Marissa Kristal

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My name is Marissa and I am a self-proclaimed inspirational-ist.

It's true, I have a passion for inspiring and helping others! So how do I do this? Through my advice column , Dear Dilemma, at Fazed.com. Fazed.com is an e-zine geared towards teens and 20-somethings. It went live on 12/11/00 and attracts approximately 5,000 visitors a day.

Dear Dilemma's main mission is to offer a helping hand as well as sympathetic - yet assertive when it needs to be – advice, with the hope of creating a sense of ease and joy in people's lives. Geared towards Generation Y, my advice column blends a sassy, hip, young tone all the while offering heartfelt counsel, and my guiding words come directly from my heart, and of course, my own personal experiences. And that right there is what sets me apart from all the other text-book, bland advice-givers!

What are my personal experiences? I am a 26-year-old Minnesota native currently living in New York City. I graduated from Indiana University in 2002 with a degree in journalism and since then have written for various print and online publications such as The Pioneer Press, The American Jewish World, Collegenews.com and Beautyaddictmag.com to name a few.

To view Dear Dilemma, Click Here

There you will see the gamut of troubles I have helped people with since October, 2004.

Do you want Dear Dilemma in your publication? No problem!

I have a form of agreement ready stating the general terms applicable to the publication of my column; contact me at marissakristal@gmail.com and I'll be glad to discuss.

Website design and implementation by: Ginger at BabyJaneBlogs

Resume

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FREELANCE EXPERIENCE

Freelance Writer (New York, NY) 2004—Present

Write articles for newspapers, e-zines, magazines and trade publications on diverse topics ranging from culture to beauty.
Manage the advice column at Fazed.com, an online magazine for 15 to 25 year-olds that receives over 2,000 visitors per day and which covers lifestyle, fashion, music and career issues.
Responsible for answering all reader-generated questions regarding dating, sexuality, career, love, friendship, depression and discrimination.
Contributing writer for Beauty Addict Magazine (beautyaddictmag.com), an interactive beauty magazine dedicated to informing readers about the latest in fitness, fashion and cosmetics.
New York Editor of Boheme Verite Magazine (bvmagazine.com), an online publication that showcases breakout talent nationwide as well as offers tips on how to become known in the industry and reviews of the arts.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Psychology Today (New York, NY) Editorial Intern 2007

Research counterintuitive and human interest-based psychological studies.
Pitch ideas and write articles for both the print magazine and website (psychologytoday.com).
Interview researchers about studies they've conducted and new ideas in their field.

Rockefeller University (New York, NY) Development Associate 2003—2005

Responsible for organizing the Board of Trustees’ planned annual giving program, designed to raise over $2,000,000 to support the world-renowned biomedical research institute’s 75 laboratories.

Composed all donation requests and acknowledgement letters; maintained trustee charitable giving data; calculated final contributions at the end of the fiscal year.

Created trustee booklets consisting of board of trustee biographical information; disseminated to department heads, trustees and other essential sections within the university.

Planned and coordinated “The 50th Anniversary of the Discovery of DNA Gala” at the Waldorf-Astoria, attended by over 1,000 people.

Orchestrated trustee dinners, trustee nominating committee meetings, cultivation events and celebratory luncheons/dinners honoring donors and past/current Presidents of the university; composed all printed materials for these events.

Promoted twice during the course of one year.

Augeo Affinity Marketing (St. Paul, MN) Public Relations Intern 2001

Composed all press releases and conducted market research on industry trends for a leading B2B affinity marketing company with clients such as Pepsi and Home Depot.

Compiled research on food industry trade shows at the local, national and regional levels.

Aided in the creation, completion and follow-up of three successful, multi-state sales promotions.

Embers America Restaurants (St. Paul, MN) Marketing Assistant 2000

Prepared press releases on the addition of new restaurant locations and overall company growth for a group of Midwest family restaurants; many of the releases were published in trade magazines such as Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Business.

Conducted research on the competitive landscape; proposed new markets based on research on food trends.

Created and developed a new food promotion, Pretzel Roll Sandwiches, which were introduced and promoted on a company-wide basis.

Wrote speeches for company owners which were “broadcast” on the company website.

EDUCATION

Indiana University (Bloomington, IN) BA in Journalism 2002

Graduated with Distinction (GPA 3.65)

Dean’s List, 1999—2002

Founder’s Day Award, 2000—2002

Phi Eta Sigma Honors Fraternity

SKILLS

Technical: MS Office; Photoshop; QuarkXPress.
Languages: Some knowledge of Spanish and American Sign Language.

