Getting Ready for My Close-Up

By Lisa B. Samalonis

The phone rang an hour after my essay on buying a home for myself and my two sons after divorce went live. The caller ID had a (212) area code: New York City.

Reflexively, I let it go to voicemail.

Minutes before I had received an email, a LinkedIn request, and tweet from producers at a major national morning news show: Good Morning America.

Was this some well-coordinated prank? Or was it really a GMA producer calling me, a camera shy and video averse essayist who writes alone from behind a computer screen in her home office? My stomach tightened as I listened to the message.

The producer said he saw my essay, “I lived paycheck to paycheck after my divorce. By making some tweaks, I was able to buy a home for my kids,” published on a business and parenting website and subsequently reposted on Yahoo’s headline daily news that same morning. He invited me to be interviewed later that day for the GMA’s money segment scheduled to air the following day.

Facing My Fears

Even though I have been publishing essays in magazines, newspapers, and on the web for years, I had never been invited to appear on television and frankly, that was just fine with me. I prefer to create in the quasi-anonymity of my suburban existence. However, the personal finance topic in a down economy had generated buzz. The producer noted in his message that the morning show’s audience loved a good money story about a mom who budgeted successfully. My essay’s attention-grabbing headline (written by the website’s editors) enumerated several tips that helped me afford a new townhouse after getting divorced, paying off debt, and regaining control of my financial life.

I called my oldest son and a few friends before returning the producer’s call. My son revealed that the producer was ringing and emailing him to get a hold of me as well. That was both flattering and alarming.

“I think it is legit, mom,” he said. “You should do it.”

My friends agreed. “How can you not?” and “You can’t let this pass you by.”

I looked around my messy office. I had been working remotely for several years. I hold a full-time job as a medical editor in addition to my freelance writing gigs. I could stage the room for the video backdrop easy enough, but could I quell my anxiety to seize this opportunity.

As a journalist, I am usually the one conducting the interviews. I had no formal media training as an interviewee. What if I looked ridiculous and fumbled over my words or misspoke so my meaning was unclear?

When I returned the call, the producer explained this would be a short, taped segment interspersed with a voice over and some pictures of me, the house, and my sons. I agreed to do the interview despite my nerves. The producer handed me off to the segment producer and we set up the interview for the next day as that day’s breaking news had bumped the schedule.

This provided an extra day to prepare. I watched media training videos on YouTube and made a list of the bullet points I wanted to share. I also considered my personal boundaries—like details I didn’t want to disclose about my divorce.

Sharing the Message

I write essays about raising sons as a single parent because I have been changed by this challenging, yet wonderful, experience. My bond with my sons has been forged through difficult times and has required perseverance, a collaborative effort to problem solve together, and radical honesty between us. I write to connect with other people who have experienced or are experiencing similar things.

I also write to inform others who might not understand the single parent perspective. But I reminded myself that appearing on television to talk about my essay was about the message, not me. After my divorce, I learned to better manage my finances which helped me create a stable life for my children. I wanted to encourage and educate others.

As I spoke with the segment producer, I mentioned my reservations of getting flustered, speaking too fast, and muddling my message, and she assured me her job was to produce the best segment possible and that included making me look and sound good. I emphasized that the point of my essay was to empower people to live their best life and directly face their financial situation despite fear.

Welcoming New Opportunities

Ultimately, the segment ran about five minutes, and I communicated as effectively as I could. I didn’t tell many people before my TV debut, but friends, family, and colleagues saw it and called to tell me it was great. Plus, it was picked up by local and national ABC affiliates and repurposed into other articles across internet. And after that I got invited to be a guest on a financial podcast, which was another first.

Yet for me this experience was less about my five-minutes of televised fame, and more about challenging myself to say yes to an unexpected opportunity to share the message of my writing in a different medium. Although I am not sure my nerves could take a repeat performance on national television anytime soon, I am glad I pushed the writer me—shy and (still somewhat) video averse—out from behind the anonymity of the computer screen and in front of the camera to embrace my close-up. This has led me to think: what might I do next? And, of course, what will I wear?

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Lisa B. Samalonis is a writer, editor, and essayist from New Jersey. Her essays have appeared in Insider-Parenting, Next Avenue, The Independent, and The Philadelphia Inquirer among others. Connect with her on LinkedIn, X, or subscribe to her newsletter.