MY WRITING CAREER

Since 2023, I’ve been a Science Writer at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. As one of the world’s premiere R&D labs for science and technology — and this nation’s largest, with more than 7K people from 70+ countries — ORNL is an endlessly fascinating workplace, where there’s so much going on and plenty to learn.

Since 2010, I’ve worked as a full-time, professional writer/editor. I’ve always enjoyed both technical and creative writing and editing, but after five years as a technical writer for a state-contracted healthcare nonprofit, I craved more creativity, so I took a detour into marketing for a startup environmental-technology B2B SaaS developer. While there, I collaborated with the marketing director on a complete rebranding and web-presence overhaul to boost conversion rates and sales, writing everything from web content, blogs and social media to white papers, case studies, brochures and CEO thought leadership.

In 2016, I joined the Creative Digital Design & UX department of an award-winning, full-service, independent advertising agency with a global scope, where I helped launch a new Freightliner truck for Daimler and for most of the following seven years, wrote and edited a huge variety of web content and copy for multiple industries, products, services, platforms, destinations, nonprofits, universities, federal agencies, national parks and more. I was often the go-to guy for writing and editing whatever was considered technical and/or lengthy content, but I also had lots of opportunities to try my hand at writing brief and clever copy too, which was fun. This partial list below includes ad agency clients for whom I contributed writing, editing, and/or strategic input between 2016 and 2022:

  • AUTOMOTIVE: Daimler, Detroit, Freightliner, RealTruck, Alliance Truck Parts, SelecTrucks, Thomas Built Buses, Big Tex Trailers/Sno-Way Snowplows, SeaRay, Maaco/Meineke

  • BANKING/FINANCE/INSURANCE/LEGAL: Truist, Home Federal, ENT Credit Union, First Farmers, Education Loan Finance, Farm Bureau, Protective, Markel, Joe Baker Law

  • BEER/WINE/SPIRITS/LUXURY: Yee-Haw, Warsteiner, Highland Manor, Josh Cellars, WindRacer, Paddy’s Irish Whiskey, Sazerac, Ekornes/Stressless (luxury furniture), LeMond Bikes

  • CPG/FOODSERVICE/RETAIL/GROCERY: Coca-Cola, Dole, Bush’s, Krusteaz, MoonPie, Lodge, Steak-umm, Uncle Ray’s, Capital Grille, Darden, Krystal, Shoney’s, Wal-Mart, Food City, Weigel’s, FiestaMart, Wills Group, Sam’s Club, Pilot Flying J, H.T. Hackney, National Retail Federation

  • DESTINATIONS/HOMEOWNER SERVICES: Manhattan Project National Historical Park, Gatlinburg, Tellico Village, Shannondale, Suntex Marinas, BMS CAT, Cinch Home Services, ServiceMaster

  • EDUCATION: University of Tennessee Center for Industrial Services, UTK Athletics, Rasmussen University, South College, Laurel Springs School

  • FEDERAL AGENCIES/ASSOCIATIONS/NONPROFITS: NASA, NHTSA, TVA, DOE, National Parks Service, Carteret Catch, US Travel Association; UN World Food Program, Knoxville Area Urban League of Young Professionals

  • HEALTHCARE/WELLNESS/LIFESTYLE: Atrium Health/Carolinas Healthcare, BioLife/Takeda, CHI St. Joseph Health, Mercy Health, Farm Bureau Health Plans, Quest Diagnostics, UT Medical Center, Orange Theory Fitness, Wellcore, Sun Tan City, Heart + Paw, ShareLife, Glanbia (nutrition)

  • TECHNOLOGY: Lyft (SaaS), ZorroSign (SaaS), ORKLA/BeeTIDY (SaaS), Hargray (ISP), Eastman (chemical), Rachio (smart sprinklers), Invisible Fence