Writing Samples
I’ve hyperlinked the heck out of my resume, but here are some additional examples of my work.
Recent: Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Although I’m neither a child nor obese, I tackled this topic from the perspective of worried grandparents (um, I’m also not a grandparent) in an article for LifeTimes magazine. The intended audience was the Medicare crowd in Illinois, particularly those who may be their grandchildren’s primary caregiver (and thus don’t have to worry about upsetting the daughter-in-law with caustic comments about her cooking).
I also distilled longer articles into Facebook posts for the BlueCross BlueShield of Texas page. When applicable, the posts were also uploaded to the fan pages for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Oklahoma, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois, and Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Mexico.
Taos Case Studies
Part of my job at Taos was to make the 500 systems administrators who worked for Taos — but not at Taos – feel like they knew one another and had a strong community identity. I started a little get-to-know-your-colleagues series on our intranet called Geek of the Week.
Some of our geeks (who were proud to be known as such) had such a compelling story of their time at a particular assignment that the management team asked me to write some case studies that showed how Taos sys admins could save a company money, heartache and hassle.
These samples have a lighthearted, conversational tone that suited the company brand at the time. Given the complex subject matter, this tone also makes the studies more readable, personable and especially relatable. After all, the point was to convince potential customers of a product’s value (the product in this case being somebody who actually knows what they’re doing).
Case Study No. 1 (fixing a sucky ticket tracking system)
Case Study No. 2 (handling rolling blackouts [Remember them? They were once common in California])
Case Study No. 3 (migrating from dial-up to VPN)
Case Study No. 4 (reorganizing a colocation facility to consolidate space and save money)
Taos Marketing Materials
Much like case studies, these articles described a particular service that Taos offered (problem diagnosis, moving from one colo to another) or unusual aspects of the corporate business model that distinguished it from a typical staffing agency (using best practices [sorry about the missing space in that one!], the rigorous hiring process, continuing education for those not currently on assignment and the management hierarchy).
The tone of these articles is also inviting and evocative and representative of my skills as a writer for business communications.
WHERE Magazine Frivolity
As the editor of WHERE Dallas, a magazine found pretty much only in area hotel rooms and on the desks of career concierges, I could choose to assign an article to a freelance writer or snap up the fun topics for myself.
Given the long hours and pressure of editing not just this magazine but two others simultaneously, of course I planned a review of area spas, selecting treatments faithful to the four elements. Another great perk of the job was eating at Dallas’ best restaurants for free — this review of restaurants high in the sky is a typical example.
WHERE is an international brand, and occasionally the editorial director would ask all of the editors to write about the same topic, tweaking it for their respective city. It made for a great apples-to-apples comparison when awards time rolled around. Happily, Dallas won best cover for our version of “The Ultimate [City],” and I had a wonderful time gathering up some stereotypically exploitative trivia for this article showcasing the best of Big D.
The Investigative Journalism Jackpot
My first editor-in-chief gig was for The Gaming Journal, which sought to simultaneously interest both the business side of the gaming industry (just don’t call it gambling) and the local player who couldn’t believe casinos had just opened up in their own backyard.
These articles about proper tipping practices and anti-cheating measures in casinos are mostly educational for players, while giving props to the pros on the other side of the table and the other end of the surveillance camera.