There are few sectors of the economy that offer as wide and interesting a range of career opportunities as fashion. Role Call highlights some of the industry’s most interesting jobs and the talented people who do them. For more information about fashion industry roles like this and others, visit BoF Careers.

NEW YORK, United States — Katharine K. Zarrella is the senior editor of V Magazine and VMAN. After graduating from Colgate University in New York with a degree in English literature and a minor in art history, Zarrella began her freelance career in New York, writing for publications such as Style.com, Interview Magazine, W Magazine, Dazed & Confused, i-D, Showstudio, and The Business of Fashion, among others. In 2010, she moved to London to pursue a Masters degree in fashion journalism at Central Saint Martins. Upon completing her Masters in 2012, Zarrella returned to New York to become associate news editor at Style.com, a post she held for two years. She has worked at V since September 2014 and lives in Greenwich Village.

BoF: Please describe your current role.

As the senior editor of both V Magazine and VMAN, I’m able to dip my fingers into a wide range of creative pots. Together with team V, I conceptualise each issue and decide which artists, musicians, actors, innovators, and, most importantly for me, designers will be featured. I also assist in coordinating photo shoots, running the V and VMAN websites and editing each issue. However, first and foremost, I am a journalist and an important part of my job is to hunt down young design talent, interview the industry’s movers and shakers, explore cultural and fashion phenomena and tell compelling stories.

BoF: What attracted you to the role?

I've been a fan of V for ages. I remember bringing an issue on the plane with me when I moved to Paris in 2008 (Gwyneth was on the cover, lensed by Mario Sorrenti) and pouring over it all the way from JFK to CDG. After working in the digital space at Style.com, the opportunity to create a beautiful print magazine – something permanent – appealed to me. I've always loved that V is completely fearless, sticks to its guns and turns out arresting, surprising covers and editorials. But, in the end, the main thing that drew me to V was the team. I work with a wildly diverse and intelligent group of people and it makes for a very lively work environment and magazine. I'm always forced to maintain an open mind.

BoF: What is the most exciting project or initiative you have worked on?

One of the best things about my line of work is that I find almost all of my projects exciting. I've had the opportunity to interview so many incredible people, from Karl Lagerfeld and Hubert de Givenchy to Inez & Vinoodh and Carine Roitfeld, and even 2004 MacArthur Fellow Pedro Sanchez. The most exciting, or perhaps most fulfilling, story I've worked on was a piece I wrote for Style.com last year on domestic violence in fashion. The article was a response to the April 2014 Vogue Italia editorial, "Horror Movie," which depicted bloodied, helpless, lifeless models donning the styles of the season. It was a very personal story for me, as my mother worked closely with a shelter that helped abused and battered women throughout my childhood. I didn't realise that it would speak to so many people. The following day journalists from around the world commented on the piece. BBC Radio even reached out and asked me to discuss the topic. Writing articles that resonate with readers is the highest accomplishment in my eyes. I think stories such as this are proof that fashion – and fashion journalism – aren't by any means vain, vapid pursuits.

We are always thinking about how to get our readers excited about – and involved in – the conversation, whether that's engaging them via social media posts or encouraging them to comment on the website.

BoF: How is your role changing? What are the forces driving this change?

Social media and the Internet are definitely changing my role. I refused to join Twitter and Instagram for years, as brevity has never been my strong suit, so whittling anything down to 140 characters is a real struggle. I eventually caved because my former job at Style.com required a social media presence. Social media affects how we communicate with our readers. When we’re working on an issue of V or VMAN, we are constantly thinking about extra content that we can post on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter. We are always thinking about how to get our readers excited about – and involved in – the conversation, whether that’s engaging them via social media posts or encouraging them to comment on the website.

BoF: Tell us about a time you failed and how you learned from it.

When I was studying at Central Saint Martins, I had a heated encounter with the late Professor Louise Wilson, to whom I am eternally grateful. My MA class was trying to publish 'The Central Saint Martins Journal,' a compilation of our work that we hoped to place on each seat at the CSM MA show at London Fashion Week. This had never been done before and Louise was concerned that our newspaper would not live up to her aesthetic standards. I was tasked with representing the class and working with Louise. When I took the first mock-up of the journal into her office, she was less than impressed. She said it looked like "a venereal disease." I was shocked, furious and frustrated, but deep down I knew Louise was right. I was on the brink of giving up until my classmate said that we just needed to try again. Sure enough, when we returned to Louise's office with a new draft, she approved it (with a number of edits) and our journal was on every seat at the CSM show. This experience reminded me that if you're passionate about something, you absolutely cannot, under any circumstances, give up.

BoF: What advice do you have for people who are interested in doing what you do?

Nothing is going to happen unless you make it happen. Get out there and write as much as you can. Meet as many people as possible and stay in touch with those people. There’s nothing wrong with taking a non-traditional path. In this day and age, you don’t need to start out as someone’s assistant in order to eventually become a journalist or an editor. Try freelancing! Stalk editors (to a point) until you get published. Don’t be snobby when it comes to assignments. Pitch fearlessly and relentlessly. Most of all, learn your fashion history. It’s impossible to write, edit, or create a magazine that speaks to the present – and the future – if you don’t have a grasp on what happened in the past. In the same vein, live fashion, but also live outside of it. Despite popular belief, the industry does not exist in a bubble, and in order to write relevant commentary on it, you have to understand what’s going on in the world at large.

This interview has been edited and condensed.

For more information about fashion industry roles like this and others, visit BoF Careers.