About & how I work
What you say and how you say it.
I started in design, moved into branding and publishing, and eventually began building software. But at the root of each effort is language.
The arc
I started as a designer and frontend developer in 2006, fixating on fonts and endlessly rewriting placeholder copy to get it just right. Then I segued into brand strategy, helping people and companies figure out how they should sound, who they should speak to, and how to communicate what they’re all about to strangers.
Then I became a publisher and author. I co-founded a small press, edited other people’s books, and wrote a stack of my own. From there, I committed myself to online publishing and podcast production, and years of daily writing for an audience that votes with its attention taught me how words actually land on the other end, and how to ensure I’m sending the right messages.
Now I build software, end to end, handling the brand, the naming, the interface, every word of copy, and the strategic direction.
On paper, those look like separate careers. In practice, it all taps into the same drive to make things explicable and arm people with the understandings and tools they need.
How I work
A few of the ideas that shape my work:
- Start with the purpose. Every piece of work is doing a specific job for a specific person. If I can’t name the job, the post, newsletter, or button won’t do what it needs to do. This is as true of a block of copy as it is of an app or widget.
- Systems over one-offs. A good brand voice is replicable and scalable, not a collection of ad hoc lines only I could write. Bug sweeps, fact checks, and content calendars are likewise better when systematized.
- Less of better. I’d rather ship fewer words that carry weight than a tome that hedges, confounds, or complicates. I’d rather publish a brief but effective blog post over 5,000 words of gobbledegook, and deliver an app that does one thing incredibly well over an app that offers a dozen slapdash functions.
I work comfortably alongside designers, PMs, execs, and engineers, and I’m just as happy owning a voice, content system, or product end to end as plugging into an existing setup and respecting its constraints.
Core skills
Some of the skills underpinning my work:
Availability
I’m open to senior and lead roles in content strategy, editorial, writing, copywriting, brand and product content, and content operations. I’m interested in work that combines making, strategizing, and managing, especially when the subject is complex and the language needs to be clear, accurate, and recognizably human.