As of February 2025 and Peter Bowerman’s retirement, Jennifer Mattern manages the Well-Fed Writer website and brand.
A Background in Freelance Writing and Beyond…
Jenn took on her first professional writing and editing gigs in 1999, while pursuing a BA in Public Relations. After a stint in nonprofit PR, she went out on her own full-time in 2004. At that time, she launched a PR firm specialized in indie music.
That’s also when she began web development work and founded her first online publication. That webzine covered regional indie artists as a means to network and meet potential clients.
She then went on to expand her PR focus, working with authors, artists, athletes, agencies, and much more. She even created new markets for herself among underserved groups, helping to launch numerous ventures and careers.
While she consulted, much of that PR work involved writing. Common projects included press releases, press kit materials, ghostwritten features, white papers, case studies, brochures, and much more.
Jenn has since gone on to earn an MBA and run a successful business integrating freelance business writing, publishing, PR, and digital marketing for more than 20 years.
Through her company, 3 Beat Media, Jenn runs several web properties (now including WellFedWriter.com). This includes All Freelance Writing, a comprehensive resource for freelance writers launched in 2006.
A Passion for Independent Publishing
That wasn’t the only thing Jenn was up to in 2006. That’s the same year Jenn first got involved in indie publishing, releasing several e-books related to public relations and freelance writing.
In addition to publishing nonfiction e-books, Jenn writes fiction under multiple pen names. She’s an active member of the Horror Writers Association where she served on the three-person subcommittee making recommendations leading to the organization accepting self-published authors into its professional ranks.
A Dedication to Learning
Continual learning might be Jenn’s biggest passion. She’s a strong believer in formal education, but also in self-directed learning. And she believes continual learning in writing-adjacent areas can help commercial freelance writers increase the value they provide clients (and earn much more in the process).
She’s stayed true to this philosophy in her own career.
Jenn learned to code websites from scratch early on. She picked up design tools and some coding skills (like PHP for building custom plugins for her websites). She has a passion for SEO (not the scammy / spammy variety), and she’s trained entire SEO firm staffs in how to succeed long-term without harming the reputations of their clients (the cleaning up of which she’s all too familiar with as a PR professional).
Jenn also has a varied background in technology, from automotive tech to studying mechanical engineering for a couple of years in school. But Jenn’s primary tech interest relates to the web. Digital publishing, digital marketing & PR tools, blockchain technology, AI, coding, and much more– areas she plans to help fellow commercial freelance writers learn about and embrace in responsible and profitable ways.
What do you want to learn to take your freelance commercial writing career to the next level? Contact Jenn with your questions, and they might get featured in the Well-Fed Writer Mailbag series.