My passion for fashion

by Clover Campbell—Lake Bluff, Illinois, USA

I'm 16 and I have been interested in fashion, modeling, and performing for several years. My fascination with fashion began after I took part in a beauty pageant when I was about eleven. I loved being in front of crowds and performing for them. So I decided this was the right path for me.

A few weeks after I participated in the pageant, a modeling and acting school in Chicago called me for an audition. I was accepted as a student at the school, and I soon began learning how to walk on the runway, perform, apply makeup, and do my hair. My passion became more and more intense, as I learned about the business.

When I was thirteen, a group of us from the school went to New York to compete at IMTA (International Modeling and Talent Association). It was amazing. It gave me confidence, experience, and excitement.

Shortly after, I joined a couple of other agencies and began to see the down side of the business. It was tough. The few auditions that I was sent out on weren't what I'd expected. They were short and extremely competitive. But each time I had an audition I was optimistic.

After waiting and waiting for calls to tell me if I had made the next cut, my confidence began to diminish. The calls never came, and it became harder to walk in and out of auditions with optimism. I didn't know if I could continue doing something that was bringing down my confidence.

But then I realized what was most important: the fact that God was, and always is, guiding my career. I decided to go to auditions with the thought that if God wanted me to have this job, then I would be hired. If not, God would lead me to something better.

I began to feel more relaxed and less anxious. I did my best, without being concerned about the outcome.

And recently I got my first callback! I was hired to film a back-to-school television commercial advertising jeans for Sears Department Store.

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