Katie Gruel is an award-winning, Los Angeles-based, Japanese-American writer, whose family settled in the bustling Asian enclave of Oklahoma, where she was raised on a steady diet of pork fried rice, steak, and straight-A report cards. Born to a large family of doctors, after college Katie continues to disappoint her parents as a successful writer for TV and film, copywriter, and screenwriting teacher. In LA, Katie has discovered the joy that is fresh sushi, sunshine, and the peaceful pastime of hiking on trails that aren’t also used for quail hunting.

Katie most recently wrote a feature for Lifetime, THE KILLER INSIDE: THE RUTH FINLEY STORY, which starred Teri Hatcher. The movie also received an Honorable Mention from the Gracie Awards; The Gracies recognize exemplary programming created by women, for women, and about women in all facets of media. Katie is currently in development with Lifetime on her third feature. Katie has also been staffed on Jennifer Lopez’s NBC series SHADES OF BLUE, SyFy’s DOMINION and CHANNEL ZERO, as well as PERCEPTION for TNT. In her free time, Katie enjoys baking and yoga, and she’s a connoisseur of Charles Shaw wines and The Traitors franchise.

I believe that stories are the threads that connect us to one another. That applies to a company’s story as well: ads are the bridge that connect businesses with their customers. Marketing doesn’t have to sound cookie-cutter, slick, or “sales-y” in order to reach people. It just has to be human.

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