PUBLICATIONS

NEWSPAPERS
New York Press
The American Jewish World
The Forest Lake Times
The St. Paul Pioneer Press

MAGAZINES
Chicken Soup for the Soul
College News
Edge Life
Jewish Life and Style
Psychology Today
quiet Shorts
Spirituality & Health
Time Out New York

E-ZINES
Beauty Addict
Boheme Verite
CollegeClub.com
Fazed.com
Fetch
FLYMF.com
FriendFinder.com
New Age Spirituality
Club Romance

TRADE MAGAZINES
Foodservice.com

Published Works

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NEWSPAPERS
New York Press
Hit On...By Parents!, 5/17/06
Conversations with a Soul Mate, 2/7/07

The American Jewish World
An Unpredictable Sojourn in New York, 12/23/06

The Forest Lake Times
A Good Friend is a Valuable Exterminator in NYC, 12/8/04
In New York Smiling is out of Style, 5/26/04

The St. Paul Pioneer Press
Reality TV was Real Life...at Least for a Few Minutes, 4/18/04
The Hardest Part About Living in Big Apple is Language Barrier, 2/15/04

MAGAZINES
Chicken Soup for the Soul Magazine
The Marissa Ring, 4/1/07

College News
Rejected by Sororities, 1/17/06

Edge Life
An Interview with Brian Johnson, CEO of Zaadz.com
Zaadz: A Cyber Community Making a Difference, 12/1/06

Indiana Alumni Magazine
Big Apple Journey (page 1)
Big Apple Journey (page 2), 4/1/07

Jewish Life and Style
Beat the Heat with Gelato - The Real Italian Desert, 7/01/06

Psychology Today
Less is More, 5/1/07
Brighter Teeth, Better Life?, 5/1/07
Millions of Women are Dying to Meet You, 5/1/07
Picking Partners, 1/01/07

quiet Shorts
My So-Called Dating Life, 9/15/06

Spirituality & Health
Reconnect at Kizmeet.com, 2/14/07

Time Out New York
Please Release Me, 12/27/06
Web We Weave, 10/18/06

E-ZINES
Beauty Addict
Real Genius - Interview with Garren,11/1/06
Scentsational - Interview with Franco Wright,10/1/06
Bare Necessities - Interview with Cindy Barshop, 9/1/06
About Face - Interview with Joey Chancis of Joey New York, 9/1/06
Arch Aficionada - Interview with Anastasia of Anastasia Beverly Hills,8/1/06
Face Value - Interview with Ramy Gafny, 7/1/06
All That Jazz - Intervew with Deborah Lippmann, 6/2/06
The Young Ones, 5/1/06
Shine On, 4/17/06
Great Lengths, 4/02/06
Intelligent Design, 3/07/06
Faking It, 2/28/06
Moonwalker, 12/20/05
Where the Boys Aren’t, 12/18/05
Mullet Madness, 12/14/05
Sunrise Strip, 12/09/05

Boheme Verite
Proving She's Oblivious to No One, Playwright and Actress, Jessica Lynn Johnson Turns Her One-Woman Show Into a Hit, 12/15/06
A Boy with a Creative Eye - Talking with David Montalvo, 11/15/06
NYC Musician Mitch Mitchell Gives THE ANSWER, 11/15/06
Alan Danielson Illuminates the Human Experience in Lucid Body, 11/15/06
Playwright Moby Pomerance Chats About his Award-Winning Play, Broken Hands, 10/15/06
Laughing it Up with One of NYC's Funniest Young Comedians, Mike Trainor, 10/15/06
Getting Personal with Inner Monologues, 9/15/06
Scott Alexander Makes Mistakes, 8/15/06
Lucas Caleb Rooney and Ty Jones Celebrate the Silly with CREATION (A Clown Show), 8/15/06
Fusion of Fitness and Dance: Tina Thompson-Pope, 8/15/06
Getting Mortified with David Nadelberg, 7/15/06
Chatting It Up With the Cast of Ghetto Chronicles - Part II, 7/15/06
Evan Jacob - Star of a Small Town in a Big City, 6/15/06
The Ghetto Chronicles - Impact with a Punch and Song, 6/15/06

