LLawrence San is both a visual artist and a writer, and has worked in each field for many years. Sometimes he works purely in one role; other times he plays multiple rolessuch as when creating communication projects for clients or cartoon stories for fans.

San’s published writing has included two columns, each of which ran for a couple of years: San On Web, about the technical, design, and psychological aspects of Web development; and inSANity, an irreverant business column about making a living as a freelancer. Other writings have covered a broad range of corporate, technical, and marketing subjects for a diverse group of clients. San’s published artwork has included both editorial and advertising illustration, as well as self-published graphic stories. His unpublished work includes short stories, a children’s book, and various cartoons. Much of this latter work will eventually appear on this or related Web sites.

Most site maps are just boring lists, but not this one! It has comments and personality, and is the only way to find out everything that’s available on this site.

In past years in New York, San worked as a fine-art painter, as a high school English teacher (first in a violent inner-city school, then in a school for the intellectually gifted and talented); and as a graphic artist. Moving to Boston, he worked his way up from production artist, to graphic designer, to art director, to creative director, while usually working on freelance writing and/or illustration assignments as well.

Core SkillsWritingIllustration· · · · · · · Prototype DevelopmentEditorial DirectionCreative DirectionArt Direction & DesignComputer GraphicsWeb Tech
(including JavaScript, PHP, HTML, CSS, & Photoshop)
Prepress ProductionPublic Speaking
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San has lectured on subjects such as graphic design, typographic theory, and design/writing integration to large and small audiences of editors, art directors, and business/tech writers in the United States and Japan. He was also one of the very first print designers to make the transition to Web design, building sites back when most people had never heard of the Web.

In more recent years, working out of Boston, San has been prototyping publications and other communication projects for clients and employers. For example, he built a small-business webzine (for his then-employer) that quickly received rave press reviews and won several awardsincluding a nomination for a British Academy Award, the only American webzine so honored at the time. He then headed the editorial and art team that launched a related print magazine, serving as its editor-in-chief and creative director. Past Job TitlesSan usually freelances, but not always. These are some staff positions he’s held over the years, in reverse chronological order:Editor-in-Chief and Creative Director (Web + print)Director of Web TechnologyDirector of Print TechnologyDirector of TechnologyStaff ArtistEnglish Teacher Other San prototypes have included career guides, technology handbooks, and training materials. These prototypes often take on a life of their own (as an ongoing series of publications) long after San hands off the project. San has also built award-winning Web sites in the communication, staffing, and medical fields.

The Contact San page gives several ways to get in touch, including a text-message box. Who says a contact page can’t be fun?

San has been the featured speaker at seminars in several cities around the world, including Tokyo, but also enjoys speaking privately with individuals such as yourself about a wide range of subjects. He encourages contact from fans or critics of his stories, and from business people and professionals who’d like to discuss their current or planned communication projects.


You’re reading the short, professional version of the About San page. There’s also a longer, illustrated, much more personal version.

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Typical San Projects

San has worked on hundreds of diverse communication projects. Some in which he’s played the lead creative (and often technical) role:

A webzine launch

A print magazine launch

An online column about Web technology

An illustrated magazine column (online & print) about the psychology of freelancing

The world’s first patient-oriented radiology Web site

A Web site for a major medical center & teaching hospital

Corporate Web sites

A series of innovative career guides

Technology handbooks for talent agents

Computer graphics training programs

Created proficiency tests for a whole range of writing, editing, and graphic-arts production skills, for three different talent agencies; also related materials such as scoring guides, hand­books, computer-testing components, & an inter­national training program teaching how to admin­ister and score the tests

Corporate capabilities brochures

Hi-tech marketing materials

International speaking engagements

Cartoon illustrations (character designs and backgrounds) for a corporate multimedia animation project