2012 in Review

This year was a whirlwind. There were big changes in every part of my life—from where I work and how I work to how I think about my future. Months flew by like hours on a summer afternoon. I honestly cannot remember what I was doing in July or even October. So here’s to a few minutes of self-reflection, continuing with the thread from 2011.


Client work

I started the year off with Lab Zero and a few personal clients. I wanted to go into 2012 with fewer projects so I could feel more confident and at peace in my work—and I kept that promise to myself pretty well. I pulled back on huge, hairy chaos and focused on Lab Zero’s website redesign. I left before it was finished, but it looks great, friends, and I miss you like woah.

Along with helping my peeps at Pier 9, I took a few projects in the spring:

Survs hired me to write a couple of brief product announcements. I loved working with these guys across the pond and I can’t wait to see what they do next.

Katie Chin needed a few more case studies for her winter-inspired portfolio. If you’re looking for a designer in New York, hire this lady. She’s smart as a whip and super easy to work with, even from SF!

Quality Peoples asked me to do some copywriting for their latest collection. We also collaborated on a few tees with my haiku.

I helped 45royale a bit with their spiffy new site by spot-checking nomenclature and giving them editorial advice.

Special thanks to my repeat clients this year. It’s so lovely to hear from people more than once and I loved working with you all.

A change in direction

A few months into the year, I started feeling comfortable. Too comfortable for my own taste. I’d been consulting for about two years and wanted to switch things up, so I started looking for a big change. From 2005 to 2011, I usually felt like the lone ranger. If I wasn’t the only content person, I was usually the one training the others—and I was super hungry to learn from other content peeps.

So in late March, I interviewed at Facebook and landed the job. Holy moly, that was quick! I gave my notice, said my goodbyes, shut up shop, and headed down to Menlo Park to join a growing team of content strategists. And I’m so happy I did.

It’s an incredible honor to work with Facebook Design and I’m super stoked about the projects I’m on. If you’re curious about Facebook Content Strategy, here are a few links to learn more about us:

In my first few months at Facebook, I focused on voice and tone for the Facebook Developers site. Since the fall, I’ve been working on Facebook Timeline and what we call the Open Graph. It’s a bit of an abstract concept, but I think of it as how you express yourself through things you care about.

In the community

Along with growing with my team, I tried to stay involved with the larger content strategy community this year. I went to Confab in Minneapolis and hung around Brooklyn Beta in the fall. I fell head over heels at Books in Browsers and spent a good amount of time mentoring peeps in San Francisco or by email. For more about Books in Browsers, check out the talks on YouTube. My notes are on Facebook, too.

Writing

I doubled-down on writing for the industry this year. Here’s a recap of my new work for a few publications:

I also shared a few tricks in my tiny content strategy framework. Check them out on GitHub.

Interviews and more

Jonathan Kahn interviewed me for his delightful podcast. Laura Uhlir also interviewed me at home with Geoffrey for her site, Rad Lady.

I redid the Swell Content site to be more readable on mobile devices and relaunched my personal blog.

I also launched Born Hungry, an online magazine for home cooks. I have a few pieces of my own there along with smarties like Jonathan Kahn and Kate Kiefer Lee.


Thank you

This has been a wild, beautiful year for me. I want to thank my friends, colleagues, mentors, clients, and critics. Thank you for supporting me in all my efforts to slow down and dive into writing more deeply. Thanks again for encouraging me to be me. I have a few exciting things to share in the next few weeks. To the new year!

1 comment

  1. As usual, I am floored. You amaze me. So happy for you. Started to write good luck in 2013 and wrote good lunch in 2013. Slip of the tongue.

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