I’m hiring a Product Designer who loves to write.

I’m hiring a Product Designer who loves to write.

I’m hiring a Product Designer who loves to write.

Hey, I’m Amit. I’m one of the founders of Sudowrite, and this was a really hard job listing to write.

To be honest, I put it off for weeks.

A big part of it was because I didn’t want Ryan, our current designer, to leave. He’s been with us for nearly four years, and in that time he’s played a huge role in making our company successful.

More than that, he’s become a friend, and I didn’t feel ready to say goodbye.

Hey, I’m Amit. I’m one of the founders of Sudowrite, and this was a really hard job listing to write.

To be honest, I put it off for weeks.

A big part of it was because I didn’t want Ryan, our current designer, to leave. He’s been with us for nearly four years, and in that time he’s played a huge role in making our company successful.

More than that, he’s become a friend, and I didn’t feel ready to say goodbye.

Hey, I’m Amit. I’m one of the founders of Sudowrite, and this was a really hard job listing to write.

To be honest, I put it off for weeks.

A big part of it was because I didn’t want Ryan, our current designer, to leave. He’s been with us for nearly four years, and in that time he’s played a huge role in making our company successful.

More than that, he’s become a friend, and I didn’t feel ready to say goodbye.

Ryan digging for root causes
Ryan deep in his process
Ryan celebrating a W
Rest is important

(I used Ryan's favorite font to honor him.)

Knowing I had to write this job listing made his leaving feel all too real.

But writing it now is helping me process. It’s kind of like he’s dying. Or we’re breaking up. Thank you for coming to my therapy session.

As a startup founder, you’re supposed to always be like “we’re crushing it!!”, even if you’re not. (Truth be told, we are crushing it, but whatever.) If anything bad ever happens, you’re supposed to keep it hush hush. After all, people are replaceable, up-and-to-the-right is all that matters, and crushing things is cool.

But our company is weird, for a lot of reasons.

Knowing I had to write this job listing made his leaving feel all too real.

But writing it now is helping me process. It’s kind of like he’s dying. Or we’re breaking up. Thank you for coming to my therapy session.

As a startup founder, you’re supposed to always be like “we’re crushing it!!”, even if you’re not. (Truth be told, we are crushing it, but whatever.) If anything bad ever happens, you’re supposed to keep it hush hush. After all, people are replaceable, up-and-to-the-right is all that matters, and crushing things is cool.

But our company is weird, for a lot of reasons.

Knowing I had to write this job listing made his leaving feel all too real.

But writing it now is helping me process. It’s kind of like he’s dying. Or we’re breaking up. Thank you for coming to my therapy session.

As a startup founder, you’re supposed to always be like “we’re crushing it!!”, even if you’re not. (Truth be told, we are crushing it, but whatever.) If anything bad ever happens, you’re supposed to keep it hush hush. After all, people are replaceable, up-and-to-the-right is all that matters, and crushing things is cool.

But our company is weird, for a lot of reasons.

We talk about our 👺 fears.

We talk about our 👺 fears.

We talk about our 👺 fears.

We’re not trying to raise massive rounds of VC.

We’re not trying to raise massive rounds of VC.

We’re not trying to raise massive rounds of VC.

We make creative tools for artists, not B2B SaaS.

We make creative tools for artists, not B2B SaaS.

We make creative tools for artists, not B2B SaaS.

We share our 🌈 feelings, and our profits, too.

We share our 🌈 feelings, and our profits, too.

We share our 🌈 feelings, and our profits, too.

So this shall be a weird job listing.

Skip around, if you like:

So this shall be a weird job listing.

Skip around, if you like:

So this shall be a weird job listing.

Skip around, if you like:

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

What even is Sudowrite and why should you care?

What even is Sudowrite and why should you care?

What even is Sudowrite and why should you care?

Watch this! ☝️

We’re nice people making AI tools for novelists.

We do this because we love storytelling and we’re optimists. We believe AI is a phenomenal collaborator, not a destroyer of worlds.

We’re writers living in the most interesting time for writers in history, and we have an opportunity to reinvent how people write.

We feel honored that we get to do this work.

Watch this! ☝️

We’re nice people making AI tools for novelists.

We do this because we love storytelling and we’re optimists. We believe AI is a phenomenal collaborator, not a destroyer of worlds.

We’re writers living in the most interesting time for writers in history, and we have an opportunity to reinvent how people write.

We feel honored that we get to do this work.

Watch this! ☝️

We’re nice people making AI tools for novelists.

