Delias clothing scattered across the floor, endless samples of drugstore makeup, and posters of Justin Bieber and the Jonas Brothers were the true staples of my bedroom during my middle school years. I was the classic tween: celebrity crushes, watching makeup tutorials on Youtube, crying over my first boyfriend, all these things I thought would make or break my life.
What got me through? Unlike the endless pints of Ben and Jerry’s and Netflix shows that I rely on today, my saving grace was simply the glorious glossy covers that appeared in my mailbox once a month. I’m talking about tween magazines, the essential go to for all problems in a pre-teen’s life.
Within the pages of J-14, Popstar, Girl’s Life, Tiger Beat, Teen Vogue and so on, I felt comfort. Looking back on this period in my life, I was so vulnerable but I could also be consoled in the simplest of ways. If a quiz in Tiger Beat magazine told me this would be the month my crush finally asks me out, I believed it. If the advice column told me that the new Maybelline mascara would be essential for my first school dance, I felt the utmost confidence while wearing it. My awkward questions about periods, boys, or changing for gym class that were simply unapproachable in a conversation with my mom, were answered by my favorite writers or young celebrities.
My point is, why can’t my problems be solved anymore by the information in tween magazines? I think the problem isn't the magazine but rather how the audience tends to perceive magazines as they get older.
“You identify with the magazines you read. I love Cosmo, I love Vogue and Seventeen. Those publications got me through high school,” said past Editor-in-Chief of Elon’s Edge magazine, Lindsey Lanquist.
The magazines I read now aren’t simply following arrows that lead me to my horoscope for the month. They are complex. They talk about issues that relate to health, fitness, politics, culture, and more. While the information has changed though, I have matured with it. I can dissect the information given to me about how women’s healthcare may change in result to politics or how to exercise in order to keep off the ‘Freshman Fifteen’.
I miss tween magazines because they more simplistic, colorful, and of course for the free posters. They got straight to the point and gave me advice on all things boys, drama, makeup and clothes.
I’ve realized however that I have grown past that. It is time to form my own opinions. I don’t need to be told if my love life will work out that month because I realize I have full control over my happiness and personal affairs. I need to be provided with information and advice still, but it is up to me to figure out how to apply it.
As one grows up, his or her influences and interests are bound to alter. What’s so great about articles and magazines, text in general, is that it is always fresh and new. Finding a publication that expresses who you are and who you strive to be, is eternal. Tween magazines may be in the
past, but so are the middle school years. At least I will always find comfort in opening the mailbox and pulling out the glossy covers that give me the greatest confidence and relief I have ever known.
