Studio Blog
Welcome to the Demand Studios Blog – a resource for writers, contributors and freelancers alike! Come here for answers to your questions, Studio news, writing tips and more.
Posts from August
Your weekly update on what’s happening now. Each week the editorial team will highlight trending topics that are creating buzz on the Web and what you should keep an eye on in the coming week. For more information on how to best use this information, log in and check out the community forum post located here.
Five Trending Topics:
Five Breakout Topics:
Five Trending Topics:
- Tropical storms/hurricanes
- US Open (tennis)
- college football
- bed bugs
- Ground Zero
Five Breakout Topics:
Seasonal gardening tips
Facebook Places
Apple September Press Conference
Oktoberfest
Food Safety
Facebook Places
Apple September Press Conference
Oktoberfest
Food Safety
Ever wonder what it's like to work for Demand Media Studios? We checked in with our community of freelance creators — writers, copy editors, filmmakers and titlers — and asked them to share their experiences. Hundreds of people chimed in about why Demand Media works for them. Tune in daily to read their firsthand accounts.
My name is Nikki Jardin. I’ve primarily held jobs as a cook but have dabbled in many other careers, including working for a stand-up comedy production company, spending two years with the U.S. Forest Service and most recently, managing a nonprofit restaurant that provided food and comfort to people experiencing poverty and homelessness. I have always wanted to write and am grateful that I found Demand Media Studios. This gives me the opportunity to earn money while honing my craft, and it allows me to work on other journalism projects without worrying too much about where the next paycheck is coming from.
My name is Nikki Jardin. I’ve primarily held jobs as a cook but have dabbled in many other careers, including working for a stand-up comedy production company, spending two years with the U.S. Forest Service and most recently, managing a nonprofit restaurant that provided food and comfort to people experiencing poverty and homelessness. I have always wanted to write and am grateful that I found Demand Media Studios. This gives me the opportunity to earn money while honing my craft, and it allows me to work on other journalism projects without worrying too much about where the next paycheck is coming from.
Ever wonder what it's like to work for Demand Media Studios? We checked in with our community of freelance creators — writers, copy editors, filmmakers and titlers — and asked them to share their experiences. Hundreds of people chimed in about why Demand Media works for them. Tune in daily to read their firsthand accounts.
I am Marcia Moore, and I am an independent consultant in Dallas. I love writing for Demand Media Studios. It is very well designed and easy to follow the instructions. The editors are wonderful and don't make you feel like less of a professional when you do the rewrites. The Help Desk provides quick responses and a good experience. I plan to write more articles and would recommend Demand Media Studios to any writer out there who wants to have fun and make some extra money. Thanks to the staff of Demand Media Studios for their good work.
I am Marcia Moore, and I am an independent consultant in Dallas. I love writing for Demand Media Studios. It is very well designed and easy to follow the instructions. The editors are wonderful and don't make you feel like less of a professional when you do the rewrites. The Help Desk provides quick responses and a good experience. I plan to write more articles and would recommend Demand Media Studios to any writer out there who wants to have fun and make some extra money. Thanks to the staff of Demand Media Studios for their good work.
Ever wonder what it's like to work for Demand Media Studios? We checked in with our community of freelance creators — writers, copy editors, filmmakers and titlers — and asked them to share their experiences. Hundreds of people chimed in about why Demand Media works for them. Tune in daily to read their firsthand accounts.
I'm Michelle Gaut, and when I tell people that I earn enough as a freelance writer to pay the bills, the No. 1 question people ask is, "How do you do it?" Of course I tell them all about Demand Media Studios. I hold an M.Ed. in curriculum and instruction and taught for 15 years, which was very rewarding. Even more rewarding is the ability to homeschool my 10-year-old son, who has special educational needs, while being engaged in work that I enjoy.
I'm Michelle Gaut, and when I tell people that I earn enough as a freelance writer to pay the bills, the No. 1 question people ask is, "How do you do it?" Of course I tell them all about Demand Media Studios. I hold an M.Ed. in curriculum and instruction and taught for 15 years, which was very rewarding. Even more rewarding is the ability to homeschool my 10-year-old son, who has special educational needs, while being engaged in work that I enjoy.
