EDITORIAL

Below are excerpts from some of the editorial outlets I’ve contributed to. Not everything I’ve worked on is currently available online—Tastemade’s editorial content only lived on Snapchat for 24 hours, for example, and I contributed to Dollar Shave Club’s print materials—but this should offer an overview of my voice and a brief glimpse into my editorial history.

articles FROM THEEVERYGIRL.com:

The voice is playful, informative, and relatable. I write predominantly for the ‘wellness’ vertical, which is a passion point for me. My catalogue with The Everygirl includes in-depth features, interviews, and how-tos.

See all my articles for The Everygirl here: theeverygirl.com/contributor/killian-lopez

Toward the end of 2019, I decided that I wanted to get pregnant. I was 34 years old at the time, but quickly approaching the mile-marker that would earn me the horrific (and outdated) label that all pregnant people receive after turning 35: “geriatric.” Suffice it to say, I was nervous about conception, so I took it upon myself to deep-dive into the science of fertility. What I unearthed made me seethe with rage. Not because the outlook was grim (quite the contrary), but because most of what I discovered I had never learned in school. Throughout all my health classes growing up, the breadth of hormonal health had been almost entirely encapsulated in a video of a live birth and a few tips on how to discreetly use a tampon. The audacity. 

Very few astrological transits set the internet ablaze quite like Mercury Retrograde. Mercury Rx is known for screwing with all methods of communication. Think faux pas when you speak, autocorrect blunders galore, and glitching technology in general. It’s almost ironic that word about it spreads so efficiently. You’ve likely heard the warnings: Don’t buy new tech, triple-check your emails, and be careful when signing contracts. So, as Mercury assumes this position in the sky on April 21st, you might be wondering: Is it a good time to take an extended break from social everything and perhaps live in the woods for a few weeks?

Romantic as that idea is, what if I told you this retrograde might not hit you as hard as you think it will?

We know we’re supposed to make time for journaling, meal planning, shopping at the local farmer’s market, reading books, taking baths, or falling asleep to binaural beats. Whatever your choose-your-own-adventure form of self-care looks like, it contributes to your well-being, regulates your nervous system, and ultimately feeds your sense of “flow.”

But the truth is that–despite what the internet might lead you to believe–most people do not live perfectly manicured, carefree lives laden with self-care rituals. If fitting in any amount of self-care feels more like a fantasy, it’s likely because life is always sprinkling in some less desirable variables (think: a health scare, the loss of a loved one, getting side-swiped on the way to work, a messy kitchen, feeling behind on a project). And sometimes, these moments overlap, sending you into a spiral of overwhelm so lovingly deemed “the hot mess.” 

BLOG POSTS FROM FREENOTRADICAL.com:

The voice is earnest, vulnerable, and encouraging. I started this blog as a way to document my own ‘aha’s and breakthroughs in my personal growth journey. The intent was to introduce people to the concept of Non-Violent Communication, which changed my life, and to inspire folks to see that ‘doing the work’ is more rewarding than it is challenging. In other words, it’s worth the pursuit.

One of the strangest paradoxes I’ve discovered on my own ‘growth’ journey is the “nourishment barrier.” The basic concept is this: when you were small and certain needs were unmet, you made up a story to protect yourself from how painful it felt. Often, it sounded a little something like, “I don’t actually need that thing.” As you grew up, you may have discovered that you really do need the thing. But for some reason, when people actively offer you what you’re needing, you cannot see or feel it. You might ignore it. You might make up a reason why it doesn’t quite do the trick. The need still feels ‘unmet.’

Nourishment barriers are tricky little things. They are designed to go unnoticed to the point where even if they get called out, you will deny, deny, deny.

Often, the nourishment barrier is layered under a series of stories you’ve told yourself about who you are and what you need. Stories that may not be true, but that you believe in your bones.

If you haven’t heard of nourishment barriers (you’d be in the majority) and you’re curious to see how they manifest and wreak havoc on a person’s life, read on:

As February crops up—a month that for some reason got pegged as the most romantic—I’m compelled to talk about ‘intimacy.’ Not in the culturally normative ‘physical’ sense; I’m talking about a much broader form of intimacy that can be shared between friendships, family members, and that cashier you’ve never formally met but keep running into at the grocery store.

When we see intimacy only through the lens of the physical, we give it such a limited scope. It gets shoved ‘behind closed doors’ of bedrooms and closets and folded into euphemisms that are meant to make us all feel a little more comfortable, but really only make us squirm a little harder.

I’m going to start this post with a story.

I liken it to my self-love ‘origin’ story, at least in the sense that it may have been the first time I really understood that I was (a) responsible for my own growth and (b) capable of achieving it.

At the end of this story, I’m going to offer a tool that you can try at home. With any luck, you will achieve a similar feeling of enlightenment, love, and self-forgiveness that I did.

Screenshots of TheMirrorCube.com

Though the site is no longer live, I coordinated the website design and build, and maintained its voice, which was straight-forward and to the point. These images should give insight into its overall vibe:

Articles for TV.com:

The voice we catered to at TV.com was upbeat, informative, and full of dad jokes.

When September hit, we hit back with our Everything Guide to the Fall 2011 TV Schedule.

This week, we're catering to those of you without cable subscriptions and DVRs. That's right—the tired, poor, huddled masses yearning to breathe free... from cable bills. Cord-cutters, we've heard your cries for some pointers on which fall shows will be available to watch online—and when. We're answering.

A new fall season means a whole new TV schedule to get used to—so to make things easier, we've compiled a handy programming guide, complete with listings for all the major networks, notes on what's new, and what-to-watch recommendations from your trusty TV.com editors. Now you won't have to ask your mom! Simply click the links below to navigate between the days of the week and start planning your personal viewing schedule for fall.

Oh, Halloween. Once called All Hallow's Eve, it's a day that even Wikipedia can't quite define (I would consult my encyclopedia, but it spontaneously combusted when the internet was born). Over the years, the holiday has evolved into a celebration where women dress scantily, pumpkins are lit on fire, and viewing audiences everywhere feel the sudden urge to watch TV shows and movies so scary that they might lead to collective, fright-induced defecation.