We do this because we love storytelling and we’re optimists. We believe AI is a phenomenal collaborator, not a destroyer of worlds.

We’re writers living in the most interesting time for writers in history, and we have an opportunity to reinvent how people write.

We feel honored that we get to do this work.

20,000+ paying writers love and use us.

20,000+ paying writers love and use us.

20,000+ paying writers love and use us.

3,000,000,000+ words written. That’s a lot of novels.

3,000,000,000+ words written. That’s a lot of novels.

3,000,000,000+ words written. That’s a lot of novels.

3,000,000+ projects in every genre imaginable.

3,000,000+ projects in every genre imaginable.

3,000,000+ projects in every genre imaginable.

9 full-time staff and 10 contractors. Small is beautiful.

9 full-time staff and 10 contractors. Small is beautiful.

9 full-time staff and 10 contractors. Small is beautiful.

3 years of profitability. We’re building to last.

3 years of profitability. We’re building to last.

3 years of profitability. We’re building to last.

0 VCs on the board telling us what to do.

0 VCs on the board telling us what to do.

0 VCs on the board telling us what to do.

Chapter 2

The Actual Job Listing

The Actual Job Listing

We’re seeking an experienced product designer to lead design at Sudowrite.

We’re seeking an experienced product designer to lead design at Sudowrite.

We’re seeking an experienced product designer to lead design at Sudowrite.

What you’ll do

What you’ll do

What you’ll do

Talk to users. A lot.

Talk to users. A lot.

Talk to users. A lot.

Craft clean, playful new UX/UI.

Craft clean, playful new UX/UI.

Craft clean, playful new UX/UI.

Work with engineers to implement designs.

Work with engineers to implement designs.

Work with engineers to implement designs.

Move Sudowrite towards a more agentic future.

Move Sudowrite towards a more agentic future.

Move Sudowrite towards a more agentic future.

About you

About you

About you

Great taste and product sense.

Great taste and product sense.

Great taste and product sense.

Lots of agency. You can just do things.

Lots of agency. You can just do things.

Lots of agency. You can just do things.

Led projects or managed clients.

Led projects or managed clients.

Led projects or managed clients.

Have prompted LLMs or want to learn.

Have prompted LLMs or want to learn.

Have prompted LLMs or want to learn.

Possess a kind and good heart.

Possess a kind and good heart.

Possess a kind and good heart.

Nice to have

Nice to have

Nice to have

You write.

You write.

You write.

You code (or vibecode).

You code (or vibecode).

You code (or vibecode).

You animate.

You animate.

You animate.

You illustrate.

You illustrate.

You illustrate.

You’ve designed writing or productivity tools.

You’ve designed writing or productivity tools.

You’ve designed writing or productivity tools.

You’ve designed games.

You’ve designed games.

You’ve designed games.

This is a great role for you if you thrive when you have ownership and autonomy and you want to ship often, work with people who care, reinvent interfaces and be adventurous and playful with design…all without selling your soul.

What we’re not looking for: A new Ryan. We’re energized by new people and new perspectives and we’re excited to see what you can bring. You be you.

This is a great role for you if you thrive when you have ownership and autonomy and you want to ship often, work with people who care, reinvent interfaces and be adventurous and playful with design…all without selling your soul.

What we’re not looking for: A new Ryan. We’re energized by new people and new perspectives and we’re excited to see what you can bring. You be you.

This is a great role for you if you thrive when you have ownership and autonomy and you want to ship often, work with people who care, reinvent interfaces and be adventurous and playful with design…all without selling your soul.

What we’re not looking for: A new Ryan. We’re energized by new people and new perspectives and we’re excited to see what you can bring. You be you.

Examples of projects you might work on

Examples of projects you might work on

Design intuitive ways for authors writing series to represent change in characters across multiple books.

Design intuitive ways for authors writing series to represent change in characters across multiple books.

Design an experience to let authors upload writing samples to train a custom model on their own voice.

Design an experience to let authors upload writing samples to train a custom model on their own voice.

Reimagine Sudowrite from the ground-up with agentic reasoning models at your disposal.

Reimagine Sudowrite from the ground-up with agentic reasoning models at your disposal.

Prototype an entirely new brand or tool for productivity or creative expression.

Prototype an entirely new brand or tool for productivity or creative expression.

Our Culture & Perks

Company Retreats

We’ve been to Hawaii (twice), Portland, Palm Springs, Mexico, and more!

We’ve been to Hawaii (twice), Portland, Palm Springs, Mexico, and more!

