Welcome!
Glad you stopped by. I'm Christina Marian, a chemist-turned-content consultant serving clients in biotech, medtech, and pharma from my home office in Columbus, Ohio. I hold a PhD in Medicinal Chemistry from Purdue University, completed UX training and certification through the Nielsen Norman Group, and have over ten years of experience in technical writing.
HOW I GOT STARTED
During graduate school, I quickly realized how critical good writing is in communicating science. It's tempting to just dump all the data into a document and hope the results speak for themselves, but this approach rarely works. There are many factors that contribute to success, but all else being equal, good writing can mean the difference between getting published, funded, or collaborated with – or not.
Following a postdoctoral appointment in epigenetics research, I entered the business world and found that, although the style and requirements are different, good writing is just as important in industry as it is in academia. A few years later, I was introduced to the fields of information architecture and UX design, and discovered the importance of making content easy to find by labeling and organizing it in a user-friendly way. I've been an independent consultant since 2019, and enjoy working on a variety of projects that combine my skills in writing and content management with my love of the life sciences. My primary areas of focus are biotech, medtech, and pharma, but my curiosity is far-reaching, so don't hesitate to contact me if you're in a different industry!
WHAT ABOUT THE NAME?
DNA is perhaps the most elegant mechanism known for transmitting information. In living systems, new strands of DNA are always synthesized in a certain direction: from what's known as the "five prime" (5') end of the strand, to the "three prime" (3') end of the strand. Likewise, the sequence of building blocks, or "bases," in a strand is always read from 5' to 3', just as words in a sentence are read from left to right in English. Having started consulting with the goal of transmitting information, and knowing the importance of doing things in the right order, I chose the name Five Prime Content Strategy as a nod to this fascinating biological process.
MY PHILOSOPHY ON CONTENT
I've found that there are four critical factors to consider when it comes to content, and I work with all four of these in mind. In order to be effective, content must be:
Clear - The reader should be able to understand and explain to someone else what they've just read.
Concise - Don't make it longer than it needs to be. Succinct and to the point is best.
Compelling - Answer the "So what?" question, and don't make it an afterthought.
Findable - If it's mislabeled, miscategorized, buried too deep, or otherwise difficult to find, it won't be read.