You’ve got a story. I can help you find it, refine it, and tell it to the world.
A journalist, poet, editor, and communications advisor to tech leaders, I have a deep background in technology journalism (including leadership roles at WIRED and VentureBeat) and a long track record of uncovering, defining, and telling stories for individuals and brands.
Based in Silicon Valley since 1995, I’ve been blogging since the 1990s; have written columns about technology for InfoWorld, Business 2.0, and VentureBeat; and have led blogs and a podcast for WIRED. I’m also an ordained lay Buddhist, a longtime mindfulness practitioner, an open-water swimmer, and a haiku publisher.
At my leadership communications agency, Tweney Media, I work with companies that are ready to be seen as leaders – not just vendors or marketers – and help them develop and deploy their messaging and communication strategies.
I also work as a coach/mentor/editor for people who want to learn how to find their authentic stories and tell them to the world. If that’s you, please get in touch.
Rough Drafts
Rough Drafts is my newsletter on the messy intersection of writing, authenticity, and technology.
If you feel overwhelmed by AI content (both the slop we’re surrounded by and the pressure to use AI), I’m right there with you. I use AI a lot, but I am deeply ambivalent about its effect on writing. And I’ve got strong opinions about where it helps and where it hurts.
In this newsletter, I’m sharing the approach to human-centric writing that helped me become a successful writer, editor, and editorial consultant.
Most of all, I’m interested in helping you develop your own, unique voice — and build the confidence to use it boldly.
Please subscribe and join a community of people learning to write more like humans, for humans — with or without the help of AI.
My story
I discovered the thrill of publishing early, when Cricket magazine published one of my cartoons and awarded it first prize among 9- to 12-year-olds. Other kids got sugar highs from too much ice cream. I got a publishing high from Cricket that has lasted a lifetime.
I followed that up by writing annoyingly precocious letters to the editor of my hometown paper, writing and editing for my high school newspaper, and, later, contributing to college newspapers and lit magazines. After a very impractical liberal arts degree, I was lucky to land a job at a computer magazine, and I was off to the races.
Twenty-plus years as a journalist covering technology gave me a front-row seat to the PC, Internet, mobile, and social media revolutions. It also instilled a deep appreciation for the transformative power of tech. I contributed to a wide variety of national publications, online and in print, wrote regular weekly columns for VentureBeat, Business 2.0, and InfoWorld, and created successful, long-running podcasts in both audio and video. I spent four years as a senior editor at WIRED, leading two of its most successful blogs, then led the news team as editor-in-chief at VentureBeat for another four years. I was lucky to work with and mentor some truly outstanding writers, reporters, and editors at both publications.
That work gave me the skills to explain complex technological and scientific issues to general audiences, and it fed my passion for telling stories about technology.
It also taught me to mentor writers, manage teams, and ship copy the way Agile dev teams ship software. When I was the editor-in-chief, VentureBeat regularly published 30-50 stories every weekday.
At Tweney Media, I work with companies and entrepreneurs to develop their stories, create leadership-defining content in a variety of media, craft winning pitches, and deploy those stories in earned, owned, and social channels.
What else I do
I’m a meditation and mindfulness practitioner in the Vietnamese Zen (Thien) tradition of Thích Nhất Hạnh and an active participant in the global Plum Village community he founded. I manage the Norcal Sangha website for this community in Northern California. On Earth Day 2023, I was ordained by Sister Chân Không as a lay member of the Order of Interbeing.
I’m also the founder of tinywords, a daily journal of haiku and micropoetry, which I’ve been publishing since 2000. With over 3,000 subscribers, it’s the world’s largest journal of tiny poetry.
I’ve been blogging since the last millennium, mostly about technology and media, but more recently also about mindfulness, swimming, running, and writing. My first post was in November 1999; my 2,000th post appeared in January 2025. And I write morning pages pretty much every day.
When I’m not working, I’m probably out swimming in the nearest body of water.
Professional bio
A former WIRED and VentureBeat editor, Dylan Tweney has spent the past decade helping some of the most distinctive tech brands establish leadership by communicating their ideas in effective, memorable ways. His clients have included PWC, GitLab, Twilio, New Relic, Bloom Energy, Upwork, and Mailchimp. This work has generated hundreds of news stories, millions of views, and millions of dollars in sales pipeline, not because it followed a formula, but because it said something a real person was willing to stand behind.
Dylan’s work covers a broad range of tech companies, with a particular focus on B2B SaaS, cybersecurity, and health tech.
His approach is based on his journalistic background and his passion for helping transformative technologies win the recognition they deserve.
Dylan is currently writing a book on how leaders can build trust and influence through writing, in an era when AI can generate anything — except a real point of view.