We’ve been to Hawaii (twice), Portland, Palm Springs, Mexico, and more!

Kind Coworkers

You spend a third of your life at work. It should be with people you like.

You spend a third of your life at work. It should be with people you like.

You spend a third of your life at work. It should be with people you like.

Unlimited Books

Love to read? So do we. The books are on us!

Love to read? So do we. The books are on us!

Love to read? So do we. The books are on us!

Remote-only

For full-time roles, live anywhere within U.S. timezones.

For full-time roles, live anywhere within U.S. timezones.

For full-time roles, live anywhere within U.S. timezones.

Low-drama Culture

We work with a coach to support communication and openness.

We work with a coach to support communication and openness.

We work with a coach to support communication and openness.

Profit Share

We offer competitive compensation and a profit share.

We offer competitive compensation and a profit share.

We offer competitive compensation and a profit share.

Insurance Coverage

We offer full health and dental coverage so you don’t die.

We offer full health and dental coverage so you don’t die.

We offer full health and dental coverage so you don’t die.

401(k)

Because no matter how great this job is, someday you’ll want to retire.

Because no matter how great this job is, someday you’ll want to retire.

Because no matter how great this job is, someday you’ll want to retire.

Generous Equity

Not selling lottery tickets here, but if we win big, we’re in it together.

Not selling lottery tickets here, but if we win big, we’re in it together.

Not selling lottery tickets here, but if we win big, we’re in it together.

Chapter 3

Design at Sudowrite

Design at Sudowrite

…is part working in Figma, part prompt engineering, part user research, part product management, and a whole lot of caring and making sure we do the right thing by our users.

Decisions go from Slack/Zoom → Figma → Production in days, not quarters. We ship updates every day.

This is your dream job if you want to span research, design, product, and front-end, work with pretty much everyone at the company, and touch everything from brand design to UI design to copy.

…is part working in Figma, part prompt engineering, part user research, part product management, and a whole lot of caring and making sure we do the right thing by our users.

Decisions go from Slack/Zoom → Figma → Production in days, not quarters. We ship updates every day.

This is your dream job if you want to span research, design, product, and front-end, work with pretty much everyone at the company, and touch everything from brand design to UI design to copy.

…is part working in Figma, part prompt engineering, part user research, part product management, and a whole lot of caring and making sure we do the right thing by our users.

Decisions go from Slack/Zoom → Figma → Production in days, not quarters. We ship updates every day.

This is your dream job if you want to span research, design, product, and front-end, work with pretty much everyone at the company, and touch everything from brand design to UI design to copy.

Chapter 4

Why you shouldn’t work at Sudowrite

Why you shouldn’t work at Sudowrite

We have a company cult.

It’s called “CLG” and stands for Conscious Leadership Group. It’s all about becoming more conscious in life and work by paying attention to your feelings (b/c they’re there either way, and they’re gonna cause trouble if you ignore them), keeping your commitments, acting with integrity, and so on. Very reasonable, non-culty stuff, packaged in a slightly culty way.

We work with a coach we love and she helps us learn and practice this stuff. We won’t make you do it, but you’ll probably want to.

When Ryan first started at Sudowrite we actually butted heads a lot. I am a designer, he is a designer, and somehow we got in this weird space where I felt like he was always shooting down my ideas and he felt (I think) that I wasn’t giving him enough control.

I’m sure there was more to it, because it definitely seemed like it at the time, but years later the whole thing seems so ridiculous that I can’t even remember what we were so upset about anymore.

Anyway, CLG helped us work through it. We worked through some “stories” we had told ourselves about each other. We did a clearing. (I realize this is a bit woo woo.) It took practice, but I got better at giving up control, Ryan started asking for my feedback, and working together got really good.

CLG has helped many of us communicate more clearly, grow closer, and ultimately know ourselves and each other better.

We’re kinda normal, kinda not

In a lot of ways I think Sudowrite is a pretty normal startup. We make software. People pay for it using subscriptions (I know, ew). We are smart and motivated to make good things. We invent new things and take pride in our work. All pretty normal.

And in some ways it’s not a normal startup. James and I have started companies before and sold them, and we weren’t looking to start a company. Unlike most startups today, we didn’t do this to take part in an AI gold rush. In fact, we started a couple years before ChatGPT existed.

James and I were happily writing fiction and made Sudowrite for ourselves. Then it kinda blew up. Since we’d been through this before, we decided to do things a bit differently.

We raised some money, but not from random VCs. Instead, we carefully brought in founders, writers, directors, and operators. We decided from the start that we wouldn’t chase ever larger and riskier funding rounds, giving up control along the way. It turns out this matters a lot.

