Nerdy Work Issue #3: The Call to Adventure

Lots of new opportunities!

Hey everyone!

Here’s hoping you’re having a decent week despite the non-step deluge of bad-to-catastrophic news!

I won’t get too political here, but if you are feeling some outrage and want to read more in-depth information about elections happening across the country, you can check out my political newsletter, Progressives Everywhere!

Also: I’m working on a project in which I interview medical professionals, restaurant workers, other front-line workers, caregivers, and other people who deserve some positive recognition. If that describes you or someone you know, please get in touch with me. You can email JordanZakarin@gmail.com

For the comments: Being a creative can be isolating, and now more than ever. And yet, there are nearly 1000 talented people reading this newsletter already. This growing community seems to be the perfect place for people to find collaborators for their hot new idea or dream project. In the comments, please post a little bit about what you’re very good at and the kinds of projects you’d like to work on. Include a link to your work! Hopefully we can make some matches!

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Writing and Editing and Social *Content*

• Contract Childhood Fiction Writer at Achieve 3000 (Remote)

  • “We’re looking for a creative writer who can write engaging, exciting, serialized fictional stories for young readers. This person needs to have experience writing engaging fiction for grades 2-5 and a talent for getting young readers excited about reading. Are you a wizard with fiction? Do you have a grown-up work ethic and a kid-like sensibility? This may be a job for you.”

• US Weekend Writer at Dexerto (Remote):

  • “You should be a versatile writer who is able to source and write compelling stories about a variety of subjects, including esports, big gaming franchises, and online culture (streamers, YouTubers, plus TikTok and Instagram personalities). Whilst you won’t be expected to know everything about every single esport, game or streamer, we are looking for someone who has a broad knowledge, but can also specialise in a few areas such as Call of Duty, Fortnite, or more.”

• Entertainment News Writer at Bustle (Remote):

  • “Bustle is seeking a remote, part-time Entertainment News Writer to contribute two to three six-hour shifts per week. Writers should have extensive knowledge of pop culture — a love of the Bachelor franchise and/or TikTok is a plus — strong news judgment, familiarity with SEO and the Bustle tone, and the ability to write quickly and cleanly. Flexibility is also key. Ideal should have 2+ years of experience in reporting, writing, and/or blogging, specializing in entertainment or celebrity writing.”

• Staff Writer at MadameNoire (New York, NY):

  • “Must be an avid consumer of news, current events, politics, and entertainment and culture topics, with particular attention to content related to African-American Millennial audiences. Must have an ability to create viral/high-trafficking content that is not dependent on celebrity news. Must have a strong knowledge of reporting and editing standards and practices…”

• Freelance Gaming Writer at Revelation (Remote):

  • “French esport brand Millenium is expanding their online media to support US audiences. We’re looking for freelance writers to cover premier esports titles like League of Legends, Fortnite, Counter-Strike, Overwatch, Valorant and more! This role would also support trending industry news topics such as next-gen consoles, Fall Guys, and skins you just can’t help but to buy. Expect a steady stream of assignments for the next few months.”

• Content Writer at Thought Bakery (Remote):

  • “Your primary focus will be writing long-form articles showcasing your expertise in one or more of the following: AI, Automation, Cybersecurity, and Robotics (and associated technology industry-related topics). You will need to have proven experience working, writing, studying, and embedding in these communities. You will understand how to craft articles and content for a savvy, ambitious audience looking to learn the basics as well as those searching for guidance around more complex concepts such as structured data, edge computing, and everything in between.”

• Junior Copywriter at Billion Dollar Boy (New York, NY or New Orleans, LA):

  • “We are seeking a Junior Copywriter to join our growing US team to manage the planning and execution of client strategies and client creative materials. Strong copywriting skills with a creative spirit are essential as well as an enthusiasm for the influencer marketing world.”

