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Overview
Since her very first newspaper story in the Lansing (Mich.) State Journal in 1987, Billie Rae Bates has been published in many different places, including newspapers in several cities and states. She's written three novels and four reference books.
She graduated from Michigan State University with a bachelor of arts degree in journalism and English in 1990.
Billie Rae spent two years as an editor at a Jostens Learning Corp. subsidiary, Hartley Courseware, in Dimondale, Mich., before her first newspaper job at the Wausau (Wis.) Daily Herald, where she was an editor and page designer.
From Wausau, Billie Rae moved to Saginaw, Mich., where she became the design editor of The Saginaw News. While she worked in Saginaw, she hosted a weekly television show for the American Red Cross, called "Red Cross Currents" on WNEM-TV, Channel 5. A one-act play she wrote, "Little Girl Lost," was produced at the Buckham Alley Theater in Flint.
A couple of years later, she went to The Detroit News, where she worked as an editor, page designer and occasional book reviewer. She did writing and photography for the Comics Continuum website (then called the Comic Book Continuum, when it was under the umbrella of The Detroit News). In 1998, she created, developed and authored a series of websites devoted to several classic 1980s television shows, dubbing the collective sites "BRBTV."
Next, Billie Rae worked at the corporate headquarters of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan in downtown Detroit, where she edited BCBSM publications and managed the corporate photography. She also occasionally did voiceover work for BCBSM multimedia presentations. During her seven years living in Detroit, she photographed a sort of '90s "chronicle" of the city, capturing the good, the bad and the ugly within the city limits.
From there, she took a post as the director of communication and outreach services for a northern Michigan hospital system, which fully immersed her in the world of marketing communications and gave her a chance to speak in the community, and even continue voiceover work in the health system's radio spots. A year and a half later, she made the difficult decision to leave the corporate world -- a world she truly loved and had worked hard in -- to concentrate on her writing projects and on some community ministry work. She worked in some freelance writing, once again, for The Detroit News. She also parlayed her BRBTV concept, which she had been slowly nurturing all along, into a series of electronic books, first published in 2003 then assimilated into print editions beginning in late 2004.
In 2004, Billie Rae moved to Metro Atlanta, Georgia, which became the setting for her third novel ("Enie," arriving in 2009). She served as the publications director for one Metro Atlanta church for three years, then moved into the position of manager of communication for a larger church across town, all the while maintaining her own writing projects. In spring 2009, she moved to the Washington, D.C., area.
She's been an active member of the Amazon community and has been a featured blogger on Congoo.
She certainly has had some fun along the way. Her name was drawn into the cover of issue 34 of the comic book "Cheryl Blossom" by longtime Archie Comics artist Dan DeCarlo. Her feet are featured on the cover and inside sleeve of the "Innovative Expressions No. 5" CD of Detroit musician Spence Beamon. And, if you own the DVD of the first "X-Men" movie, you'll see Billie Rae snapping photos in the background during the clip of the film's celebrity premiere on Ellis Island in the summer of 2000 (she's wearing a short black dress of Asian design)!
But most importantly, God has taken good care of her. When Billie Rae stepped down from the corporate world in December 2002, her staff at the health system gave her a going-away gift of a beautiful wall hanging bearing Jeremiah 29:11. Since then, the Lord has shown that same verse to Billie Rae in many, many other places -- on gifts of trinket boxes and coffee mugs, in radio commercials and sermons and everywhere else, it seems. It's been a special verse to her, especially since the Lord has delivered on that promise and continues to deliver on it, helping her through difficult storms and offering some wonderful blessings. It made what she jokingly calls "Year 40" that much more meaningful. See the "My Mother's Clothing" photo project at http://mymothersclothing.billierae.com/(particularly the photo titled "The Phoenix"). She'll be happy to tell you more one-on-one; just email!
| Places I have worked |
BRBTV.com / BillieRae.com / freelance / contract Since December 2003
1-9 employees
Writer / editor / freelancer
Book Publishing
- Conceptualize, coordinate and implement public-relations and marketing activities, on a freelance or contract basis: write and send press releases and ad copy, design and place newspaper advertising and other promotional materials, develop marketing pieces such as informational brochures and presentations, write and edit various types of copy and develop consistent style standards for copy.
- Design, build and maintain websites.
- Edit book manuscripts.
- Do research and graphic design for various book projects, for BRBTV, com and BillieRae.com, and for other entities on a freelance basis.
- Write a daily news blog.
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St. Joseph Health System From April 2002 to December 2003
100-999 employees
Director of Communication and Outreach
Healthcare Industry
- Directed a seven-person staff of health educators and project coordinators to deliver health education to the community, through classes, screenings, forums and other programs.
- Coordinated all contact with the media for the health system: Wrote press releases, wrote and designed newspaper and radio advertising, answered media inquiries, developed marketing campaigns for various services and departments of the health system. Voiced radio advertising.
- Built and maintained health system’s comprehensive website.
- Assisted fund-development director with fundraising campaigns for the health system. Managed a six-figure budget for communication and outreach services.
- Represented health system on local chamber of commerce board of directors, United Fund board of directors and county human services coordinating council.
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Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan From April 2000 to April 2002
1000-4999 employees
Team Leader II, Graphic & Publishing Services
Healthcare Industry
- Edited print documents for grammar, style, punctuation and factual accuracy.
- Coordinated the corporate photography, directing a team of six photographers and scheduling studio and off-site shoots.
- Coordinated print jobs, working with internal requesters, external print vendors, Blue Cross Purchasing department and other groups to make sure documents were printed correctly and on time. Directed designers as needed to create and fulfill print jobs.
- Set the agenda for, and facilitated, weekly staff meetings.
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The Detroit News From September 1995 to April 2000
100-999 employees
Editor / page designer
Journalism/reporter/editor
- Edited features copy for grammar, style, punctuation and factual accuracy for Michigan’s largest daily newspaper. Wrote headlines and designed pages.
- Two days a week, directed features copy desk, supervising a staff of seven.
- Occasionally wrote stories, particularly book reviews.
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The Saginaw News From December 1993 to September 1995
100-999 employees
Design Editor
Journalism/reporter/editor
- Directed design of newspaper, working with graphic artists and photographers to develop layout of color section fronts, and to design and build informational graphics for stories.
- Edited news, business and features copy for grammar, style, punctuation and factual accuracy. Wrote headlines and designed other inside pages.
- Set budget for weekly Travel section.
- Occasionally wrote a family-oriented column for the Tuesday features section. Occasionally wrote book reviews.
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Wausau (Wis.) Daily Herald From November 1992 to November 1993
100-999 employees
Editor / designer
Journalism/reporter/editor
- Edited news, business and features copy for grammar, style, punctuation and factual accuracy. Wrote headlines and designed pages.
- Occasionally served as wire editor in the early morning, pulling daily news budgets and choosing stories for inside national pages.
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Hartley Courseware, Dimondale, Michigan From November 1990 to November 1992
100-999 employees
Technical Editor / Writer
Media Industry
- Edited and tested software documentation for this maker of educational computer programs.
- Wrote documentation for various programs.
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| Education |
Michigan State University - United States / MICHIGAN
Bachelor of arts - Journalism and English 1986 - 1990
Worked for MSU's Marketline magazine, was a copy editor and page designer for the daily student newspaper The State News, wrote for the TV show "Videosynchracies," member of Golden Key National Honor Society, GPA: 3.5, graduated with honor.
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Wayne State University - United States / MICHIGAN
Certification - Leadership Development 2000 - 2001
School of Business Administration
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