This is our third year of profitability, and the third year we’ll do a profit share. We’ve been featured in The New Yorker and everywhere we care about. We have infinite runway. Our growth has come predominately from word-of-mouth. So far, so good.

We want to grow, but not just so we can raise more money and say we’re killing it. We want to grow because it gives us the resources to do cooler and more ambitious things. For example, this year we launched Muse, the first AI model made just for fiction. We’re working on more AI models for writers, and prototyping completely new ways to write.

We have over 20,000 paying authors. At our current revenue, a typical go-for-broke money-losing VC-backed startup might have forty full-time employees. We’re at a fraction of that.

That means we run things tight and stay focused on the important stuff. It also means everyone has actual impact. Not pretend impact, like share an idea at all-hands and maybe we’ll prioritize it if a VP claims it as their own idea it next quarter.

Anyone can come up with an idea on Monday, prototype it the same day, and ship it a couple days later.

We have a company cult.

It’s called “CLG” and stands for Conscious Leadership Group. It’s all about becoming more conscious in life and work by paying attention to your feelings (b/c they’re there either way, and they’re gonna cause trouble if you ignore them), keeping your commitments, acting with integrity, and so on. Very reasonable, non-culty stuff, packaged in a slightly culty way.

We work with a coach we love and she helps us learn and practice this stuff. We won’t make you do it, but you’ll probably want to.

When Ryan first started at Sudowrite we actually butted heads a lot. I am a designer, he is a designer, and somehow we got in this weird space where I felt like he was always shooting down my ideas and he felt (I think) that I wasn’t giving him enough control.

I’m sure there was more to it, because it definitely seemed like it at the time, but years later the whole thing seems so ridiculous that I can’t even remember what we were so upset about anymore.

Anyway, CLG helped us work through it. We worked through some “stories” we had told ourselves about each other. We did a clearing. (I realize this is a bit woo woo.) It took practice, but I got better at giving up control, Ryan started asking for my feedback, and working together got really good.

CLG has helped many of us communicate more clearly, grow closer, and ultimately know ourselves and each other better.

We’re kinda normal, kinda not

In a lot of ways I think Sudowrite is a pretty normal startup. We make software. People pay for it using subscriptions (I know, ew). We are smart and motivated to make good things. We invent new things and take pride in our work. All pretty normal.

And in some ways it’s not a normal startup. James and I have started companies before and sold them, and we weren’t looking to start a company. Unlike most startups today, we didn’t do this to take part in an AI gold rush. In fact, we started a couple years before ChatGPT existed.

James and I were happily writing fiction and made Sudowrite for ourselves. Then it kinda blew up. Since we’d been through this before, we decided to do things a bit differently.

We raised some money, but not from random VCs. Instead, we carefully brought in founders, writers, directors, and operators. We decided from the start that we wouldn’t chase ever larger and riskier funding rounds, giving up control along the way. It turns out this matters a lot.

This is our third year of profitability, and the third year we’ll do a profit share. We’ve been featured in The New Yorker and everywhere we care about. We have infinite runway. Our growth has come predominately from word-of-mouth. So far, so good.

We want to grow, but not just so we can raise more money and say we’re killing it. We want to grow because it gives us the resources to do cooler and more ambitious things. For example, this year we launched Muse, the first AI model made just for fiction. We’re working on more AI models for writers, and prototyping completely new ways to write.

We have over 20,000 paying authors. At our current revenue, a typical go-for-broke money-losing VC-backed startup might have forty full-time employees. We’re at a fraction of that.

That means we run things tight and stay focused on the important stuff. It also means everyone has actual impact. Not pretend impact, like share an idea at all-hands and maybe we’ll prioritize it if a VP claims it as their own idea it next quarter.

Anyone can come up with an idea on Monday, prototype it the same day, and ship it a couple days later.

We have a company cult.

It’s called “CLG” and stands for Conscious Leadership Group. It’s all about becoming more conscious in life and work by paying attention to your feelings (b/c they’re there either way, and they’re gonna cause trouble if you ignore them), keeping your commitments, acting with integrity, and so on. Very reasonable, non-culty stuff, packaged in a slightly culty way.

We work with a coach we love and she helps us learn and practice this stuff. We won’t make you do it, but you’ll probably want to.

When Ryan first started at Sudowrite we actually butted heads a lot. I am a designer, he is a designer, and somehow we got in this weird space where I felt like he was always shooting down my ideas and he felt (I think) that I wasn’t giving him enough control.

