Unlike other small biz publications such as Inc. and Fast Company, Entrepreneur has expanded into the lifestyle territory, addressing the facets of entrepreneurs’ lives that extend beyond the boardroom.

“Entrepreneurs have sort of become the rock stars of our era,” explained executive online editor Laura Lorber. “It’s very popular to call yourself an entrepreneur now, and it’s a very aspirational status. Basically we’re looking for content that helps them improve their work and their personal lives.”

Good news, journos. Editors at Entrepreneur.com are open to pitches from new writers, as long as they stay in tune with the brand’s mission: to inspire and encourage.

For pitching etiquette and editor’s contact info, read How to Pitch: Entrepreneur.com.

– Sherry Yuan

The full version of this article is exclusively available to Mediabistro AvantGuild subscribers. If you’re not a member yet, register now for as little as $55 a year for access to hundreds of articles like this one, discounts on Mediabistro seminars and workshops, and all sorts of other bonuses.

What if you got to see all the elements of your carefully reported story – the topsy-turvy plot lines, the larger-than-life settings and the riveting characters – materialize on the silver screen?

A project created by accomplished magazine writers Joshuah Bearman and Joshua Davis called Epic is an online destination for the most dynamic of nonfiction narrative journalism.

On his Media Equation blog for the New York Times, David Carr reported over the weekend that Epic hopes to create a model allowing the platform to commission stories that would translate into screenplays.

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Oh, Google: the search engine of our life. How many times have you answered our most embarrassing and inane questions — without a second of hesitation (literally)?

Google, in all of its infinite glory, can also be an invaluable tool for building your personal brand online. In the latest Mediabistro feature, we talk to some content marketing pros for their advice on optimizing personal search results:

“One of the many things that Google considers within its algorithm, everyone believes, is fresh and updated content,” says Nick Barron, founder of The Limbertwig, a full-service media marketing company that specializes in online content marketing. “So, if you publish a website and you don’t update it and a year goes by, Google’s going to view that as not so fresh content. If someone with your name or with similar spelling of your name comes behind and has a blog or has a fresher website, then they’re likely to rank more highly on Google than you would, because your content is just sort of stagnant.”

For more tips, read Google Yourself: 4 Ways to Fix Your Online Reputation.

– Sherry Yuan

The full version of this article is exclusively available to Mediabistro AvantGuild subscribers. If you’re not a member yet, register now for as little as $55 a year for access to hundreds of articles like this one, discounts on Mediabistro seminars and workshops, and all sorts of other bonuses.

Journalists are good people. Remember the pizzas the Chicago Tribune sent to the Globe newsroom?

In the same vein, I received an email this morning from Marc Samson, founder of Pressfolios. (I have written so much about the digital portfolio site, I’m afraid you are going to start thinking I have stock in the company. Full disclosure: I don’t. They just email a lot.)

The news came down this morning that there are going to be hundred of Patch employees laid off in the coming weeks. That stinks. That also means there are going to be lots of really good journalists looking for work. Samson and his Pressfolio team wanted to spread the word that they’re offering their Pro version for free to any one affected by the slow demise of Patch.

You can contact them directly here to get all of your work archived in one place as you make your way into the job market.

It’s a sort of lemons into tangy lemonade type situation.

Got me thinking: we’ve all been there before. What are your first steps when the ax comes down?

I’ll admit I’ve never given Web comments serious thought. As a news consumer, I tend to gloss over them by accident, mostly, while trying to find the end of whatever story I’m reading. And as a writer, my inclination is to internalize the positive ones, ignore the mean-spirited ones and openly assess the validity of the constructive criticisms, discerning how the person’s view might improve my reporting and/or writing skills.

But I was struck by the impact of comments Thursday morning when I was directed toward a piece by a Waco Tribune-Herald reporter. For my non-Texan friends, Waco is the biggest city near (south of) West, where the horrific fertilizer plant explosion on April 17 left 15 dead, many of whom were volunteer firefighters.

The Tribune-Herald story describes the intimate details of the “blunt force trauma” incurred by each of the victims, including graphic, downright disturbing particulars of individual causes of death and other vivid information about the deceased.

The comments were ruthless, and perhaps rightfully so. West and the surrounding areas (including Waco) are relatively small and very close-knit, especially considering their recent circumstances. At last check, there were around 450 comments (a lot for a local daily) lambasting the paper — and the writer — for disclosing such gruesome information about people esteemed in their community, and beyond, as heroes. By my count, there was not a single comment in favor of the story, its contents or the journalist who produced it.

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