• Freelance Book Reviewer at Kirkus Media (Remote):

  • “Kirkus Media is looking for experienced book reviewers of English and Spanish-language titles to review for Kirkus Indie, the book review magazine's section dedicated to self-published authors. Reviews are in the same format and held to the same high standards as other sections of Kirkus Reviews.”

• Mid-level copywriter at MediaMonks (Los Angeles, CA):

  • “As a Copy Monk at MediaMonks, you’ll wield words, wisdom and wit on behalf of top-name clients who seek us for the creative production of their digital campaigns and social content. You’ll develop concepts and copy for anything you could possibly throw at an integrated campaign: from taglines and TVC scripts to concepts for experiential installations and digital activations.”

• Technology Writer at US News and World Report (Remote):

  • “U.S. News seeks to expand its roster of freelancers who have experience writing about technical topics, including programming languages, cloud-computing platforms or data. Writers will be responsible for reporting and writing long-form guides on topics as assigned.”

Seeking Pitches: 

• The SF Gate is looking for culture and entertainment stories with either a Bay Area hook or a big national hook. More info here.

• Vice’s new senior features editor is looking for pitches. More info here.

• New York Magazine is looking for a writer to “pitch small TikTok stories on popular trends and creators.” More info here.

Social Media, Marketing and Communications

• Community Manager, Magic Digital at Wizards of the Coast (Seattle, WA)

  • “We’re seeking a Community Manager to join our ranks and help build the future of the multiverse! You’ll need every tool in your kit and spell in your book to get it done: Engaging posts, a deep understanding of the ancient texts of community sentiment, a grappling hook (maybe!), and probably a few good memes too. This role will lead the Magic: The Gathering digital community (reporting to the Senior Communications Manager) and should have a passion for and experience in video game community management.””

• Social Media Community Specialist at Funko (Everett, WA):

  • “As the Social Media Community Specialist, you’ll be asked to binge-watch shows on Netflix, see the most recent Disney movie, and keep up with all the latest trends in pop culture…. then post about it! To help amplify the Funko brand, we’re looking for a pop-culture enthusiast, who stays current on social media trends. This role will focus on the daily operations and implementation of marketing projects and campaigns, ensuring creative and communications align across all of Funko’s social media channels.”

• Director, Multicultural Marketing at Penguin Publishing (New York, NY):

  • “We are seeking a Multicultural Marketing Director to develop marketing plans and programs to reach the widest range of consumers for our adult books. In this role, you will be responsible for partnering with internal Marketing departments and Advertising/Promotion departments, will find new audiences to market our books to, and will create awareness for our books inside and outside of traditional book spaces.”

• Social Media and Influencer Coordinator at Logitech (Bay Area, CA):

  • “You will be a part of the nimble and evolving social media team that sits within Global Communications. You will be responsible for executing programs that engage content creators and online communities to bring our social audience closer to our brands and the products they love… You will come to intimately understand our audiences and identify influencer partners that authentically fit us, building relationships with them to generate creative content and storytelling.”

• Game Studio Content Writer at BDS (Remote):

  • “We're a VR/AR startup that is on the forefront of the next computing platform. We are seeking a creative writer who has a minimum of 3 years of experience in the game industry. As a natural storyteller, you'll help us amplify our brand story through a variety of marketing projects. You'll combine creative writing with strategic insights to craft inspiring and effective copy across a range of platforms, writing for campaigns, our brands websites, and more.”

• Assistant Social Media Editor at Input (Remote):

  • Bustle Digital Group is seeking a part-time Assistant Social Media Editor to join our Culture & Innovation team, working specifically on Input — a new kind of tech publication dedicated to offering a fresh perspective on the devices, creators, trends, and ideas that are changing our world. The Assistant Social Media Editor will own Input’s social media strategies across platforms, including but not limited to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Reddit, TikTok and more.”

