About Renee Brincks

I’m Renee Brincks.

Editors and content marketing teams hire me to write friendly, actionable copy about travel + hospitality, sustainability, small businesses, and community builders. Drawing on 15+ years of journalism and communications experience, I tell resonant stories for publishers, companies, associations, and agencies.

Talk with Renee

A few highlights:

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Bylines: National Geographic, Sierra, BBC Travel, San Francisco Chronicle, Via, United Hemispheres, Late Checkout, Travel Weekly, Alaska Airlines Beyond, American Way, Sunset, Where San Francisco, GuestLife Monterey Bay, Endless Vacation, Carmel Magazine, Rodale’s Organic Life, Smart Meetings, and other consumer and trade publications.

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Brand work: Buick, Pebble Beach, Humana, Google, 1440 Multiversity, Monterey-Salinas Transit, Cannery Row, Silversea Cruises, Hornblower Cruises, American Physiological Society, Telc Language Tests, and others, both directly and through agency partnerships.

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Key strengths: I bring a reporter’s research and interviewing skills, a copywriter’s creativity, clear narrative vision, and strategic storytelling expertise to each new project.

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Client relationships: Several of my client partnerships span 15+ years. I regularly work with a range of stakeholders, from CEOs to subject matter experts to solopreneurs.

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Project experience: B2B and B2C articles, profiles, SEO-driven blog content, ghostwriting, newsletters, narrative case studies, annual reports, web copy, and more.

A little more about me

An antique orange VW bus in a mountainous setting

A group of people collaborate in a modern, brightly lit office space

I’ve been the Alaska editor for Travel Weekly and a San Francisco editor for Zagat. My articles helped feature projects win Society of American Travel Writers (SATW) and North American Travel Journalists Association (NATJA) awards. I wrote about Volkswagen bus tour owners for the book Bulli Love.

Before launching my freelance business, I managed marketing communications for See Monterey. Before that, I was a Des Moines Register reporter. I earned an M.A. in communication at Australia’s Bond University as a Rotary scholar, and I double-majored in English and Spanish at Central College.

I grew up on a small Iowa farm and lived in Spain, Alaska, and Australia before landing on the California coast. These days, I’m based in San Francisco and spend part of each year working from Iowa’s Driftless Area.

I’ve been the Alaska editor for Travel Weekly and a San Francisco editor for Zagat. My articles helped feature projects win Society of American Travel Writers (SATW) and North American Travel Journalists Association (NATJA) awards. I wrote about Volkswagen bus tour owners for the book Bulli Love.

Before launching my freelance business, I managed marketing communications for See Monterey. Before that, I was a Des Moines Register reporter. I earned an M.A. in communication at Australia’s Bond University as a Rotary scholar, and I double-majored in English and Spanish at Central College.

I grew up on a small Iowa farm and lived in Spain, Alaska, and Australia before landing on the California coast. These days, I’m based in San Francisco and spend part of each year working from Iowa’s Driftless Area.

Contact me to discuss projects for publications, nonprofits, associations, and mission-driven companies.

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View My Writing Samples

Select outlets and clients

Served directly and through agency partnerships

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A standout contributor and an absolute pleasure to work with.

“During the five years we worked together, I could always count on Renee for compelling story ideas and engaging, thoroughly reported copy that was on time, hit assigned length, and was damn clean to boot.”

– Eric Moya, former destinations editor, Travel Weekly

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Renee is that rare reporting and writing powerhouse.

“She uncovers offbeat characters and under-the-radar stories, communicates clearly (and oh-so-pleasantly), and files squeaky-clean copy promptly. Her descriptions are singular and dazzling, and she makes the creation of thoughtfully structured, well-paced, and absorbing stories appear easy. Renee has repeatedly made my job as an editor almost laughably easy. She’s truly a treasure of a freelancer.”

– Katie O’Reilly, adventure and lifestyle editor, Sierra Magazine

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One of my go-to luxury lifestyle writers.

“In her work for Pebble Beach and GuestLife Monterey Bay magazines, Renee consistently captures the spirit of place and delivers the perfect balance of context and insider knowledge that makes her stories interesting, informative and, best of all, memorable.”

– Steven Biller, editorial director, Palm Springs Life