Categories
RESUME
David Speranza
SUMMARY
Detail-oriented Writer/Editor with a focus on content and style and an eye for organization. Strengths include proven ability in a variety of disciplines, from writing ad copy, feature articles, reviews, and screenplays to editing primary-grade textbooks and Web sites.
PUBLISHING EXPERIENCE
B&H PHOTO AND VIDEO, New York, NY August 2009 - PresentWeb Writer
Write
copy for company's online catalog, with a focus on professional video
equipment. Occasionally write equipment reviews for blog/newsletter and
edit colleagues' articles.
FREELANCE COPYWRITER/EDITOR July 2008 - July 2009
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B&H Photo & Video - wrote advertising and newsletter copy with emphasis on professional and consumer video products; updated all video sections for company's Winter 2008 catalog―from consumer camcorders and accessories to professional and specialty video equipment; contributed product descriptions, 800-word article to company's 2008 Student Buyers Guide, articles 1 2 to 2009 Guide; wrote three 1,500-word camera reviews for online newsletter, including press release announcing exclusive hands-on preview of new Sony professional camcorder; shot and edited 3-minute demo video to accompany online camera review.
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Popshifter.com - wrote two pop culture articles 1 2
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David Laszlo Conhaim - edited two novels, All Man's Land and Spurius
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Cultural Communications - edited book proposal; shot and edited promo video
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Arcus Foundation - edited annual report
BILL SMITH STUDIO, New York, NY December 2007 - July 2008
Interim Managing Editor
Managed over a dozen writers and editors, on- and off-site, for SRA's Imagine It! California ELD program.
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Hired freelance writers, editors and proofreaders for various assignments, providing guidelines, templates and daily instruction for Grade 1 and Grade 3 teacher's guide and student workbook.
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Wrote and revised manuscript for student reading selections, activities, glossaries and frontmatter/ backmatter; created new bookmaps to accommodate client's evolving needs.
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Supervised team of five on-site proofreaders.
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Managed timesheets, billing and invoicing for freelance employees.
Covered wide range of K-12 educational materials, including textbooks and ancillaries in all subjects, both English and Spanish; copyedited in-house materials and helped develop company's Intranet site.
FREELANCE
COPYWRITER/EDITOR, New York,
NY
January 2007
- June 2007
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Emerson, Wajdowicz Studios - Rewrote company Web site, edited annual report, conceived and wrote poster copy for United Nations.
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Cosimo, Inc. - Wrote back-cover copy (summary + author bio) for dozens of public domain books.
MACMILLAN/McGRAW-HILL,
New York, NY
August
2004 - November 2006
Executed a wide range of copyediting and project management for company's Editorial Services Group.
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Oversaw style and content, from manuscript to final proof, of primary grade textbooks designed for national and state-specific use. Subjects included Science (teacher’s edition), Social Studies, and Reading.
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Collaborated with editorial and design departments to ensure that Chicago and house styles were followed and national/state standards conformed to. Rewrote copy as necessary, regularly exceeded deadlines.
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Honed in on problems and inconsistencies in style, text, or processes and tracked down or devised solutions.
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Assisted coworkers with new technologies, including Adobe CS2, K4 file management, and Excel.
CONDÉ NAST PUBLICATIONS, New York, NY 2003 - 2004
Assistant to Photo Editor, Domino magazine (2004)
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Tracked photographer portfolios, conducted photo research, brainstormed titles during magazine’s startup.
Corporate Sales Assistant (2003)
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Supported three sales directors handling company's largest accounts, including L'Oreal, Estée Lauder, Johnson & Johnson, and Proctor & Gamble.
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Handled correspondence, expenses, and heavy phones in high-pressure publishing environment.
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Used advanced Excel to generate monthly reports tracking client paging and revenue for sales force.
OSMIO, INC., New York, NY 2001
Supervising Editor, Web Page Content
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Oversaw input and updating of online menus for Web-based corporate meal-ordering service.
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Devised style and standards handbook for Web site content while training part-time staff.
FREELANCE WRITER/EDITOR, Prague, Czech Republic 1994 - 1996
The Prague
Post/Velvet Magazine,
Features Writer
Wrote profiles, celebrity interviews, reviews, and columns for
city’s leading English-language periodicals.
For The Love Of
Prague, Editor
Edited content and wrote introduction for book of memoirs by
Oscar-winning animator Gene Deitch.
The Prague Revue,
Associate
Editor
Solicited manuscripts, worked with authors, and edited content
for international literary journal.
THE LUCHART GROUP, Wilmington, NC 1988 - 1989
Advertising Copywriter
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Wrote copy and pitched concepts for a range of clients, from retail outlets to industrial manufacturers.
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Generated radio spots, newspaper ads, product brochures, annual reports, and slide presentations.
OTHER EXPERIENCE
Freelance Photographer/Videographer (2001 - present): Produce headshots, product shots, and promotional photos/videos for small NYC companies and performers.
Freelance Film Technician (1989 - 2002): Worked in numerous capacities (production assistant, set dresser, sound playback, videographer) on music videos, feature films, and industrials in New York City.
Screenwriter, Dark Confessions (1997): Feature film produced by North American Pictures, a Prague-based Czech/Canadian production company.
EDUCATION
Temple University, Philadelphia, PABachelor of Arts, magna cum laude, Radio-Television-Film
AWARDS AND HONORS
Semifinalist, Nicholl Fellowship (2004): Screenplay Clean Break finished in top 30 out of a record 6,073 entries.
3rd Prize Videomaker Magazine/Panasonic Short Film Contest for Accessorizing (2001)
COMPUTER SKILLS
Advanced: Win XP/Vista MS Word Outlook WordPerfect PremiereIntermediate: Adobe InCopy Photoshop Excel Mac platform Sony Vegas
Basic: PowerPoint Quark Org Plus Extra! HTML