Table of Content
Here’s a sample resume we recently produced for a Writer in Hong Kong.
In this article, you’ll learn:
- About the Writer Role
- What Hiring Manager Look For In Writer Resumes
- Writer Job Opportunities
- Job Hunting Tips from our Resident Headhunter
Writer CV [Full Sample]
Here’s a full Writer resume sample, which we wrote for a client recently.
DARLA CHING
PROFESSIONAL WRITER
Email: d.ching@email.com | Mobile:+852 XXXX XXXX | Nationality: Chinese
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- Professional writer with 10+ years of robust experience in writing and editing sports, travel, and lifestyle materials for online and print media.
- Published writer in local and international magazines including The Globe Magazine, Jab Journal, and Family Living.
- Well-versed in online and traditional researching; adept at identifying key lifestyle trends and developing interesting story angles. Successful at building key relationships, sourcing for contacts and conducting interviews.
- Creative, resourceful, and possess proven ability to deliver high quality work within tight timelines and other resource restraints.
[This section gives a good helicopter view of the candidate. Briefly mentioning about your published works can help establish your profile as a professional writer.]
KEY SKILLS
Writing & Editing | Communications | Research | Publishing | Public Relations | Translation
[Ensure the keywords here mirror those used in the job ad. The first round of vetting is often done by a software scanner. This section helps to pad the CV with key writing phrases necessary to get past those scanners.]
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
ASSISTANT EDITOR
Oct 2013 – Present
SENIOR WRITER
Aug 2010 – Sep 2013
XYZ LIFESTYLE GROUP, Hong Kong
- Lead team of 12 writers in producing articles for The Globe Magazine, Hong Kong’s leading travel and lifestyle magazine with 25,000+ print circulation and 150,000+ monthly unique visitors and Jab Journal, a premium sports guide in Hong Kong. [This is the perfect opening line as it speaks about size of team and clearly states the focus of responsibility. In 1 line, the reader knows exactly the what the role is about.]
- Assisted Editor-in-Chief in conducting overall checking and revision of write-ups. Manage rewriting, correcting of grammar, developing headings, and arranging story flow to ensure all print and online content are in accordance with house style. [Toss in some writing and editing jargon here.]
- Conduct research and interviews to develop new ideas and conceptualise interesting story angles for Family Living online magazine with 20,000+ subscribers. [Research is a value-added skill in writing. Make sure you mention about your research and interview skills.]
- Manage editorial calendar and ensure that content submissions and publishing for online and print materials are within schedule
- Identify local and regional sports, travel, and lifestyle trends and pitch story ideas Selected to cover various stories on media trips across Asian region
Significant Highlights
- Wrote and published more than 250 magazine articles for the last 6 years. Demonstrated excellent and professional writing skills and got promoted from Senior Writer to Assistant Editor [Talk about promotions you earned and awards you received.]
- Awarded Most Resourceful Writer from 2011-2013 for producing unique and interesting stories for Jab Journal.
- Instrumental in increasing monthly unique visitors of Family Living website by 25% year-on-year. [Cite quantifiable metrics to support your achievements. Do, however, be aware of your company confidentiality clause.]
FREELANCE WRITER
Mar 2006 – Jul 2010
- Provide high-quality writing service to Hong Kong and international clients including Philips, SMRT, Hong Kong Airlines, Ford, NTUC, Bioskin, Western Digital, Divine Couture, FedEx, D’Open Kitchen, CHIVAS, TW Steel, and more. [Simple, clear overview of the job you previously done. Citing previous clients can help strengthen your previous writing experience.]
- Create print and online materials including web content, blogs, articles, press releases, ad copy, taglines, brochures, inserts, and company profiles.
- Perform research, data verification, translation, and phone interviews whenever necessary.
RESUMEWRITER | ASIA
EDUCATIONAL & PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS
- Bachelor of Arts in English Language and Literature, University of Hong Kong , Hong Kong| 2005
MISC. INFORMATION
- Technical Skills: MS Office Suite, Wordpress, Hootsuite
- Languages:English, Cantonese, Mandarin, Spanish, and Japanese
- Availability: 1 month’s notice
References available upon request
[There’s no need to list your references; if HR is interested in you they will ask you for them.]
RESUMEWRITER | ASIA
About the Writer Role
It seems intuitive that writers would not need some guidelines when composing their own resumes. After all, writing is their expertise. They might have been doing this all their life!
However, you should know that resume writing is an art that requires a unique set of skills and techniques different from the usual form of writing. Whether you are a freelance blog writer or a professional news writer, we are presenting a guide on how to craft a resume writer, as well as a CV sample for the Hong Kong market.
What Hiring Managers Look For In Writer Resumes
- First and foremost, your excellent writing skills should stand out. After all, you are trying to prove that you are the ideal writer they need. Make sure your sentence construction, grammar, as well as the use of punctuation and capitalisation are flawless. Hiring managers will get easily turned off with even slight writing errors.
- Demonstrate your knowledge and flexibility in writing for various forms of media. Many companies look for an all-around writer who can write for both online and print materials.
- Make sure that you are up-to-date on writing trends and best practices. Mention training, conferences, as well as competitions you’ve participated to show that you continue to learn new knowledge.
- If you are applying for a job in an industry different from what you’re used to writing about, make sure to highlight your capability in acquiring new knowledge and flexibility in writing about different field.
- Aside from your resume, most employers or hiring managers looking for writers would want to see the style and quality of your previous works. To make this readily available, you may want to attach sample write-ups (choose some of your best work) or a portfolio of your previous writing stints. This would save time between you and the hiring managers.
Writing Job Opportunities
- Join LinkedIn groups or follow companies you wish to work for to keep abreast with new job openings.
- Alternatively, you can reach out to these headhunters in Hong Kong to learn about any vacancies they may be trying to fill out.
Job Hunting Tips from our Resident Headhunter
- Create a winning cover letter and send it along your resume. The cover letter will serve as an introduction about yourself and is a great venue to answer the question “Why should we hire you?”
- Be active on social media, particularly on LinkedIn. Make sure to create a strong online profile that represents you and you professional experiences. Here’s our comprehensive guide on writing a great LinkedIn profile.
Before You Go…
Be sure to download this resume sample, which uses our tested-and-proven resume writing techniques, as a guide for your own CV. Best part is, this sample is available for free 🙂
And before you start sending out applications, send us your resume for a free CV feedback analysis from our team. We’ll review your CV in detail, share personalised feedback on its strengths and weaknesses, and show you how you can improve it.