whose line is it anyway?

20Sept2012

whose line is it anyway?

Bye-bye to bylines... in commercial writing your words aren’t your own

A couple of years ago, I spoke at a D&AD copywriting event. During the Q&A session at the end, I was asked whether I felt threatened by a new generation of talent coming through. In a rare and rash moment of of bravado, I answered “no, of course not”. But having had a few months to chew it over, I think a more balanced (if less illuminating) answer would be “I don’t know”. 

The point is, in commercial writing the author is very rarely credited. I occasionally read copy that makes me smile or prompts a pang of envy. I read plenty that makes me cringe. But, unless I happen to know who’s ‘in’ with the client or design company involved, I have little idea who to pat on the back or poke in the eye.

Read on...

book review – History of a Pleasure Seeker.

14Sept2012

book review – History of a Pleasure Seeker.

A Fieldingesqe romp set in belle epoque Amsterdam, Pleasure Seeker is the story of devilishly handsome country boy Piet Barol’s introduction to the mores (sexual and otherwise) of the big, bad city. An incorrigible charmer who manages to turn any situation to his advantage, the libidinous Barol is hired as a tutor to the son of a wealthy hotelier, and quickly sets pulses racing upstairs and downstairs. South African novelist Richard Mason writes with a deftness of touch and fine eye for historical detail. One online reviewer described HoaPS as “smutty and pretentious”, which is probably why I enjoyed it so much. The cover is excellent too. A sequel is apparently already in the works, and if it isn’t made into a movie soon, I’m a Dutchman.

History of a Pleasure Seeker
by Richard Mason
Phoenix, £5.36 on Amazon