Ever wonder what it's like to work for Demand Media Studios? We checked in with our community of freelance creators — writers, copy editors, filmmakers and titlers — and asked them to share their experiences. Hundreds of people chimed in about why Demand Media works for them. Tune in daily to read their firsthand accounts.
My name is Barbara Cedillo Alvarez, and I graduated in 2006 with a journalism degree. I found Demand Media Studios in June 2008 but didn’t immediately realize its full potential. I worked as an insurance field rep and as a tutor for Title 1 eligible children, then decided to freelance full time. I enjoy writing for Demand Media Studios because I can set my own schedule, write as much as I want and work on my book as well. I do this from my own home, cutting commuting costs and saving on office rent and expenses.
My name is Barbara Cedillo Alvarez, and I graduated in 2006 with a journalism degree. I found Demand Media Studios in June 2008 but didn’t immediately realize its full potential. I worked as an insurance field rep and as a tutor for Title 1 eligible children, then decided to freelance full time. I enjoy writing for Demand Media Studios because I can set my own schedule, write as much as I want and work on my book as well. I do this from my own home, cutting commuting costs and saving on office rent and expenses.
Ever wonder what it's like to work for Demand Media Studios? We checked in with our community of freelance creators — writers, copy editors, filmmakers and titlers — and asked them to share their experiences. Hundreds of people chimed in about why Demand Media works for them. Tune in daily to read their firsthand accounts.
I'm Tucker Cummings, and when I lost my job, working for Demand Media Studios helped to keep me on my feet. Now I'm working full time as a freelance writer, and I love the flexibility of being able to work from any place on Earth, writing on any topic I choose. Best of all, I get paid a competitive wage for my work, and I am always paid right on schedule, eliminating a lot of the anxiety associated with freelancing.
I'm Tucker Cummings, and when I lost my job, working for Demand Media Studios helped to keep me on my feet. Now I'm working full time as a freelance writer, and I love the flexibility of being able to work from any place on Earth, writing on any topic I choose. Best of all, I get paid a competitive wage for my work, and I am always paid right on schedule, eliminating a lot of the anxiety associated with freelancing.
Your weekly update on what’s happening now. Each week the editorial team will highlight trending topics that are creating buzz on the Web and what you should keep an eye on in the coming week. For more information on how to best use this information, log in and check out the community forum post located here.
Five Trending Topics:
Five Breakout Topics:
Five Trending Topics:
- Back to school
- Hurricane season
- Product recalls
- Stem cell research
- Divorce
Five Breakout Topics:
- Labor Day
- New Amazon Kindle 3
- Back to school
- College football
- Fantasy football draft
Ever wonder what it's like to work for Demand Media Studios? We checked in with our community of freelance creators — writers, copy editors, filmmakers and titlers — and asked them to share their experiences. Hundreds of people chimed in about why Demand Media works for them. Tune in daily to read their firsthand accounts.
My name is Aaron Sinn. As a filmmaker, Demand Media Studios has really come through for me in the months where my production studio is lacking work. My regular clients, like The Weather Channel and TNT, have been going through some extreme changes, leaving me to fend for myself. Demand Media Studios has allowed me to do that and continue to do the work I love doing, all while providing for my family at the same time. I hope to continue to work for Demand Media Studios for a long time, so keep the video assignments coming.
My name is Aaron Sinn. As a filmmaker, Demand Media Studios has really come through for me in the months where my production studio is lacking work. My regular clients, like The Weather Channel and TNT, have been going through some extreme changes, leaving me to fend for myself. Demand Media Studios has allowed me to do that and continue to do the work I love doing, all while providing for my family at the same time. I hope to continue to work for Demand Media Studios for a long time, so keep the video assignments coming.
Ever wonder what it's like to work for Demand Media Studios? We checked in with our community of freelance creators — writers, copy editors, filmmakers and titlers — and asked them to share their experiences. Hundreds of people chimed in about why Demand Media works for them. Tune in daily to read their firsthand accounts.
I'm Andrea Lott, a career freelance actor, writer and educator from Indianapolis. Working from home for Demand Media Studios allows me to parent my daughter while earning money and getting my creative “fix” during the day. By night, I can still rehearse, teach and spend time with my family on my own schedule. I make good money researching and writing topics that interest me, and I retain the flexibility to grow my artistic career.
