Journalist/Copywriter

Valerie Christopher

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OBJECTIVE

A position as Writer

AREAS OF EXPERTISE

News/Magazine/Technical/Online Copywriting ~ Editing ~Public Relations ~ Advertising/Marketing

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Professional Web Page Design, Inc.

Website Copywriter Cincinnati, Ohio

2009 to present

• Website copywriter for a corporation, which owns and creates over 5,000 websites covering topics on anything from radiology to fashion and beauty. Duties include researching, finding images and writing 1,000 plus word content for up to seven websites per day.

Suite101 Cincinnati, Ohio

Online Freelance Writer 2008 to present

• Contributing Search Engine Optimization (SEO) writer for Suite101, a consumer online magazine with web traffic beyond 8 million monthly, highlighting over 400 topics on anything from Fashion & Beauty, Medical Terminology to Must-see Destinations

• Write stories of personal interest based on keywords that demonstrate popular searches on sites like, Google. Each story attracts advertisements for Google that appeals to the topic and subject matter

Angie’s List Indianapolis, Indiana

Associate Editor 2008 to 2009

• Edited, interviewed and created web content for ten magazines produced by Angie’s List, a 650,000 homeowner membership service that serves 124 U.S. cities and provides reviews of home contractors

(RFL: One of 100 employees laid off due to a loss in revenue during a downward economy)

The Desert Sun Palm Springs, California

Entertainment Writer/Editor 2004 to 2007

• Provided entertainment, restaurant, Fashion/Beauty and consumer product coverage on a daily/weekly basis for The Desert Sun and its seven publications

• Responsible for interviewing, repurposing content and writing a wide variety of consumer engagement marketing pieces—print ads, direct mail, collateral and web

• Created names and product descriptions—in accordance with the brand voice

• Pitched/reported/wrote, proofread and edited stories related to TV/Film, A-list celebrities, Medical Technology, Products/Business trends, Fine-dining, Fine Art, Fashion, Theater, Books and Music

Selected Achievement: Created a weekly fashion page that increased print and online readership in addition to attracting young readers by writing content geared toward their interests and by planning and hosting commercial engagements, such as Film Festivals, Fashion Shows and Day Spa Events

The Cincinnati Enquirer Cincinnati, Ohio

Freelance Education Reporter 2001 to 2004

• Generated ideas for educational coverage of the Greater Cincinnati and Kentucky school districts

• Reported, interviewed, pitched/wrote about education for grades K-12 in Greater Cincinnati/Kentucky

Selected Achievement: One of a few freelancers to write an education piece that made front page news

USA Today London, England

Freelance /Technical Writer 1999 to 2001

• Performed, wrote and assisted with investigative medical corporate research for Clinical Studies

• Wrote and transcribed technical policies and procedures to explain UK’s medical devices and usage for U.S. journalist through clinical reports and integrated summaries

• Researched/Fact-checked non-public information to compare and contrast UK’s medical companies’ policies while determining the cost of prescription and OTC dosage and the effects of UK leading health products with those of the U.S.

Selected Achievement: Investigated and uncovered the decision making of leading health care companies such as Schering- Plough while learning to navigate as a first time tourist in the UK

SKILLS/ EDUCATION

AP Stylebook, Lexis/Nexis, MAC, Microsoft Office XP, InCopy, AIRS, basic HTML, QuarkXpress 4.0

Bachelor’s of Science in Journalism from Ohio University’s E.W. Scripps School of Journalism

Four-year Scripps Howard Scholarship recipient for excellence in print-journalism

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