MCB Seeking Writers

The Motor City Bengals writing staff has undergone three expansions since May of last year, adding a total of four writers to their ranks during that period. Now, the widely-read Tigers blog is looking to expand again.

Coming off a record-setting month of May, John Parent, Senior Editor at MCB, addressed the staff in an email and described his intentions this way:

"The idea of expanding our staff has come up before, but the timing was never quite right. When I added the Brothers Snyder (Matt and Zac), I did so out of necessity in that I knew the only way to grow was to add more content than I was capable of producing alone. Chris (Hannum) was added a few months later with the same goal in mind and then Jay (James Chipman) came aboard to fill a gaping hole in our coverage. Each time we’ve added staff, I firmly believe we’ve added not only the right number of writers, but also the right writers. I am proud to say that since I have taken over this site, we have not had a single staff member depart our ranks. In the blogosphere that’s a rare feat."

When reached for comment, Parent elaborated on his email remarks. “The site has just gotten so big and the demand for quality analysis of the Tigers so high that I felt the time was right to seek additional help.”

Under Parent’s watch, MCB has risen from a mere afterthought in the Tigersphere to one of the first choices of discriminating Tigers fans. Several of the site’s current staff members have used MCB as a springboard to additional writing opportunities including Zac Snyder, who parlayed his initial success at MCB into a position as Editor of the Detroit Lions site SideLion Report and turning it into the fastest growing NFL site on the Fansided Network, and one of the more respected Lions blogs on the ‘net.

When asked about how many writers he’d like to add, Parent declined to commit to a number, but did say “It’s not really a question of how many writers, but how much an individual writer can bring to the table. Our staff has always been one that produces a good volume of quality work and we’d like to find writers who fit that mold and can maintain the atmosphere we’ve been promoting here.” He added, “There are lots of sites with huge rosters that have four or five guys writing one piece per week. That’s not the type of writer we are looking for. Think of it like pieces of flair; if you just want to do the bare minimum, this probably isn’t the best place for you. We want our staff to express themselves as often as possible.”

Ideal candidates would possess a strong command of the written word as well as the willingness and ability to produce a high volume of content. While there is no immediate monetary compensation for the open position(s), the Fansided Network is progressive in their relationships with some of the biggest traffic sources on the internet and opportunities for advancement are available. “This isn’t going to be some get-rich quick scenario for any of us, but if you come in and pay your dues, there will be chances to move into a position where you can earn a share of the revenue.”

Interested parties would contact Parent directly via email. They should include a link to previous online work or a roughly 500-word writing sample for review. Emails can be sent to jparent.mcb@gmail.com and should include “MCB writer” in the subject line.

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