Content Writing: Making the Complex Simple
“The best marketing doesn’t feel like marketing.” – Tom Fishburn, author of Your Ad Ignored Here.
Content. I’m quite content writing it. True, it’s not exactly “copywriting,” my previous bread-and-butter, but it’s increasingly in demand as a smart way to promote brands as innovators and thought leaders. It also combines my training in journalism (college newspapers, freelance articles, etc.,) with my natural curiosity, and my insistence on making even the driest subjects info-taining. My mission, as I’ve chosen to accept it, is to make the complex simple.
Here’s where you can find some of my best content writing.
FOR BRANDS AND WEBSITES
Ginseng: A Virtual Drugstore | An interview with Dr. Laura Murphy
For: Sigma-Aldrich eZine. (By the way, every since I wrote this piece, I’ve been devoted to ginseng. Read the article to see why.)
DNA Breakthrough Over Dinner | An interview with Dr. Peggy Farnham
For: Sigma-Aldrich eZine. (One of the most complex topics I’ve ever tackled. This took a lot of coffee and long hours, but I’m happy with the results.)
FOR NEWS AND FEATURE SITES
Nerves of Steel: Competitive St. Louis Horseshoe Players and a Beloved Hall of Fame
Who knew the National Horseshoe Pitchers Hall of Fame was right here in the St. Louis area? I didn’t. But when the #STLMADE site assigned to write a story about it, I gave it my best throw. I pretended I was writing this feature for the front page of the Wall Street Journal.
Niche of Time: How John Clark and Masterclock Keep the World In Synch
My first feature story for the news and feature site TheStl.com, part of the #STLMade movement. (This 800-word article was crafted from an interview transcript of 45 single-space pages. It’s all about boilin’ it down.)
“For Sally Lorino and Nagesh Khanvilkar, it was compatibility at first sight.” So begins my STLMADE story about Odd Couples Housing, an innovative St. Louis company focusing on housing solutions by mixing generations.
The Censored Doonsebury Comics of 1976: Revealed Again
For the University of Missouri – St. Louis Current. (An interview with editors at King Features and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch revealing how some “sexy” strips went unpublished.)
People Who Talk in Movie Theaters Target of H.U.S.H. (Help Us Silence Half-Wits)
For: Colorado Springs Sun. (My first published humor column for the Colorado Springs daily paper feature section, and a long-standing obsession.)
FOR MY OWN WEBSITES
How To Win Ad Awards Without Really Trying
My mini-memoir of my first year in the ad business, and how an unexpected (and appreciated) storm of creative awards put me somewhat reluctantly in the spotlight.
Channelling the Prospect: What Would Winona Want?
My article explaining my use of not-so-imaginary avatars in brainstorming and whiteboard sessions — and the important of simplicity. (Guest-starring Winona Ryder. Sort of.)
What Walt Jaschek Believes. And Doesn’t Believe.
A personal, comic manifesto — in list form. And speaking of lists:
11 Signs We’re Writing Too Many List Posts.
‘Nuff said.
See more Walt Jaschek content writing.
