Collaboration, or Friends in Strange Places.

I mentioned collaboration briefly in the last post, but I wanted to get into it a little more today. The first thing I want to point out is that there is a ridiculous amount of talented people in the world. I'm sure you've noticed it too, no matter where you go you are bound to find someone who has an incredible knack for doing...whatever. I say seek these people out and find ways to help each other.

Find People Like You. The internet is a wonderful place to meet people with the same interests and tastes as you from all over the world. If you like to write short stories set in a Western themed cyberpunk dystopia then there are probably entire forums devoted to that genre. Finding people who share your taste in whatever you do is a great starting point to get feedback and critique because these are people who understand your genre as well as you do. This applies to music, movies, advertising, books, whatever.

Recognize that there are a lot of people who make good livings working just within these niche markets, but if you want to achieve something grander, remember you are going to have to bust out of these small pockets and say something big. However, these small pockets are great incubators for ideas you want to throw around.

Bounce ideas off of people, but more importantly, let other people bounce ideas off of you. One of the best ways to get better at something is to help other people with projects that are similar to yours. Primarily, you are going to hear some fantastic ideas which are going to inspire you. I can't tell you how many times I have been absolutely floored by some of the work my classmates have done. Some of the angles they have approached things at have been in ways that I would never have dreamed of. Sometimes if I'm stuck on something I just ask myself "What would John do?" and a new solution sometimes presents itself. It's not always the right one, but its one more idea then I had before. On the other side of the coin, you are going to see stuff you don't like. This is just as important because by (respectfully) offering opinions on how something can be improved, you better your own understanding of your craft. It is easier to recognize what is good than to figure out how to improve something that is bad, which is what makes it a valuable excercise.

Find People That Are Different Than You. I don't mean just people with different perspectives. Granted, its important to have a stockpile of random personalities close by if for no other reason than it makes life much more entertaing. But more importantly I say work with people who are in different fields than you. We get too wrapped up in our professions and hobbies that we don't look outside and realize that there are a lot of people with awesome ideas just doing different things than us. Talk to poets, songwriters, journalists, novelists, scientists, anthropologists, musicians, politicians, screenwriters...basically anyone who has something to say. Life is a beach, so bust out the metal detector and start looking for treasure. You'll find a lot of trash but there is gold in them there hills. Wow, I just mixed a metaphor with cliche and two seperate topographical features. I'm sorry, but you get my point.



On a completely different note, being an advertising guy, I went ahead and got Google AdSense. I used to think these sidebar ads were all just spam, but I promise they are legit. One was even for TAXI which is an awesome organization which I took part in for a year. My point is, if one looks intruiging to you, go ahead and click it, I promise it won't install any secret spyware or spam you with a thousand e-mails. They are real sites.

Thanks guys, I'll be seeing you Tuesday.

Writer's Block is Your Friend.

I think we've all been there: there you are cruising along on a project, kicking butt like Swayze in Roadhouse when BAM...you have no idea what comes next. What happened? You were doing so well! Now you can't think of the next word, let alone how to finish the accursed thing. Good news my friends, this is one of the best things that can happen to you.

The Cause: To effectively use writers block as a tool, we must get an idea of why you have it. There are usually one of two causes.

A) You do not understand your project as well as you thought you did. When it gets down to it, you have to know what you are writing inside and out. If its a story, you should understand every aspect of your characters, from their history to their quirks, to their preferences in music. If you are writing a song then you need to know what you are trying to say to people (because all good art is about communication) and then, more importantly, figure out why you are trying to say it. If its an ad, then you better know the brand better than the CEO and the audience better than their mothers. Bottom line: to thine own work be true.

B) There is not enough stuff in your brain. The creative mind thrives on, for lack of a better word, stuff. A smart person is hungry not just for knowledge, but for random, interesting, insignificant bits of information. The problem is people like to stick to what they know, and if you are never putting new stuff into your brain, than you can't expect to get anything new out of it. This is particularly true about the music industry. This is why we still get rap songs involving nothing but alcohol, women, and cars and country songs about nothing but alcohol, women, and trucks. Yes, I'm exaggerating but I think you see my point. Let's push some boundaries people.

The Solution: Fortunately, whether you fall victim to Cause A or Cause B, the solution is the same. Get away from your computer/desk/notepad and fill your brain with stuff. Use your own judgement as to what kind of stuff, but don't be afraid to go totally off the wall. The best ideas are ones that totally come from left field (why not right field? Just a thought). Don't just arbitrarily go and do something random just for the sake of doing it though. Catalogue what you see and learn, file it away, learn how it ticks. It is by understanding the world around us that we are able to pull all those chaotic bits together and make something that is unique and hopefully someone else wants to read.

Lastly, I have officially kept up with updates for a week. I was worried this was going to be one of those things I started but forgot all about, but who knows...looks like this might be a regular gig.

Same time(ish) Sunday.

Say It Awesome.

The average person has an absurdly short attention span. A&R reps have incredibly huge work loads on a day-to-day basis. Having said this, I feel I can pretty much say the same thing and have it apply to both the advertising and songwriting businesses. The following are just a few thoughts I have on how to make sure your writing is punchy and memorable.

