For nearly sixteen years I was beauty director at O, The Oprah Magazine. I've been an editor at Ms., Redbook, Self, and Parenting Magazines, among others, a contributing writer at Parents and Entertainment Weekly, and have written hundreds of articles on a wide range of topics for many national publications. Because of my intimate connection with magazine readers through my monthly column at O, my extensive experience interviewing beauty experts—from makeup artists to dermatologists and plastic surgeons—and my writing on the many aspects of the beauty culture, I'm considered an expert in the field. My monthly Ask Val page in the magazine was followed by millions of faithful readers since its inception in 2003.

Many of the essays I've written for O, The Oprah Magazine on various subjects—from raising a son to trying Botox—have been collected in anthologies featuring the magazine’s notable contributors.

I've appeared many times on national television, and have been a speaker at O, You events—appearing before up to 5,000 women who have enrolled in a day’s worth of Oprah-centric activities.

Keynotes:

The Generational Dermatology Symposium, February 2015

The Cosmetic Bootcamp Symposium, July 2016

The Women’s Dermatologic Society Annual Meeting, March 2017.

Books: 

Citykids (Simon & Schuster), about raising kids in cities across the country and In the Weather of the Heart (Doubleday), a memoir of my marriage.

I taught feature-writing at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

My goal continues to be to shift our thinking in the beauty arena from self-criticism to self-compassion.

I'm particularly interested in the intersection of kindness and perceptions of beauty; there is existing research but I believe more needs to be done. I’m also working on developing a protocol for doctors doing aesthetic evaluations. And a multi-media project, including a weekly Substack newsletter: How Not to F*ck Up Your Face, philosophical and practical advice for anyone who’s ever looked into a mirror.  Since 2022, I’ve been a contributor to The Cut at New York Magazine.

valeriemonroe.substack.com