This week, we heard from our editor of Active Aging, Tiana Molony, who is recently back from a trip to Castle Combe in England. She’ll be getting married there later this year and has been pushing through with wedding arrangements amidst her regular assignments and stories. It didn’t hold her back from jumping right into this week’s sizable issue, however.
What has been a highlight for you when editing the special sections? What is your process like for putting together a special issue like this one?
I think a highlight is getting to write about a person who changes me for the better. For this issue, that happened twice: with centenarian Henry Mealy and 84-year-old hiker Al Sladek. Both were incredibly inspirational.
When putting an issue together, it’s usually a mix of me researching story ideas and people pitching them. With that said, here’s the perfect opportunity to put it out there that I’m always open to new story ideas. I welcome pitches at tiana@independent.com.
What was your favorite part of being at Castle Combe earlier this month? What are you most looking forward to when you’re back in October?
I mean, Castle Combe is so magical. Things move a lot slower there, so it was nice to get a bit of a respite from the hustle and bustle, even though I was technically working on that trip. I think I’m most excited to see all of our friends and family experience just how special it is.
Did you and your fiancé, Oliver, get to explore anywhere else in the UK?
We went to London for a day to visit some of Oliver’s relatives, which is always fun, and traveled to Bath twice, which is an ancient Roman city just 30 minutes by car from Castle Combe. It has this old-world charm that makes you feel like you’ve traveled back in time.
How have you juggled planning a wedding with your regular writing and editing workload? Do you have any advice for brides planning an overseas wedding?
I won’t lie, it’s a lot! Really, a lot of people say this, but planning a wedding is a second job. Some days, I want to pull my hair out, and I’ve had my fair share of meltdowns, but I consider myself lucky that I get to stress about something so exciting — life could be a lot worse. My advice would be to ask friends and family for help. Too often, the bulk of the work lands on the bride. I’ll definitely be reflecting on that in next year’s wedding issue!
What’s your next story or special section you are looking forward to working on?
Next up is Home & Garden, which is one of my favorite special sections to put together. I love getting creative with it and coming up with unique story ideas. For example, for the spring issue I wrote about the benefits of backyard beehives and actually put on a bee suit, so that was pretty awesome!
