Once upon a time

If there is one thing I know for sure, it’s that I was born to tell stories.

As a child, I used to beg for stories from my mom and dad. At bedtime, I’d plead with my dad for just one more “story from your head” (otherwise known as a make believe story). I would practice reading books like Clifford and Mercer Mayer with my mom and a clicker that sounded like a cricket when it was time to turn the page.

Then came my first foray into publishing in sixth grade with my critically acclaimed “Life as a Cheerio,” as well as a stint as the class newspaper advice columnist. Since then, I have never considered doing anything other than writing for a living.

In my career, I have chased fire trucks, interviewed Richard Simmons (he called me Lady Drake), covered a murder-suicide at a pet food factory, walked around in wooden clogs, hung out with college freshmen, boy bands, a beauty queen runner-up, and a medical student volunteering in a Chicago free clinic. I have literally seen what goes into the sausage. I have told stories of corporations, celebrities, average Joes, and Squeakers the Death-Defying Guinea Pig.

My stories have made people laugh, cry, get outraged, and pull out their wallets to donate money to worthy causes.

What’s your story?

News

11/24/09: The Dec. 15 issue of Wine Enthusiast has my story about wine on tap [pdf].
11/20/09: New video up on creative gift card wrapping for Creditcards.com.
11/11/09: My article for Creditcards.com on cutting up credit cards has been featured on the front page of MSN.com [pdf] two days in a row. The companion video has more than 100,000 views on YouTube!
10/27/09: My article on milk sharing [pdf] is in the November ‘09 issue of Pregnancy.
8/28/09: I write a monthly feature for my local paper called “Road Trip.” Here’s one of my favorites so far.
7/20/09: Table cooking class story for Vision Mid-Michigan
7/8/09: Universities Part of Effort to Revitalize Native Languages, Diverse: Issues in Higher Education.
5/22/09: A sample of my biweekly column for the Midland Daily News

Cynthia is working with the following clients:

• AAA Living
Wine Enthusiast
Midwest Living
Relish magazine
Yahoo! Hot Jobs
• Central Michigan University’s First Year Experience program
Diverse: Issues in Higher Education
Midland Daily News
Vision Mid Michigan
Your Wedding Indiana magazine
YourTango.com
Cross Country Skier magazine
Pregnancy magazine

Want to be on this list? I’m always looking for more great stories to tell. Contact me to discuss an assignment.

Testimonials

“It isn’t often that you can recommend someone for just about any writing project, but then again, there aren’t many writers who are as versatile as Cynthia. … Her skillful writing is on par with (if not better than) work produced at some of the nation’s most prestigious universities.”
– Kristi Ries, Communications Manager, School of Music at Carnegie Mellon University

“Cynthia brings creativity, diligence and pure talent to all her projects. She tackles challenges with enthusiasm and passion. She brushes aside roadblocks and finds solutions when others would give up.”
– Barbara Sutherland Chovanec, Editor, Centralight magazine

“Cynthia finds creative, effective solutions for any challenge put in front of her. In addition, Cynthia brings a energy to her work environment that is always positive, cheerful and professional.”
– Stacy Simmer, Senior Graphic Designer, Indiana Historical Society

“An intelligent and well organized creative communications professional.”
– Mark Lagerwey, Dean of Computer Information Systems and Technology, Baker College

Contact

Please contact me by e-mail at cynthia AT cynthiadrake.com.

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