1) Your First Idea Sucks- I'm sorry, but its true. And really, if I were to be more accurate, I should say "Your First Ten Ideas Suck". This is because we are bombarded with thousands of messages everyday and far more of them get integrated into your subconscious than you think. I promise you that first concept you think of (or that first line you write) is a derivation of something you have seen before. It's nothing to be ashamed of, everyone does it. The key is digging deeper than those first, "off-the-top-of-your-head" ideas and getting into the meat of what you are trying to say. Which brings me to...

2) Cliches Are The Antithesis Of All That is Good- I hate cliches. I find their uses range from annoying to downright repulsive. And yet I catch myself writing them more often than I would like to admit. This is because they so permeate our vocabulary that you don't necessarily recognize them when you see them, which is why they are so dangerous. Cliches weaken your writing by using phrases that are so common they have completely lost any effectiveness. Your audience doesn't even absorb them.

Let's take an example: "You broke my heart". You've seen that so many times you can say it out loud without feeling a thing. But consider for a moment the VERY first time someone uttered those words. Get into the mind of the individual who in attempting to articulate how profoundly sad they were could only express it as having their heart broken. When you think about it like that it can send chills up your spine. The challenge for us writers is to invent the new cliches. Say something so uniquely meaningful that your audience feels every syllable in their gut.

3) Borrow Voices- As talented as I'm sure you are, you are only one person with one perspective on life. This presents a challenge because to be a good writer, you frequently have to be able to come at life from a completely different perspective than your own. Also, borrowing the perspectives of others can help you arrive at ideas that you would never have thought of had you stayed inside your bubble.

If you are writing a love song, its tempting to stick to the big universal truths. Unfortunately, the big universal truths are boring. They've been in every love song since the dawn of time. Change things up. How does a gondola operator in Venice see love? How does a workaholic lawyer see love? How does a teenage orphan see love? I'm sure all these people would agree on some basics, but its the nuances that make them interesting. I'm not saying necessarily write a song about these individuals, but consider looking at life through their lens.

If you are writing an ad for a chain of car-washes, how does a sports car owner see it versus a mini-van driving soccer mom? What would a cab driver say about it? A limo driver? These aren't concepts in and of themselves, but they are great jumping off places to get a start.


In conclusion, I would like to say that the bad ideas are often used because we are told to go with our instincts. Don't. If you do 50 concepts and have 5 good ones, you're better at this than me. If you write a song and get it perfect on the first draft, congratulations, you're a genius. But for the rest of us mortals, hard work pays off and in the end you really only need one awesome idea.

Back on Thursday.

It's Not What You Know...

Advertising and Music are both entertainment industries. They are professions in which your success is based on your creativity and talent, and if there is one thing I've realized, its that there are a ridiculous number of extremely talented people in the world.

Now, this phrase has been used to describe just about every job in the world, but I feel it gets used in particular with the glamor positions in life : Actors, musicians, CEO's, politicians, etc.

"It's not what you know, its who you know."

I couldn't agree more. The reality is that no one does it alone and you have to have a circle of people (a "network" if you will") to help get you where you want to be. HOWEVER I think way too many people use this as an excuse to not work as hard as they could or give up altogether.

So what if you don't get anything purely on your abilities? Get out there and meet people! It's not selling out, it's not sucking up, and its not cheating. It's building a safety net, a ladder, or whatever other metaphor you want to use. If you are a musician, go out and meet some producers, talk to some songwriters. Actor? Find people who make music videos, get involved with student films, befriend a key grip on some crappy B movie.

If you are in advertising, find out who did your favorite ads, and CALL THEM. Thats the beauty of what we do. No one is so famous that they won't take a call to speak with someone who truly admires their work. We're an insecure lot, and any ego-stroking is greatly appreciated.

You never know when you are going to make a friend who knows a guy who knows a guy who MIGHT get you a job. It's called opportunity people, and it doesn't just fall into your lap. Everything doesn't happen for a reason. Everything happens, and then its up to you to make some reason out of it.

Ok, rant over. See ya Tuesday.

The First Post!

So here we are.

I have joined the ranks of the blogosphere and added my voice to the literally millions of others. Joy. What am I doing here you ask? Well, to be perfectly honest I about to embark on a new leg of this crazy little journey we call life. I am about to graduate college, move to Nashville, move in with my best friend, (hopefully) find a job in the advertising world, seek out an incredibly attractive and talented woman to con into a relationship, AND hopefully write a bunch of songs along the way.

I figured I didn't have enough on my plate, so I'd start a web log. Or blog as the kids say.

My plan is to record my perceptions, misadventures, and sometimes even my "not-quite-insane" thoughts about writing ads, writing music, writing a blog, and of course my personal life. Who knows, I might even throw in a few classic internet rants. Those are fun.

I will do my best to A) Update every Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday. B) Respond to any comments you people leave me. C) Keep it relatively clean for the childrens, and more importantly my parents.

I realize this was boring, but its 3:30 AM and the first post always sucks. See you Sunday.