Sharla Ishmael
Writer. Editor. Learner. Listener
My Story
Good writers can write well about any topic that interests them. While much of my career has been spent in agriculture, my ability to tell a good story has given me chances to write about everything from tagging lemon sharks in Bimini to the fallout of immigration on border residents to the intersection of human genome research and beef quality science. Ultimately, the key to successful writing is understanding why your audience would care about the topic you've chosen to dive into for them. For the past 30 years, I've been honored to write for all kinds of publications, agencies and organizations and I'd love to write for you, too!
Please check out some writing samples on the portfolio page.
About Me
Resume
PUBLISHER/EDITOR | Since 11-1-2021
Render Magazine - Benbrook, TX
Managing all aspects of a $250K budget, including editorial, advertising, circulation, billing and social media.
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Creating a compelling and educational editorial package of news and features for readers in the international rendering industry and members of the North American Renderers Association.
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Creating content for Render's social media pages.
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Working on various special projects for the North American Renderers Association.
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Providing advertisers with friendly, personal customer service to get their products in front our our nearly 3,000 readers across the globe.
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Representing Render at meetings across the U.S. affiliated with the rendering industry.
MANAGING EDITOR | 1/2020 to 1/15/2021
The Cattleman magazine - Fort Worth, TX
Transformed the editorial quality of the 107-year-old flagship publication of Texas & Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association.
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Refreshed the quality of writing and coverage of topics in feature articles and columns to engage our readers and help them in their business.
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Generated innovative ideas for the editorial schedule and wrote pieces myself as well as managed freelancers to execute the improvement strategy.
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Collaborated with an outside design team to overhaul the look and production process of the magazine. We essentially started over from the ground up.
MANAGING EDITOR | 05/2012 to 12/2020
The Show Circuit Magazine - Benbrook, TX
Served as the friendly voice on the other end of the phone for our advertisers, coordinating the traffic flow between them and a team of freelance designers to create eye-catching print ads that help sell their cattle.
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Created an interesting editorial schedule that engages our readers and help them run their business more effectively.
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Assigned these article to freelance writers or myself as needed, with a sharp eye on editing all copy for style, grammar and readability.
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Kept the train on the tracks as we hit multiple deadlines throughout the production cycle to ensure all 8 issues (average of 200 pages up to 500 pages) of the magazine get to print and mail on time.
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Oversaw the launch of a new daily blog and enhanced digital presence for the magazine. Contributed to social media as needed.
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Served as the owner/publisher's right hand, taking on special projects as needed, tracking billing and invoices and whatever he needs done.
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR/BQA COORDINATOR | 05/1995 to 08/2001
Texas & Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association (TSCRA) - Fort Worth, TX
Managed the editorial for the association publication, The Cattleman, working with freelance writers and writing articles, columns, editing all editorial and working with designers on layout.
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Attended meetings across the country either to gather information for editorial or to be the face of the association when necessary. Oversaw the programming and promotion for the annual School for Successful Ranching, which drew hundreds from all over the state.
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Worked with a team of organizations to initiate a new quality assurance program for Texas cattle producers and put on a series of educational trainings. Received the Chancellor's Award of Excellence from Texas A&M University.
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Served on the board of directors of the Livestock Publications Council for two terms and helped start regional workshops. Won several national writing awards from LPC along the way for feature articles.
FREELANCE WRITER | 08/2001 to present
Myself - Benbrook, TX
Writing feature articles, news releases, backgrounders, etc. for a variety of clients, including the Fort Worth Stock Show, Townhall magazine, national and regional ag magazines, as well as various ad agencies. Assignments covered everything from personality profiles, to the impact of immigration policy and even tagging lemon sharks in Bimini.
Education and Training
Texas A&M University - College Station, TX | M. Agr.
Agricultural Development, 1994
Texas A&M University - College Station, TX | Bachelor of Science
Agricultural Economics, 1993