Luke Seemann

I make media.

For several years I was Chicago magazine’s managing editor for digital. Before that I was its digital designer and developer. These were rad jobs. I got to make fun things, and I got to create tools that helped my colleagues do their jobs faster and better.

In 2013 I helped shepherd the magazine’s first digital redesign in six years. It was grueling, but I’m extremely happy with the final product and how it showcases our quality journalism.

Read more about our goals and process and my own design principles in this Society of News Design interview.

I’m also the creator of the popular and exciting fantasy cycling game Rouleur Derby, built in React on top of a Django back-end.

Some Chicago magazine projects I’m proud of, even though some typography and styles have changed in my absence:

I like big projects but I also sweat the small stuff, like fussing over smart quotes and seeing how many milliseconds I can shave off load times. Most of my best work goes unnoticed, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Some favorite tools: JavaScript. CSS. jQuery. Python. LESS. Git. D3JS. Sublime Text. Adobe CS. Google Analytics. Amazon Web Services. Any well-documented API, including Google Maps, MailChimp and Twitter. (PHP is a least-favorite tool but I’m capable with it anyhow.)

For more details about what I've done, a résumé is available, and a few projects are on GitHub.

I like side projects.

I learn by doing. Projects include Rouleur Derby, a game I created to teach myself Python, Django, React, and D3. Recently I created @whatschicago to learn about Twitter bots; The Atlantic noticed it and said nice things. Other Twitter bots include @ohcubs and @laatsterondebot.

I’m on Twitter.

I use @bikesarefun for topics like Chicago, media, Web development and current affairs. I use @rouleurderby to talk about cycling and bike racing.

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