Dr. Wordsmith, MD
Unless you follow my LinkedIn as closely as I envision that all of you do, this will be news to you.
This spring....man...this is very tough...
...in this spring, I have decided to take my talents to the Creative Team and become a Writer.
You heard it here. And potentially on LinkedIn (thx 4 tha connexion!). I recently decided to leave the world of Account Service and pursue a career as a Copywriter.
So how did this happen? Let's rewind my life (and my crow's feet amirite) two years.
One year ago
Once my reign of Rambling Man (on my business card) ended, I started receiving encouragement to become a writer. So people DID read the emails, Dad.
Starting this very blog that you are reading right now today currently as of this moment in time has been a test of endurance. I knew I liked writing. The question was: Could I write on a consistent basis? And the answer was: define "consistent".
Now
Once you find something you love to do, you have to ask yourself: Is this a hobby or can I do this for a living? Yes, there is a big difference between writing nonsense and writing to sell. But either way, there's still a story to tell (rhyme intended mic drop post should end here).
Fortunately, my agency was willing take the risk. They threw me into an office with two seasoned writers, exchanged my sports coat for a hoodie, and let me come to work at noon.
While I was deliberating over the decision, my mind kept coming back to a quote from the movie High Fidelity. I say 'movie', because the exact quote isn't in the book. SO GET OFF YOUR HIGH HORSE. Quick movie recap: John Cusack plays a guy who owns a record store. His musical tastes are better than yours. Him and his buddies make lists all day (e.g., Top 5 Side 1s, Track 1s). He's a critic to the brink of cynicism. Towards the end of the movie, his girlfriend encourages him to follow through with his dream of making music:
Dr. CJ
Wordsmith, MD
This spring....man...this is very tough...
...in this spring, I have decided to take my talents to the Creative Team and become a Writer.
You heard it here. And potentially on LinkedIn (thx 4 tha connexion!). I recently decided to leave the world of Account Service and pursue a career as a Copywriter.
Coming out of college, I had no desire to be a writer. To be fair, I had no desire to do anything other than play Dr. Mario, watch Lost, study duh hey mom.
So how did this happen? Let's rewind my life (and my crow's feet amirite) two years.
Two years ago
I was tasked to manage a weekly e-mail at work that no one wanted to read. What started as an attempt to trick people into reading, evolved into all-out nonsense. Content ranged from discussing this Brian Scalbrine clip to rewriting Wolverine comic panels. People probably still didn't read the e-mail, but I had found somewhat of a creative outlet.
I was tasked to manage a weekly e-mail at work that no one wanted to read. What started as an attempt to trick people into reading, evolved into all-out nonsense. Content ranged from discussing this Brian Scalbrine clip to rewriting Wolverine comic panels. People probably still didn't read the e-mail, but I had found somewhat of a creative outlet.
One year ago
Once my reign of Rambling Man (on my business card) ended, I started receiving encouragement to become a writer. So people DID read the emails, Dad.
Starting this very blog that you are reading right now today currently as of this moment in time has been a test of endurance. I knew I liked writing. The question was: Could I write on a consistent basis? And the answer was: define "consistent".
Now
Once you find something you love to do, you have to ask yourself: Is this a hobby or can I do this for a living? Yes, there is a big difference between writing nonsense and writing to sell. But either way, there's still a story to tell (rhyme intended mic drop post should end here).
Fortunately, my agency was willing take the risk. They threw me into an office with two seasoned writers, exchanged my sports coat for a hoodie, and let me come to work at noon.
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While I was deliberating over the decision, my mind kept coming back to a quote from the movie High Fidelity. I say 'movie', because the exact quote isn't in the book. SO GET OFF YOUR HIGH HORSE. Quick movie recap: John Cusack plays a guy who owns a record store. His musical tastes are better than yours. Him and his buddies make lists all day (e.g., Top 5 Side 1s, Track 1s). He's a critic to the brink of cynicism. Towards the end of the movie, his girlfriend encourages him to follow through with his dream of making music:
“You’re making something. You – the critic, the professional appreciator – put something new into the world. And the second one of those things gets sold, you’re officially a part of it.”
All of my life, I sat back and judged other people's music, writing, directorial choices, advertising, lack of ability to complete a list, etc etc etc...
I will always be a "professional appreciator", but now I'm out there. Me. Yes, I'm writing to sell. It's not the purest form of 'art'. But it's creating something.
It could work. It could not work. The important thing is that we have each other?
I will always be a "professional appreciator", but now I'm out there. Me. Yes, I'm writing to sell. It's not the purest form of 'art'. But it's creating something.
It could work. It could not work. The important thing is that we have each other?
Dr. CJ
Wordsmith, MD
lol I can tell you spent so much time on that Dr. Mario picture that's hilarious
ReplyDeleteYou have no idea. It was a really involved concept, executed flawlessly.
DeleteHow can I "like" Kyle's reply?
ReplyDeleteLike.
Delete