A Boutique Sponsorship Firm

Ward Representsindependent newslettersand publications.

We connect brands with a curated portfolio of independent publications, and the loyal, highly engaged audiences that read them. Every audience number is verified with the publisher, every relationship is disclosed, and brands never pay us a fee.

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combined readers

audience categories

fee to brands

Brendan Ward, Founder of Ward Represents — Brendan Ward, Founder

The Portfolio

A short list, on purpose.

We represent a small number of publications we know deeply and vet personally. Every audience figure below comes directly from the publisher, and we are happy to share audience breakdowns and references on request.

LITERARY FICTION

After Dinner Conversation

Short fiction that sparks philosophy and ethics discussions, read by book clubs, educators, and thoughtful readers.

[92,000] engaged subscribers

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AI AND TECHNOLOGY

Understanding AI

A respected deep-dive newsletter explaining how AI actually works, read by technologists, executives, and policy minds.

[205,000] engaged subscribers

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POLITICS AND NEWS

amuseXpress

Political headlines and analysis reaching a large, highly engaged readership across email, X, and SMS.

[6,000,000] engaged subscribers

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[CATEGORY]

Matt Goodwin

[One sentence description]

[93K Subscribers]

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[CATEGORY]

Must Read Texas

[One sentence description]

[220K Subscribers]

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Audience details, demographics, and current availability shared on request.

How It Works

How working with us works.

1.
Tell us who you want to reach
Share your audience, goals, and budget. A five minute email is plenty.
2.
We match, honestly
We recommend only the publications in our portfolio that genuinely fit. If none do, we will tell you that too.
3.
Transparent rates and dates
You get real audience numbers, straightforward pricing from the publisher's rate card, and available send dates.
4.
You buy direct
Your agreement and billing are directly with the publication. We coordinate the details from introduction to send.

Brands never pay Ward Represents a fee. We are compensated by the publications we represent, and we disclose that relationship in every conversation.

1.
Introduce your publication
Tell us about your audience, your content, and your sponsorship goals. We represent a small number of publications and say no more than we say yes.
2.
We build your sponsor pipeline
We research brands that genuinely fit your readership and run professional, fully disclosed outreach as your sponsorship representative.
3.
Warm, vetted introductions
Every brand is vetted before it ever reaches you. You spend your time talking to interested, qualified sponsors, not chasing cold ones.
4.
You close on your terms
You set the rates, approve every placement, and own the relationship. We earn a commission only when you get paid.

No retainers. No setup fees. We are paid a commission only when our publications get paid. If we do not perform, we do not earn.

How We Operate

The way representation should work.

Curated, not a marketplace

We are not a self-serve ad network. We represent a handful of publications we believe in and know inside out.

Verified numbers only

Every subscriber count and engagement figure we quote is confirmed with the publisher. No estimates, no inflation.

Disclosed representation

We reach out as exactly who we are: the sponsorship desk for our publications. Publishers keep final approval on every placement.

The Founder

Brendan Ward

I have spent my career building audiences for independent publishers, including as the founder of Growtoro, a newsletter growth agency. Ward Represents grew out of a simple observation: great independent publications deserve the same professional sponsorship representation that big media takes for granted. I personally vet every brand before it reaches a publisher, and every number before it reaches a brand. Based in New York.

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Off the Clock

A real person, findable and accountable.

Sponsorships run on trust, so it matters who you are dealing with. I am not a platform or a brokerage desk. I am one person with my name on the door, and a family who thinks the door is very funny.