catching up with friends. Going to sleep and do it all again the next day. 

Social Writers focuses on a lot of entertainment, where do you get your stories from?
Richard: There's a saying that once its happened, no news is news. We live in an age where its actually pretty hard to get ‘exclusives’ because those in the public are are so media prone that they will try their best not to step out of line. With this in mind I recycle stories in mainsteam media, press releases help as well. Furthermore I work as a freelance journalist interviewing artists, and so forth so I usually get the scoop from that angle as well. Kaydine knows her industry wise, Reah's got the scoop on music and me and Karlito do too. Trending topics on Twitter help as well. 
Karlito: Reading a lot of papers, the net, chasing up rumors and hearsay, friends and associates, friends in significant places and listening to music.
Kaydine: Some stories I get from press releases I'm sent, others are from newspapers and observations of my own, e.g. watching an awards show, and others are from people's discussions on Twitter
Reah: We blog about anything that interests us or what we feel may interest our reader, whether it be entertainment, culture, world news or fashion. Therefore where we get our stories from, varies. 

Name five blogs that you read religiously
Kaydine: Mad News, The Musings of Ondo Lady (every Friday), necolebitchie.com, mashable.com and Social Writers.
Karlito: Social Writers, Bossip, Necole Bitchie, Milk and 2 Sugars, hithiphop.com
Richard: RealTalkNY, Bossip, WorldstarHiphop, Football 365, The VF Blog
Reah: Pinboard, Necole Bitchie, Eminence Grise, CWHATEYEC, Mad News 

How do you see Social Writers evolving over the next two years?

Reah: I want our passion for writing and our love for creativity to propel us to unimaginable heights!  
Kaydine: Maybe an addition to the team, with more of our own video content and hopefully we'll get out own website to host from.
Richard: Evolving to a .com site and eventually being the public’s first stop for all things entertainment. Simple.  

You can check out Social Writers here.

You can follow them on Twitter here.