PRESS RELEASE November 1st 2006
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Website Matches Kiwi Writers & Photographers With Overseas Buyers
NZstories.com is a media service that matches NZ-produced editorial and photographic content with premium overseas print
and online publications. After a fundamental redesign and extensive software re-engineering, the NZstories.com website
has been relaunched at > www.NZstories.com
The website has two main functions. Firstly, it is an online shop window for talented Kiwi writers and photographers
looking for overseas sales and commissions. Secondly, it is a content database for overseas editors and publishers
looking for high quality New Zealand stories and pictures.
Writers and photographers can register for free and upload features and photographs to the online shop window for
overseas editors to browse. Publishers from Australia, Europe and North America are already purchasing stories from the
site.
The electronic syndication service is the brainchild of two transplanted Brits - designer/photographer Daniel Allen and
writer/editor Mic Dover.
“As an editor, I was constantly on the lookout for high quality content from trusted sources”, says Mic. “We aim to be a
fast, convenient trusted source for overseas editors and publishers looking for New Zealand content or content
creators.”
“Freelance writers put a lot of work into writing features but are often paid word rates that would raise the eyebrows
of a supermarket shelf stacker. A great way to maximise income is to ‘write once, sell many times’ by selling reprints
or rewrites of the same article in different geographical territories. For instance an article on organic fruit sold to
Organic NZ magazine could easily interest the editors of the UK’s `Grow Your Own` magazine or Canada’s `Food for
Thought` magazine.”
As well as writers, co-director Daniel Allen is keen to get photographers on to the site’s database. “Very few top class
writers are great photographers too. We can match the best photographers with top writers to create great feature
packages for specific publications. We think this service is a first for New Zealand and probably the world.”
The NZstories.com website also offers subject-based content email alerts that are sent automatically to editors and
publishers when a feature that might interest them is added to the site.
“We have freelancers signing up every week,” says Mic, “so we know there’s a demand out there. This is really a relaunch
of NZstories.com because our original website was too labour-intensive to cope with the demand levels of our users.”
The new site, engineered by Nelson-based Web 2.0 developers, Redcloud Development Ltd, uses Javascript programming to
process queries from both sides of the media coin – the creators and the publishers.
The newly launched site is open for business at www.NZstories.com
ENDS