This much I know…
A series of interviews with copywriters
You can recognise great copy because it …
… makes you feel something, as well as learn something.
I know I’ve done a good job when…
… the writing’s happened so naturally that I don’t need to edit my first draft.
The ideal client is …
… one whose brief is so challenging that I get excited about the possiblity I may have to edit my first draft [sic].
My favourite type of work is …
… rewriting documents that have had more tracked changes than Thomas the Tank Engine.
People like my copy because …
… it brings their intentions to life in a tone of voice with which they associate themselves – and that’s not necessarily the same thing as meeting their brief. Oh, and it’s usually accompanied by pith, wit and thought-provoking questions in the footer such as, ‘what DO teenage squirrels look like?’.
Too many people think copywriting is …
… putting the writing right, without righting the wrongs that lead to the wrong writing. Right?
To me, copywriting is all about …
… using the provenience of our language to stimulate a reaction; crafting phrases like the previous humdinger, which make you feel as though you’ve had a life-changing experience whether you wanted it or not.
The thing that drives me mad is …
… ‘near misses’. You miss something, or you hit it. There’s no such thing as a near miss unless it’s accompanied by an interrobang and the results of a Myers Briggs test that show you’re type FAIL.
If I wasn’t a copywriter, I’d be a …
… lawyer. Which is like being a copywriter, but working for clients who are really, really, REALLY stressed about how powerful language can be and how impotent it can make them feel.
When I was growing up my parents always told me …
… to never grow up splitting infinitives.
I relax by …
… remembering that life is about much, much more than the 9 to 5.
My guilty pleasure is …
… relishing in the fact my 9 to 5 goes a long, long way to making me very happy about my life.
About Rentaquill
Not backwards at coming forwards, rentaquill describes herself as a logodaedalist who puts words together for a living – sometimes coherently. She’s an effervescent trainer and copywriter, and loves forensic linguistics.