Ever feel like your modelling career isn't going as you'd like it to? We've all been there. I myself must have experienced or at least witnessed most of the classic and lesser-known bumps in the road out there!
One day, you've got plenty of emails from interested photographers and other clients to catch up with, you get a flurry of publications, your Facebook likes are increasing nicely and your tours are selling out almost effortlessly. Everything is on the up and up and you think, "this is it! I've done it! I've arrived." The next minute, you arrange a studio day and not enough people book in, or post a casting call that no-one responds to, and that deflating feast/ famine cycle starts all over again. Sound familiar?
It's tough when you're a one-woman show with no agency to find big jobs for you. Believe me, I know how it feels! That's why I wrote The "Ugly" Girl's Guide to Modelling: No Agency? No Problem! Five Steps to Begin, Maintain and Improve Your Modelling Career Without an Agency- to share everything I've learned over the last nine years as an agency-free model. The title is a satire on the idea that anyone not accepted into an agency is too "ugly" to model. That's a myth I'd like to dispel as soon as possible!
I'd like to take this opportunity to answer some frequently asked questions about The "Ugly" Girl's Guide to Modelling, because I'd love for women to really understand what it is and why it's worth the £12.99.
Photographer: Jamila
1. What information on modelling does The "Ugly" Girl's Guide to Modelling have that I can't find for free online?
This might sound harsh, but the problem with doing Google searches for modelling advice is that the people who tend to give the most free advice are usually the ones with the least knowledge of the realities of making money from freelance modelling. Most of them are photographers who have never modelled in their lives. Many have their own agenda, such as trying to lower modelling rates, get more traffic to their website or get more TFP shoots. That doesn't mean that what they're saying is necessarily untrue, but it should be taken with at least a grain of salt.
Having said that, I do specifically recommend some quality online resources for new models in the The "Ugly" Girl's Guide to Modelling, such as Iain Thompson's Glossary of modelling levels, which is very useful if modelling is completely new to you.
For experienced models who are already making some or all of their living from modelling, there is almost no information whatsoever online on how to up your game and turn a good career into a great one. I've been searching for years! It seems most full-time models are afraid to share their real money-making secrets with others. That's where I'm different :)
Chapter titles in the book include:
- Getting the job
- How to get paid
- Up your game
- Recommended photographers (along with their actual contact details!)
Some of my other favourite parts include:
- A handy flow chart for setting and adjusting your rates
- The four questions to ask yourself before accepting a modelling job
- Discovering your Unique Selling Points
- How to "eat clean" and unlock your natural beauty on a budget
- Healthy wholefood recipes designed to address specific beauty issues and created exclusively for the book by celebrity nutritionist Juliette Scarfe, such as glowing skin, improved energy, a clear complexion, and beating chocolate cravings
2. Won't I just figure it all out for myself anyway?
It takes years of research, experimentation and talking privately to model friends who are honest about what they do to get all this information, which, when added up, costs thousands in time and money: just think of all those TFP shoots you didn't need to do, how much you spent on each, and what you could have been achieving for your career during those precious hours, and then multiply it by however many years you've been modelling. I don't think it's good to concentrate on the negative, but it's important to consider what approaches, makeup, clothing and exercise routines didn't serve you and be realistic about how much time and how many potential jobs could have been lost because of them.
The "Ugly" Girl's Guide to Modelling is the closest thing to a short-cut to success currently available in the world.
The book has been selling steadily and I've had some wonderful real-life feedback from agency-free models around the world who are already using it to improve their beauty, profits and self-confidence. I'm so happy that this game-changing resource is now available for every internet model in the world to use to compete in our tough online market!
Lots of love,
Anita xo
PS: Have a question about the book? Comment on Facebook and I'll answer it personally!
