Welcome to Fromthedesk, the new freelance writing site of Kurt Manwaring. This site will be utilized for a number of different publishing purposes, including personal blogs, author interviews, and special features. Additionally, users may contact me to hire my services as a freelance writer.
General content
This is where I will be posting my personal blogs. Topics will be wide-ranging and reflect my observations on different writing projects. Frequently, when I publish in mainstream outlets you can expect to see supplemental material to the articles posted here.
Book reviews also fit under this category, though whenever possible I plan to examine different books with a focus on one or two issues rather than general overviews.
Most book reviews and author interviews will contain a focus on relevance to Mormonism. Many books will be overtly Mormon (i.e., Mormon authors writing about Mormon topics). Those books that are not directly related to Mormonism will nonetheless be examined to determine what connections can be made. For example, fantasy authors who are Mormon may be asked about the role of their faith in their writings while religious historians may be asked how their works apply to Mormons today. I do not intend for my audience to consist solely of Mormons, but my book reviews will largely center on those interested in Mormon aspects of different writings.
Author interviews
Source material for my interviews with authors will be published on Fromthedesk. This not only adds context and transparency to the use of author quotes in press materials, but also allows the source material to be quoted by those working on other projects.
Special features
I plan to use Fromthedesk for a number of special features. At present, two features are planned.
- 10 questions. This feature series will feature 10-question interviews with various authors. In addition to acting as source material for quotes used in other articles, 10 questions will introduce readers not only to new books but also provide insight into the personality of the authors. Interviews will occasionally be co-published with different sites.
- A decade later. This feature series will examine books of consequence a decade after their initial publication. What do authors think of their books ten years after first going to press? This series will give you direct access to authors who share their thoughts on how their fields of study have evolved over the past decade and how they have changed as authors, scholars, and individuals.
I am certain the site will evolve with time. For now, I hope readers will find engaging material and that those seeking for a freelance writer will be happy to have come to the right place.
