Issue 05

Every day I’m scribbling little notes in my iPhone.

Clever lines I see on billboards. Weird ideas that strike randomly. Spoken words from strangers, takes on art in the wild, quotes from books, etc, etc.

Because, that’s what it takes to become a semi-decent, hirable writer. In advertising and beyond.

Soaking in the world around you, at all times. A cannibal feasting on every moment. Then, when your bank is full, you can begin calling upon your nuggets when you need them most.

Like…

• Dan Wieden hearing murderer Gary Gilmore’s final words “Let’s do it” and rearranging it into “Just Do It.”

OR

• David Ogilvy writing the famous line, “At 60 miles an hour the loudest noise in the new Rolls-Royce comes from the electric clock,” after finding that sentence in a British motor magazine.

OR

• Forrest Mars Sr. watching soldiers eat chocolate pellets in a hard candy shell during the 1930s Spanish Civil War, leading to the glorious tagline: “Melts in your mouth, not in your hands.”

Don’t stress about creating something completely original. Instead, collect experiences and perspectives. Explore new places and compelling people. Listen. Observe. Record.

That’s where sensational copy is born.

HEADLINE — LEO BURNETT

You can practically hear the ball whizzing past your ear.

SENTENCE — POST FAMILIAR WINE

In case you can’t read the bottle print, it says:

“Tastes like carrying a bag of peppercorn dust through a spring forest at twilight, while feeding chocolate blackberries to feral forest creatures.”

Highly recommend checking out Post Familiar Wine. The copywriting is as velvety smooth as their products.

PARAGRAPH — STORA SKUGGAN

The lines above are a product description for Stora Skuggan’s “Thumbsucker” fragrance. It’s a remarkable (and risky) way to sell something online.

“BECAUSE THE POWER OF THE AD IS ALWAYS IN THE PRODUCT ITSELF. IT IS NOT IN THE COPYWRITER. THE COPYWRITER SIMPLY FINDS IT AND EXPRESSES IT.”

— Jonah