First and foremost—thank you for your interest in and support of LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs. In times like these, it matters.

My work often operates at the intersection of journalism, creatorship and consulting. As such, it may be helpful for you to know where I stand with regard to values, ethics and editorial style.

Here are more details on what you can expect from me when you read articles on this website or in other media publications.

The Role of an Editor

Editing transforms “good enough” posts into stories that stick with readers for weeks, months, or longer. Editors must operate with precision, patience, strategy and up-to-date knowledge of the industry and demographic they are editing for.

As editors, our job is not to “fix” writers’ drafts, but rather ask questions and make suggestions that guide writers towards producing the most expressive and effective version of their own voice. It’s my belief that, in the age of AI, the editing skill set is becoming more valuable than the writing skill set.

I align my editorial values with the Society of Professional Journalists’ code of ethics. The code of ethics is available here in both web page and downloadable PDF formats for free. Here is a selected passage from the code’s preamble:

“Members of the Society of Professional Journalists believe that public enlightenment is the forerunner of justice and the foundation of democracy. Ethical journalism strives to ensure the free exchange of information that is accurate, fair and thorough. An ethical journalist acts with integrity.”

Editorial Ethos

Content should be easy to read. It should add value to a reader’s day, whether that be via education, entertainment or both.

Design and user interface should support this. When necessary, an image, diagram, video or embed should be included to heighten the comment experience. This is the world wide web, not a print magazine; if an embed or chart would make the content more helpful or easier to understand, that should be pursued.

Blog posts here on nickwolny.com aspire to be succinct, but they are optimized for search engine visibility first, meaning they often include keywords and phrases with a goal to appear more often in search engines. I run a small publication on Medium, The 700-Word Read, that showcases more rigorous editing.

We are committed to accessibility and a great user experience. Pop-ups are kept to a minimum, and we work to make the site’s load speed very fast.

Affiliate Link Disclosures

Some of the services, programs or product recommendations I make on this website use affiliate links, for which I may earn a commission, at no additional cost to you.

We err on the side of fewer affiliate links to ensure we understand and have reviewed everything we actually recommend.

Purchased Editorial

At this time, we do not purchase or outsource any editorial, and are not compensated by companies or people to write about topics on this website (outside of affiliate links, as previously disclosed). All content on this website has been written by me.

If and when guest writers are invited to contribute, their bylines will be clearly marked.

ChatGPT and Other Writing AIs

In the age of ChatGPT, editorial transparency is incredibly important. At this time, we use AI technology in the following ways to assist the creative process.

• Otter.ai. I use Otter.ai for interview notes and video transcriptions. Otter.ai is a machine transcription SaaS that leverages AI technology.
• Surfer. I use Surfer for search engine optimization help. Surfer is a content improvement tool that leverages AI technologies to do audits on existing content and make improvement recommendations.
• Claude. I use Anthropic’s Claude in two ways: Tertiary sourcing for potential topics, which are then fact-checked, and development of FAQ schema markup for Google.

My perspective is this: I personally don’t need an AI to create content. I already know how to research, report, outline, write, edit, and publish quality editorial, and can do so on deadline. This is thanks to years of experience, plenty of trial and error, and a passion for this work.

In contrast, my clients and readers have expertise and/or interest in other areas, not publishing. So for them, a writing AI is valuable and attractive, and I completely get that.

Therefore, in the interest of market research, I do prefer to keep up on what people are creating and automating with chatbots, as this knowledge is vital to remain at the forefront of the industry.

Website Forms

Signup forms on this website are integrated into beehiiv, a leading email service provider. Read my review of them here. Data mishandling is not cute, so we strictly adhere to all GDPR and CCPA requirements.

Hefty Media Group and Camp Wordsmith®

Less Noise More Volume dba Hefty Media Group, established in 2016, is my marketing consulting company.

Our company is classified as NAICS Code 541613, is a single-member LLC, and is classified as an S-corporation for tax purposes. Hefty Media Group is a remote-first company headquartered in Los Angeles, California that offers fractional consulting services, project-based writing work, and a flagship on-demand core program, Camp Wordsmith®.

Camp Wordsmith is a content marketing strategy program for business stakeholders, service providers and online professionals. It debuted in November 2021, and includes resources on content writing and marketing, swipe files for easy implementation and a custom-built program portal. Hefty Media Group secured the Camp Wordsmith trademark in March 2023.

Hefty Media Group’s private consulting was downsized when I accepted an editor position with Red Ventures in March 2022, but remains active. Private clients are contingent upon having no conflicts of interest with Red Ventures.

Website Style

This website was built by Civilized Savage, a web development company. Our headline font is Source Serif Pro Black, and our paragraph font is Source Sans Pro. This typography was selected for accessibility and simplicity.

My writing takes AP style, unless otherwise specified by a publication.

More to Come

You can always return to this space to reference disclosures. Thank you for your interest in the editorial process. ⬥

Thanks For Reading 🙏🏼

Keep up the momentum with one or more of these next steps:

💬 Leave a comment below. Let me know a takeaway or thought you had from this post.

📣 Share this post with your network or a friend. Sharing helps spread the word, and posts are formatted to be both easy to read and easy to curate, with nice image previews. You'll look savvy and informed.

📲 Connect on another platform. I’m currently publishing in these places. If you are too, say hello:

• Medium: Articles and thought essays.
• Threads: Casual, Twitter-esque commentary.
• Instagram: Media appearances, and some occasional IRL posts to Stories.
• TikTok: Occasional video scraps from reporting and life.
• LinkedIn: Buttoned-up posts.

📬 Sign up for my free email list. Financialicious is a free newsletter about online business and finance from a gay male editor’s perspective. Learn more and browse past editions here.

🏕 Up your writing game. Camp Wordsmith® is a content marketing strategy program for small business owners, service providers, and online professionals. Learn more here.

📊 Hire me for consulting. I provide 1-on-1 consultations through my company, Hefty Media Group. We're a certified diversity supplier with the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce. Learn more here.