CollegeClub.com
Breaking up is Hard to Do, 3/30/06
Me Love You Long Distance, 3/20/06
Let’s Dance!, 3/06/06

Fazed.com
Dear Dilemma Advice Column, 9/04—Present

Debut
Skin Deep, 2/2/07

Fetch Magazine
Breaking Up is Hard to Do,10/15/06

FLYMF.com
The Cheek Kiss,10/04/06
Mr. Crazy, 7/01/06
Frostbite, 6/03/06
That Girl, 5/03/06
Trainers (And Big Horny Dogs), 4/04/06
Standing on Street Corners, 3/02/06

FriendFinder.com
Forever Love in Paris, 10/06/05

New Age Spirituality
Magical Colored Glasses, 3/20/05

TRADE MAGAZINES
Foodservice.com
Growing and Keeping Business – A Look into the Restaurant Industry, 7/23/04
Interview with my Father, Henry Kristal, Co-Founder of Embers Restaurants, 12/6/05

Testimonials

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"Marissa's writing is fresh and compelling. This is especially important in an interactive medium where it's often difficult to capture and hold a reader's attention. Marissa is one of those rare individuals who clearly has passion for her work and the topics she writes about; her outstanding contributions have always been anticipated by our site subscribers."

--David Smania, Founder & Editor, Foodservice.com

"We were on a very tight deadline and asked Marissa to write a "Question and Answer" type of article for our press kit. In a matter of 3 days, Marissa found out the nature of the information we were looking for, scheduled and conducted the interview and presented her work. We included it not only in all press kits we sent out, but put it on the front of our website."

-- Brad Birnberg, COO and President of Joey's Only USA, COO of Embers America Restaurants

"Marissa Kristal is an editor's dream--thoughtful, hard-working, and never misses a deadline. Her pieces are lively, well-researched, and a pleasure to read, and her queries are always spot-on. Kudos!"

--Jennifer Riley, senior editor, Beauty Addict

Contact

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Looking for intensely researched articles that also have an abundance of heart and soul? Look no farther; I'm your writer! As a New York-based freelance writer and advice columnist, NY culture, holistic living and health, beauty and fitness, dating, relationships and the arts are just some of the genres I've covered over the past few years. But no topic is out-of-bounds; I am willing to write about anything so long as it meets your needs. I am reliable, hard-working, witty, passionate, and deadline-oriented.

Email: marissakristal@gmail.com

about

2006-03-19T17:32:00.000-08:00

Familiar Strangers

When I was 5-years-old I started my very first writing journal. I wrote about anything and everything that moved me: my new Cabbage Patch doll, cotton candy, Bazooka Bubble Gum, my bike with the pretty pink basket. As I've gotten older my interests have (thankfully) evolved – now instead of Bazooka I like Orbit and rather than cotton candy I prefer high thread count cotton sheets – but throughout the years my love of writing has persisted.

Writing has always helped me to understand the world and my place in it. As Joan Didion once said, "I don't know what I think until I write it down." Precisely! My written words are my oxygen; without the ability to express myself through them, life would carry less meaning for me and nothing would make as much sense. Through the written word, life itself becomes a story - a cohesive tale in which my experiences are chapters and tragedies, climactic turnaround events. Writing forces me to slow down and breathe, to plunge deeper inside myself. But even more importantly, I love that through my words I am able to relate to, forge connections with, and perhaps even bring joy to others.

I would like my writing to be the literary version of the happiness ripple effect.

Let me explain. In the same manner that random acts of kindness – simple smiles, tight bear hugs and holding the door for strangers – incite ripples of human elation, through my writing I aim to spread cheer and create a sense of ease and delight in people's lives. Whether through motivational speeches, good advice, relatable memoirs or slice-of-life pieces, just as a single droplet generates numerous ripples as it hits the water, my humble hope is for my words to instigate waves of happiness and multiply human bliss.

Recently I wrote about a difficult period I went through during college and a reader emailed to say she endured a similar experience and not only did my article touch her, but it made her feel less alone. She commented, "I like what you write because it rings so true. Whether it's about a make-up product, your experiences in New York or college rush, I relate. Kindred Spirits? Perhaps."

And that's what it's all about.

As a freelance writer I aspire to identify with my audience, document all aspects of life and perhaps even spread some joy through my words. I wholeheartedly believe we can unite the world through stories and that we are all Familiar Strangers.

"The line between stranger and friend is so fine, one single smile utterly wipes it away."

-Marissa Kristal

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