• Editor Growth & Insights at Jeopardy! & Wheel of Fortune (Culver City, CA):

  • “This position will work in lock step with the editorial teams of both brands to regularly provide clear, strategic data, insights and analysis that assist in decision-making of what multimedia stories can resound across each brand’s platforms. They will work closely with the editorial team to set publishing rhythms based on audience behaviors and will have experience working within a cross-functional, performance-based editorial team to analyze readership trends. They will also work closely with each brand’s editorial team to distill third party content partnership data (Apple News, Medium, etc.) and create meaningful and easily digestible reporting.”

• Head of Growth at Cobble (New York, NY or Remote):

  • “Responsibilities include: Launch, own, and lead marketing at Cobble in order to build massive positive brand awareness, grow our user base, and lead us toward expansion in all the directions we hope to go. Deeply understand our users to design and scale effective go-to-market strategies. Build a brand that inspires positive emotions with potential users: enthusiasm, excitement, optimism, hopefulness, triumph.”

Let’s take a quick break to appreciate the cat that I’m watching this month:

OK, back to it!

Art, Drawing, Graphic Design

• Senior Character Artist at TeeTurtle (Remote)

  • “We're TeeTurtle, a rapidly growing E-Commerce company in the nerdy product industry with a highly social audience and an extremely shareable product. TeeTurtle presents a unique opportunity for an exceptionally talented character artist with extraordinary creative and technical skills to design products and content for our millions of consumers and fans.
    We are looking for a candidate with unrivaled illustration skills and an eye for color.”

• Assistant Manager of Graphic Design & Production at the Rubin Museum (New York, NY):

  • “The Assistant Manager of Graphic Design & Production is responsible for print and digital design and production, including exhibition labels and texts; brochures; event calendars; invitations; posters; signage; social media; flyers; ads; annual reports; program announcements.”

• Communication Designer at Instagram (New York, NY or San Francisco, CA):

  • “The Communications Designer will help us deliver on our mission by developing visual identities and brand systems, interior office design concepts, as well as design curation for digital and video surfaces. The ideal candidate has the ability to execute in a variety of visual styles, can articulate design decisions, iterates quickly, and collaborates seamlessly with creative leads, art directors, and content strategists.”

• Senior Designer at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (New York, NY):

  • “The Senior Designer is responsible for the design of 30-35 titles/year, as assigned, creating designs that are high-concept, commercial, and iconic while translating into multiple formats. They have a deep understanding of the marketplace and their work shows versatile usage of photography and illustration, advanced techniques with typography and fonts, mature color sensibility, flexible and explorative design sensibility.”

• Marketing Artist at Running With Scissors (Remote):

  • “Running With Scissors is looking for a Marketing Artist/Graphic Designer to create merchandise and marketing materials for the notorious Postal brand.”

• Graphic Designer at Freebirds Burrito (Austin, TX):

  • The Graphic Designer reports to the Vice President of Marketing and is responsible for all of the in-house design and creative services for the Freebirds brand. They are responsible for the creative conception and development of printed and digital projects, including internal and external marketing materials, in-store signage, website, social graphics, email design and packaging. This position will meet creative objectives as directed by marketing leadership.”

Video and Audio Production

• Sr. Motion Designer at Motion Giraffx (Remote):

  • “Here are a few high-impact activities you’ll do to keep this studio buzzing with energy: conjure up concepts and storylines, and coordinate animation strategy; share your one-of-a-kind ideas with the Motion Giraffx team and our clients; craft dynamic storyboards for initial stages of production; create show-stopping models, drawings, and illustrations; join images with background graphics and special effects.”

• Post Production Supervisor at Mattel (El Segundo, CA):

  • “This position requires a high level of technical skill in the post production field as well as an in-depth knowledge of the production process. Responsibilities include: Supervising the post production process for all domestic deliveries of content created by Mattel Television; using independent judgment to schedule, supervise and ship information to post vendors for each production; supervising the QC process with post vendors for each production…”

• Video Editor at Mythical Games (Los Angeles, CA or Seattle, WA):

  • “You will be responsible for producing creative videos and animations to promote Mythical brands across the web, social media, and other media channels. Responsibilities include taking projects from concept to delivery of short-form video content: storyboard, design animate, render and ship to team.”