I'm Andrea Lott, a career freelance actor, writer and educator from Indianapolis. Working from home for Demand Media Studios allows me to parent my daughter while earning money and getting my creative “fix” during the day. By night, I can still rehearse, teach and spend time with my family on my own schedule. I make good money researching and writing topics that interest me, and I retain the flexibility to grow my artistic career.
Editor's Note: This is the final installment of a four-part series from Greg West, our Studio intern who is currently majoring in print/digital journalism at USC. West recently completed his internship with Demand Medis Studios and is on his way back to USC for the fall. Please enjoy.
Read part one here.
Read part two here.
Read part three here.
As I reflected upon my first experience as a junior reporter, I knew that I was beginning to love the job that I had originally hated; my first impression of the newsroom had turned out to be completely wrong.
Writing mundane stories used to drive me to shenangains around the office, but I now caught myself taking everything a little more seriously. I would visit the paper's website just to quietly stare in disbelief at my article.
Sure, I’d had articles published in newspapers and written a couple petite blogs, but this time was different. This article represented a piece of me; it represented what I considered to be the first real bit of reporting that I had ever done. It was important to me, and there were so many interesting experiences tied up in this article. I got to connect with fascinating people like Travis’ family in the Winnebago and go to the Phish concert in Mansfield, both of which brought new perspectives to my writing. However, the most important thing this article taught me was that I would be able to handle myself as an effective journalist.
Through this process I realized that reporting and searching out stories is what made journalism fun for me. Of course, this dually meant that I would have to sit around in the newsroom all day and actually work (and I mean WORK) on the stories I had covered, which I hated. And when I say "hated," I mean I would rather try to cage an angry badger than hang around the newsroom for 10 hours, but I guess even superman has a day job. In the midst of all of these new self-discoveries, I had also become interested in a new aspect of journalism: the online aspect. This was lucky, because things seem to be quickly changing.
All around the country newspapers are dying; local syndication is going up in flames. In Massachusetts, I got to see it firsthand at the local newspaper where I was working. Near the end of my job, right before I would head off to college, my editor approached me and asked politely if I would refrain from throwing anything “smelly” away after today. When I asked her why, she told me that the paper had just cut three-fourths of its cleaning staff due to budgeting issues.
The world of print journalism is digitizing fast, and as I stared at my words flickering on the monitor, I couldn’t wait to get out there and change it.
Read part one here.
Read part two here.
Read part three here.
As I reflected upon my first experience as a junior reporter, I knew that I was beginning to love the job that I had originally hated; my first impression of the newsroom had turned out to be completely wrong.
Writing mundane stories used to drive me to shenangains around the office, but I now caught myself taking everything a little more seriously. I would visit the paper's website just to quietly stare in disbelief at my article.
Sure, I’d had articles published in newspapers and written a couple petite blogs, but this time was different. This article represented a piece of me; it represented what I considered to be the first real bit of reporting that I had ever done. It was important to me, and there were so many interesting experiences tied up in this article. I got to connect with fascinating people like Travis’ family in the Winnebago and go to the Phish concert in Mansfield, both of which brought new perspectives to my writing. However, the most important thing this article taught me was that I would be able to handle myself as an effective journalist.
Through this process I realized that reporting and searching out stories is what made journalism fun for me. Of course, this dually meant that I would have to sit around in the newsroom all day and actually work (and I mean WORK) on the stories I had covered, which I hated. And when I say "hated," I mean I would rather try to cage an angry badger than hang around the newsroom for 10 hours, but I guess even superman has a day job. In the midst of all of these new self-discoveries, I had also become interested in a new aspect of journalism: the online aspect. This was lucky, because things seem to be quickly changing.
All around the country newspapers are dying; local syndication is going up in flames. In Massachusetts, I got to see it firsthand at the local newspaper where I was working. Near the end of my job, right before I would head off to college, my editor approached me and asked politely if I would refrain from throwing anything “smelly” away after today. When I asked her why, she told me that the paper had just cut three-fourths of its cleaning staff due to budgeting issues.
The world of print journalism is digitizing fast, and as I stared at my words flickering on the monitor, I couldn’t wait to get out there and change it.
