Writing Portfolio

Seminars

Web-Savvy Writing for Attorneys & Mediators

Presented to the King County Bar Association ADR Section, September 2015

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Read, ignore, or delete? In the digital workplace, all of us write for people who make 5-second decisions about whether to engage with our content. Whether you’re responding to a client e-mail or drafting a blog post, your online writing needs to grab the reader’s attention, and fast.

The good news is that, as ADR professionals, you are already ahead of the game. Mediators are fantastic at facilitating conversations, and great web content is like having a great conversation.

In this hands-on, pen-to-paper workshop, you’ll learn how to streamline your e-mails, blog posts, and other web content for maximum readability. Using examples from the world of alternative dispute resolution and beyond, we’ll explore strategies for writing crisp, vibrant content that engages online readers.

Cristin Fenzel is an attorney and editor with a background in magazine journalism and a penchant for shredding weak verbs with a sharp, midnight-blue pen. She helps lawyers and other professionals create content that’s smart, but not stodgy.

Screen Shot 2017-07-19 at 12.46.16 PM — Wait, I have a shorter attention span than a goldfish? For real?

Here’s some feedback from the seminar attendees:

“Great ideas and presentation, especially with interspersing [the] exercises and examples throughout. Loved it!”

“Great content. Very enthusiastic and approachable delivery. Communicated well with a broad, diverse audience.”

“Enthusiastic, joyful, entertaining, illuminating.”

“I appreciate the clear ideas and the concise description of concepts. I really feel like I can put them into practice immediately.”

“Well prepared, lots of supplemental resources, many lovely slides, vivacious and engaged, very respectful of [the] audience.”

Magazine Writing

Here are some of my clips (PDF) from my work as a magazine writer and associate editor for Arizona Foothills Magazine. Since our staff was small, I wrote everything from feature articles to cut lines to cover blurbs. I recommend zooming the PDF files to 150% for easier reading.