I’m sure there was more to it, because it definitely seemed like it at the time, but years later the whole thing seems so ridiculous that I can’t even remember what we were so upset about anymore.

Anyway, CLG helped us work through it. We worked through some “stories” we had told ourselves about each other. We did a clearing. (I realize this is a bit woo woo.) It took practice, but I got better at giving up control, Ryan started asking for my feedback, and working together got really good.

CLG has helped many of us communicate more clearly, grow closer, and ultimately know ourselves and each other better.

We’re kinda normal, kinda not

In a lot of ways I think Sudowrite is a pretty normal startup. We make software. People pay for it using subscriptions (I know, ew). We are smart and motivated to make good things. We invent new things and take pride in our work. All pretty normal.

And in some ways it’s not a normal startup. James and I have started companies before and sold them, and we weren’t looking to start a company. Unlike most startups today, we didn’t do this to take part in an AI gold rush. In fact, we started a couple years before ChatGPT existed.

James and I were happily writing fiction and made Sudowrite for ourselves. Then it kinda blew up. Since we’d been through this before, we decided to do things a bit differently.

We raised some money, but not from random VCs. Instead, we carefully brought in founders, writers, directors, and operators. We decided from the start that we wouldn’t chase ever larger and riskier funding rounds, giving up control along the way. It turns out this matters a lot.

This is our third year of profitability, and the third year we’ll do a profit share. We’ve been featured in The New Yorker and everywhere we care about. We have infinite runway. Our growth has come predominately from word-of-mouth. So far, so good.

We want to grow, but not just so we can raise more money and say we’re killing it. We want to grow because it gives us the resources to do cooler and more ambitious things. For example, this year we launched Muse, the first AI model made just for fiction. We’re working on more AI models for writers, and prototyping completely new ways to write.

We have over 20,000 paying authors. At our current revenue, a typical go-for-broke money-losing VC-backed startup might have forty full-time employees. We’re at a fraction of that.

That means we run things tight and stay focused on the important stuff. It also means everyone has actual impact. Not pretend impact, like share an idea at all-hands and maybe we’ll prioritize it if a VP claims it as their own idea it next quarter.

Anyone can come up with an idea on Monday, prototype it the same day, and ship it a couple days later.

Chapter 4

So if you’re great, why is Ryan leaving?

So if you’re great, why is Ryan leaving?

We asked him the same question. Here’s what he said.

We asked him the same question. Here’s what he said.

We asked him the same question. Here’s what he said.

Chapter 5

How to Apply

How to Apply

Don’t self-reject. Apply even if you think you only meet 60% of our qualifications.

Write us a note. Tell us why you want to work with us and why we should hire you.

Show us your work. Link or attach things. Make sure to tell us what you did on each one.

Send it to us. Email designer-job@sudowrite.com

What happens next…

Don’t self-reject. Apply even if you think you only meet 60% of our qualifications.

Write us a note. Tell us why you want to work with us and why we should hire you.

Show us your work. Link or attach things. Make sure to tell us what you did on each one.

Send it to us. Email designer-job@sudowrite.com

What happens next…

Don’t self-reject. Apply even if you think you only meet 60% of our qualifications.

Write us a note. Tell us why you want to work with us and why we should hire you.

Show us your work. Link or attach things. Make sure to tell us what you did on each one.

Send it to us. Email designer-job@sudowrite.com

What happens next…

1.

1.

1.

We’ll follow up to ask questions.

We’ll follow up to ask questions.

We’ll follow up to ask questions.

2.

2.

2.

We’ll reach out to set up a call.

We’ll reach out to set up a call.

We’ll reach out to set up a call.

3.

3.

3.

We’ll offer you a short paid project or go through a design exercise together on a call.

We’ll offer you a short paid project or go through a design exercise together on a call.

We’ll offer you a short paid project or go through a design exercise together on a call.

Thanks David Cole, Linda Eliason, Saha Hammari, Randy Hunt, Chris Shiflett, Paul Stamatiou, and Ryan Mather for giving me advice on hiring and feedback on versions of this job listing. And thank you for reading this far. Can’t wait to hear from you!

🚀 We’re hiring a Lead Designer and Head of Growth. Come work with us!

“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.”

— Maya Angelou

💼 🌳
We’re hiring a Lead Designer and Head of Growth. Come work with us!

“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.”

— Maya Angelou

🚀 We’re hiring a Lead Designer and Head of Growth. Come work with us!

“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.”

— Maya Angelou