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“Seriously. If you’re in marketing or advertising, kill yourself. There’s no punchline, just do it. You’re the spawn of Satan and the death of everything that’s good.”
That’s Bill Hicks. Angry, bitter, smoking and ranting hero of stand up comedy and – obviously – no great admirer of advertising.
Unless, of course, it was to his benefit.
Last year I wrote an article for CreativePool called ‘So You Want To Be A Copywriter?’.
The intention was to provide a very basic guide for anyone considering a career in … well … copywriting. I thought it might attract a modest response, but the feedback was astonishing. In fact, the piece still generates enquiries – I had an email from someone who had read it only two days ago.
But perhaps the most impressive outcome was the success one reader has had in pursuing her writing ambitions. I am absolutely certain it has been her determination and talent that have carried her forward, but if the article gave her a bit more confidence or helped things along in any way, I couldn’t be more delighted.
In fact, I’m still struggling with that question. At infant school, I wanted to be an astronaut. Mind you, on the worksheet we were only given a choice of astronaut, policeman, doctor and footballer, and I probably thought I might get a bit more peace and quiet in outer space, even at that age. But what if, by the age of five, I already knew what I wanted to be? In Tokyo (as well as Dubai, Seoul, Mexico City and a few other locations), that’s not beyond the realms of imagination for quite a number of children.
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Picture this. You’re working, quite successfully, as a copywriter with a well known agency when the MD announces how pleased he is to have won the British National Party account. And on returning to your desk, you find you have been assigned the first BNP brief.
Now imagine this. You’re a hard-up, jobbing freelance writer and you’re contacted by a PR agency to pen some press releases. Their client wishes to inform the media their competitor is in financial difficulty – but you know this to be untrue.
The question is: do you refuse one, both or neither of these briefs?
As a rebellious young punk, the two lifestyle choices I found most objectionable were the possession of a mortgage and the obligation to work in an office five days a week.
And so, inevitably, it came to pass that in later years I found myself owing a considerable sum to a building society in exchange for a house and spending long days in a procession of creative studios in corporate office buildings. That’s growing up for you.
When I was 26, I had no career. Overwhelmingly obsessed with popular music, I made a living playing records (remember them?) in clubs and on local radio. The question is: do I have one now? And does it matter?
This all stems from a conversation I overheard in a digital agency recently. Two designers were sharing a coffee break and discussing employment options. Eavesdropping, I was rather surprised to find their exchange mostly concerned salary, benefits, hours, and job titles. Now, ambition is no bad thing – but to me, it was their omission of design in the equation that took me aback. Their priorities were prospects, promotions and pensions. Career stuff. Creative possibilities weren’t even on the agenda. (more…)
I was very pleased to receive a big response to my recent piece on becoming a copywriter but one question really caught my attention. The correspondent asked me to suggest a ‘type’ of copywriting in which to specialise. This rather threw me, but it set me thinking – there’s something odd going on.
I’m a copywriter. Which would suggest becoming one must be quite simple – but incredibly enough, it isn’t. It’s not quite as hard as becoming Archbishop of Canterbury (and believe me, I’ve tried), but it’s not without its challenges. So, with this in mind, I actually Googled the phrase ‘how to be a copywriter’ and the advice was so wide of the mark, I thought it would be useful to present some answers that are at least rooted in the real world.
Thanks but no thanks – the rejection letter from hell.
Tuesday, April 10th, 2012However, the most common complaint from job seekers tends not to be the rejections but the complete lack of any response whatsoever. Personally, I consider this to be the height of rudeness, demonstrating contempt for talented people and reflecting extremely badly on the company. That said, the ill-considered, conceited rejection letter can be just as bad.
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Tags: application, career, email, Facebook, job, job seeker, letter, money, recession, rejection letter, writer, writing
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