Start-up Spotlight - Wriber
Author: Kamil Rextin Google+ | Twitter It’s a cloudy Saturday evening and I catch [John Zupancic](http://www.linkedin.com/in/johnjzupancic) – founder of [Wriber](http://wriber.com/) at a local coffee shop here in Waterloo.
I’ve known John for the past two years; we were in the [MBET](https://uwaterloo.ca/conrad-business-entrepreneurship-technology/) program together and have been close friends since. Dressed casually in jeans and a t-shirt, we catch up Wriber among other things. Wriber which just raised $50,000 in Angel funding and from the Jumpstart grant has been the full-time commitment for John over the past year. Those not familiar with Wriber, here’s the pitch: _[Wriber](http://wriber.com/) wants to change the way you write_ Sound intriguing? Read on. **To kick things off, what is Wriber all about?** _The greatest challenge being faced by bloggers, publishers, and marketers is creating original and interesting content and doing it continuously. A lot of the time, the people writing content are not professional writers. Publishers often have volunteers that are writing that need to be chased in order to get their work done. Marketers have other parts to their job and are busy. No solution comes close to solving this problem._ **And how does Wriber aim to solve this problem?** _I'm building a platform that makes it easy to create and manage written content. Wriber helps bloggers, publishers, and marketers maintain their content strategy by supplying a fresh flow of topics to write about and helps writers expand on content as it is being developed to be more engaging. Wriber is going to be a blogger's best friend!_ **What’s the story behind doing Wriber? What was the “aha!” Moment?** _I came up with the idea for Wriber when I was in school. I was spending too many late nights working on reports. Writing has always been slow and frustrating for me. I don't enjoy it. I get writer's block all the time. I always remember muttering, "I wish this thing would just write itself." And then I thought, "What if it could?" That's how it all started. I wanted to create something that solved my problem. And then I realized that most of us face the same problems, but bloggers, publishers, and marketers face these problems most frequently._ **Tell me a little about your background story, what inspired you to take the road less taken?** _I have always wanted to do my own thing. It is the reason I went to school. I realized through the Master of Business, Entrepreneurship, and Technology (MBET) program at the University of Waterloo that my passion lies in disruptive ideas involving technology that have major impacts on people. Writing has always been the same since I can remember. Why not change the way people write?_ **What are some of the less glamorous sides to startup dream?** _There is a lot of work involved that simply put is not fun. I love figuring out my messaging. I love coding. I don't particularly love writing funding applications or drafting patents. I'm also very impatient. I'm always thinking about what to do next with Wriber. It can be difficult disconnecting when out with friends and family, especially when they always ask how things are going with Wriber._ **What are some of the best things about being in KW?** _There is an overwhelming amount of support in the region. If you have a problem, it is not hard to find someone willing to help. I have mentors through Communitech, the Accelerator Centre, the Conrad Centre, and Velocity. Everyone wants you to succeed. Most are not afraid to candidly tell you things you don't want to hear but need to hear. There's absolutely no way I would be able to do this without all the help that I am getting._ **What does the future hold for Wriber and you personally?** _It sounds cheesy but I would really like to grow Wriber to be the next leading technology company right here in KW. I have dropped all my jobs to focus entirely on Wriber. I am looking forward to getting Wriber to a Minimum Viable Product and getting all of your feedback!_
You can sign up for the Wriber beta here