• Audio Manager at Iron Galaxy (Chicago, IL or Orlando, FL):

  • “The Audio Manager will work with our Game Director, Lead Designer, and collaborate with our team to make sure we have a clear set of audio asset targets, a documented workflow for our teams, and help manage external vendors, and validate the quality of our assets in accordance to the game vision. They will coordinate asset needs with production and be responsible for day-to-day direction and management of audio assets.”

• Video Producer at Microsoft (Redmond, WA):

  • “As a Video Producer, you will be an integral part of our new Flipgrid Studios team, which is our internal production studio producing engaging social content, videos, and storytelling films in support of our global community of educators, students, and families.”

Gigs:

• Background Artist / Illustration Generalist at Ingenuity (West Hollywood, CA)

  • “Ingenuity is looking a for a contract Background Artist for a series of two ‘50's style’ animated music videos for a major recording artist. Art style is inspired by classic UPA background design: minimalist, stylized, asymmetrical and colorful. The background artist will work in a small team reporting to lead artist/character designer and the Head of Design and animation.”

Game Design and Technical Skills

• Game Designer at Filament Games (Madison, WI):

  • “Filament Games is a game production studio that creates digital learning games and interactives. Filament Games seeks a talented and bright Game Designer to join our core development team. The Game Designer takes the helm on specific learning game projects, serving as both Lead Designer and Client Advocate.”

• Game Systems Designer at Amazon Game Studios (San Diego, CA or Remote):

  • “Amazon Game Studios is seeking an exceptionally skilled and enthusiastic Game Systems Designer to join our team in sunny San Diego, CA or from wherever you are. This designer will work with our Creative Director to design the captivating game systems that drive exciting and dynamic game play for an unannounced massively multiplayer game.”

• Game Programmer at iD Software (Dallas, TX):

  • “id Software, part of the ZeniMax Media Inc. family of companies, is looking for an experienced Game Programmer to join our team to work on some of the industries most celebrated and popular AAA titles. You will work closely with programmers, game designers, and artists to implement and improve fun game features for rewarding customer experiences.”

• Software Engineer at Warner Bros. Entertainment Group (Chicago, IL):

  • “Netherrealm Studios, a division of WB Games Inc., seeks a Software Engineer, Gameplay to work with the game development team responsible for Mortal Kombat and Injustice 2 to help make Netherrealm's next project its most successful to date. As a member of the game play team, you will work closely with the lead game programmer, and the game play programming team to implement new features, and support the design team in their efforts to create a compelling game experience. Your responsibilities will include AI systems, bug fixing, enemy and boss encounters, environmental interactions, and performance.”

• Senior Programmer at Sky Ship Studios (Madison, WI):

  • “We are seeking a Senior Programmer to join the team! Areas of expertise are open. Candidates may specialize in artificial intelligence, graphics programming, gameplay, or other areas of code. Beyond exemplary programming skills, all candidates must exhibit strong interpersonal skills and a passion for video games.”

• Senior Concept Artist at Skydance Interactive (Los Angeles, CA):

  • “Concept artists work directly with Art Director and Lead Artists to create awe-inspiring concepts and designs in alignment with a game’s art style. The concept artist will create a wide range of exciting and highly compelling illustrations for characters, weapons, and vehicles. The ideal candidate has experience with the full range of concept art including quick sketches, orthographic views, storyboards, mood concepts, and ‘paint-overs’ of block geometry from the game.”

Companies With Lots of Jobs Open

• Riot Games

Nerdy Work logo by Liz Lathem

Comments: Please post a little bit about what you’re very good at and the kinds of projects you’d like to work on. Include a link to your work! Hopefully we can make some matches!