I met the oh so talented Nina Bargiel, aka the @slackmistress, at the #140Conf last month in Los Angeles. Working as a TV and Web series writer, you might have seen her most recent work on MTV’s Valemont (a transmedia experience, taking place across multiple platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, VerizonSMS and ValemontU.com).

Nina’s background in writing for both traditional media and transmedia give her a unique perspective as the face of entertainment changes and adapts. Read on for your dose of inspiration!

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1. How did you get the name “The Slackmistress?”

Back in 1997 I was working at Earthlink Network. My boyfriend at the time also worked there, and he was busy creating his “personal web space” (remember those?) and he called it “The Slack.” One of the first things he wrote on there was a list of things he had in his briefcase. So it looked something like this:
A #2 pencil.
A notebook.
A pen.
& etc.

I told him unless he had a severed head in there, no one cared. (Tact, thy name is NOT slackmistress.) He said if I thought I could do better, I was welcome to. I wrote a short essay called Notes on Decaf and called myself “The Slackmistress.” Then I wrote a bunch more. Six months later we broke up and he gave me the site. I wrote weekly essays at The Slack starting in 1997 (I don’t think it was called blogging yet) and moved to The Slack Daily in 2006. I didn’t have a clue that I’d still be doing this in 2009.

2. Why did you choose your current career and how did you get started?

I didn’t really choose my career – it chose me. I moved out to LA to work in entertainment. I had just graduated from film school but wanted a job with a weekly paycheck. I liked to argue with people, so I thought I’d be an agent. Plus working at an agency was a great training ground. It was – a training ground that made me realize I had NO BUSINESS being an agent.

I had always written, and while reading client scripts I realized I could try my hand and TV writing. A few years later I got my first gig on “Lizzie McGuire” and then moved on to writing a few different live-action and animated shows (“The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy” “Romeo”) and then things slowed down. WAY down. Then one day I got a call from my former “Lizzie McGuire” Executive Producer Stan Rogow who had founded a company that was making Web TV called Electric Farm Entertainment. They were looking for someone with TV series experience who also innately knew and understood the online environment – from blogging to forums to Twitter to Facebook. I started working with them, writing episodes of Crackle’s “Woke Up Dead” as well as penning the characterblogs, as well as creating and writing the ARG as well as additional online content for MTV’s “Valemont.”

3. If you had to describe yourself in three words, what would they be?

Funny, creative, busty.

4. What are some new, emerging online social media platforms/tools that you absolutely love?

It’s not emerging but I LOVE TWITTER. OMG I LOVE TWITTER. It’s funny because I’m all about the social side of social media. And I think Twitter is sheer perfection for that. I have met some of the most brilliant, funny, engaging people through Twitter.

5. You are always “ON!” You manage 8+ Twitter accounts, have a weekly online show, and are engaging with millions of people from all over the world 24/7. How do you manage your time?

I don’t sleep? Honestly, I’ve spent my years in social media having fun and being social. I used to joke that I live in social media – I met my husband through blogging – he even proposed in his blog comments. When we got married we almost crashed the Mandalay Bay’s server that was webcasting the nuptials because people had seen our relationship evolve online. It’s such a natural extension of who I am and what I do, that I don’t really think about it.

I mean, for work, it IS work. But I love what I do. Both “Woke Up Dead” and “Valemont” are forging new paths in entertainment. With “Valemont” I created the entire online world and immersive experience, and the fans have been AMAZING – not only in responding to the material, but participating and creating and making it their own. So every day I wake up wanting to give them more to play with.

Right now I’m paid to wake up and do something creative every single day (until the end of November, when my current gig ends.) That’s pretty awesome, so if I lose a little sleep, that’s okay.

6. Please share a professional phobia or obsession….confession session!

Clowns. Clowns scare the CRAP out of me. Oh, professional? I’m always convinced that I’m never going to work again. Being a writer is scary sometimes.

7. What do you believe successful “Wild Web Woman” traits are?

Not being afraid of your voice and knowing how and where to use it.

8. Do you have a personal mantra that you would like to share with other Web Marketing Therapy readers?

If the other kids don’t like you, it’s because they’re jealous. Wait, sorry, that was my mantra in third grade.  Don’t take it personally is my mantra for almost everything. As a writer, people are always commenting on your work and giving notes and trying to pay you less, etc. Don’t take it personally. (This also works for living in public – blogging, livestreaming, Twittering, etc.)

*For more Web Inspiration, Check Out Part Two of the Slackmistress’ Interview.

Web Marketing Therapy Related Links:

• Featured Wild Web Woman Wednesday Interview with TV and Web Series Writer, “The SlackMistress” (Part Two)
• Featured Wild Web Woman Wednesday Interview with Shelly Kramer (Part One)
• Featured Wild Web Woman Wednesday Interview with Small Business Expert Amy Swift (Part Two)
• Featured Wild Web Woman Wednesday Interview with Small Business Expert Amy Swift (Part One)