I am a product marketing pro with years of copy writing, editing, and photography experience based near Portland, Oregon.
I have considerable experience and expertise in the consumer tech sectors. My superpower is crafting messaging for complex material that is easy to understand and resonates with a target audience. Nature photography and conservation story telling are also a passion (as you can see from the Galleries/Blogs).
I started my career as a copy editor for one of the world’s leading IT newspapers, IDG’s ComputerWorld, where I eventually “cut my teeth” as a reporter. An avid interest in personal computing and entertainment let me to IDG’s PC Games magazine, where I served as Editor in Chief. From there, I worked on many other consumer technology publications in a similar role, including Future US’s NVISION, which led to a 12-year stint as a product marketing manager at NVIDIA. I’m currently self employed and open to taking on custom projects and/or contract work. Examples of projects I’ve produced over the years can be viewed below.
NVIDIA
As a Product Marketing Manager at NVIDIA working on the 3D Vision product line, I led a redesign for the product’s companion web site, 3DVisionLive. This was one just a few destination sites in the world you could use to view and enjoy 3D content. I maintained and updated the site with new technical features and fresh weekly content, organized photo and video contests, and interacted with and managed the community. The site hosted hundreds of videos and thousands of images, which included everything from Snoop Dog videos to Kim Kardashian images and the latest 3D movie trailers. (View some screen captures of the site.) I also supported the 3D Vision product line in traditional product marketing activities, including product testing, crafting messaging, interacting with press and industry partners, and running show floor demos at various industry trade shows, such as CES.
NVISION - Future US
I had the pleasure of taking on a flagship project, NVISION, for Future US’s custom publishing division. This was a high quality quarterly newsstand publication covering the world NVIDIA’s technology impacted from a consumer perspective. The magazine’s focus was on all things entertainment under the NVIDIA umbrella. This included everything from the latest AAA PC games, to how cutting edge special effects in movies like The Chamber of Secrets were generated, to how to set up a high-end 3D movie theater in your living room. Towards the end of my tenure, I helped create a digital version of the publication for Android platforms. My work on NVISION, and passion for the technology, eventually led to me being recruited for a position at NVIDIA, now one of the largest companies in the world.
Windows Magazine - Future US
For a number of years I produced Future US’s newsstand-only special issue, Windows: The Official Magazine. This was a top seller in its category and highlighted the latest tips and tricks for making Windows run faster, more stable, and increasing productivity via hidden and advanced features. I always learned a lot making each issue, which included a variety of updated articles from sister publication Maximum PC, as well as original articles including features and reviews by yours truly.
Maximum PC Special Issues - Future US
It was an honor and a privilege to work with the team responsible for producing what I’ve always felt was one of the best consumer tech magazines in the business, Maximum PC. I was brought onboard to helm the production of the brand’s quarterly newsstand-only special issues, which covered everything from selecting the best components for a kickass home-theater system, to building a top end gaming rig on a budget, to complete rundowns on all the best hardware you could buy to get the most out of your PC. This is also where I learned how to build my own PC from scratch, under the scrutiny of some of the best builders around. It was a good time, and the magazines were always well received. (Click either image at right to be taken to an online version of each sample issue.)
Electronic/PC Entertainment, PC Games - IDG
My ComputerWorld Doom story (below) sparked my own intense interest in PC gaming, and my eventual move to the West Coast from Massachusetts to be the Games Editor for IDG’s monthly newsstand publication, Electronic Entertainment. E2 covered everything in the new hot consumer trend of “multimedia”. As the market changed, game coverage took over the publication, which I became Editor in Chief of when it was renamed to PC Entertainment, and eventually, PC Games. The magazine faced many challenges, including a shifting identity, in a highly competitive, shrinking market. I learned a great deal about publishing, management, budgets, the games industry, and a bit about design during my tenure there. While there, I was fortune to meet all of the most famous names behind the biggest games in the industry - many personal heroes. More importantly, I made some of the best friends of my life, and had some of the best times of my life. Heck, I even met my future/current wife there. As with all the magazines I worked on, in addition to editing, planning, managing, and proofing each issue, I also contributed many words. I wrote everything from Editor’s notes, to columns, to features, to reviews.
ComputerWorld - IDG
My first job out of college was a copy editor position for IDG’s weekly ComputerWorld newspaper, one of the company’s flagship publications. The entire staff was first rate. The copy editing team was tight, supportive, thorough and took great pride in their work. I wasn’t the best “comma cop”, admittedly, but I improved dramatically and this position kick-started a life-long career in writing, editing and proofing. I am extremely grateful for this experience today.
While on the copy desk, I helped spearhead the company’s transition from the mainframe and dumb terminal “dark ages” into the digital WYSIWYG desktop publishing future. My knack for PCs and learning new programs proved highly beneficial during this challenging shift. My goal was always to write, however, and I moved over to a news reporter position under the guidance of some of the most dedicated and skilled editors I’ve ever met.
I quickly learned the ropes and took on some complex beats as the new guy that didn’t know any better. In relatively short time I’d scored a few page one stories, and eventually penned one of my personal favorite pieces to this day, a news story about how a new PC shareware game called Doom was crashing the networks of Fortune 500 companies around the country. An oversight, or error, in the code was overloading networks and bringing them to their knees at crucial moments and leaving IT managers stressed out. The story was exciting to ferret out, and it landed smack dab on the middle of page one when it was done. This story, and experience, really ignited my passion for the gaming sector and consumer tech journalism. During my investigation period for the story I purchased what was, for me, a ridiculously expensive PC so I could play Doom myself and see what all the fuss was about… You can view the story clips as originally printed here, or view on Google Books.
When the 3D Vision product line was discontinued I transitioned to working on NVIDIA’s ground-breaking game-streaming platform, GeForce NOW. I assisted with product testing, and generating all the various types of copy needed to support the product - product manuals, blogs, whitepapers, email messaging, UI copy for the GeForce NOW apps, web site copy, etc. (Some examples.)
While serving as the team’s go-to for all editing duties I also supported the product at trade shows and press demos, while providing similar support for various other products under the GeForce brand at NVIDIA. I also presented our products to potential partners, explained how they worked and how to use them, their benefits to potential customers, and how they differed from competing products in the marketplace.
