is it hard for a suit to get into the creative department
March 24 2006, 9:47 am | | 48 Comments
If someone had been a suit for a few years, andd thought they could do a
better job at making up ads than their creative dept, whats the best way to
get hired as a writer?
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48 Comments
It’s possible but you probably need to go back to school. Examples of suits becoming creatives would be Karen or Verity (sorry I always get the two mixed up) and Kat G.
Is this Ben again?
zat Kat from Y & R?
Or is it an even worse idea than creatives becoming suits and going straight to the client with “a really good idea that just popped into my brain”?
My first job in advertising was actually as a suit. I wasn’t a very good one. I was lucky and got accepted into Axis Ad School when I was 26 and then happened to get a placement at Mojo when Murray Watt, Mike O’Sullivan and Richard Maddocks were working there. All three of those guys spent alot of their personal time teaching me how to write and Art Direct. Without their input I doubt I would have got very far.So it’s definitely something that does happen and my advice to a suit wanting to cross over into creative would be:1. Forget that you have already been working in advertising. When you start out as a junior creative you are essentially doing an apprenticeship in a new field. Don’t expect to be paid well and take onboard everything your CD tells you. Keep your personal opinions to yourself.2. Accept that you are beneath everyone in the agency. No one becomes a good creative without truckloads of input from the people that are around them. If you’re a dick no one will want to help you out.3. Learn to Art Direct. Even if you think you want to be a writer learn to Art Direct. There’s more money in Art Direction.
is that how Jello Biafra got started?
Darryl, you’re not only a talented git, but a bloody nice one too.
Yeah, can’t you be one or the other, so the rest of us get a chance, like an super-hot uber-prat OR a thoughtful, considerate talent-free-zone?Anyone heard of olaf zwetsloof?
Why does Art Directon pay more? There always seems to be more art directors than writers
I think these days you need to have a good handle on both disciplines. There’s nothing worse than when one member of a team goes on holiday and the guy left back at the office can’t do anything without him/her.
10.22, I assume you don’t mean learn Freehand etc. If you’re not referring to software skills, do you mean be able to say ‘that funkin logo gets bigger over my dead body’
Kate – do some work!
Well actually there ain’t nothin’ wrong with learning the software skills. They’re not all that hard.But yeah… certainly having a brain about whether the logo is too big would certainly be a help.
Maybe we could do away with creatives. If the suits write the ads they’re sure to go through. Think of all those huge salaries we could divvy up. Sure the work might not be as pretentious, overblown, subtle or indulgent but heck, the punter won’t notice and there’ll be a lot of very satisfied clients.
We’re not rising to your bait Tarquin. You’re far too lucid and know far too many long words to be a suit. Although it could be just that I only know really dumb ones.
Also, if you can write don’t fucking tell anybody.I made that mistake about five years ago and haven’t had a moment’s peace since.
Sick of correcting all the spellos on your AE’s contact reports are we?
Um… no.
Well if you are such a martyr to the cause, step on over. How about you tackle one of my brillant briefs (complete with motivating spellos); internet banner, web price comparison site?
Um… no.
Top of brief: This is an ad for the XXXX promotion.Bottom of brief: Do not refer to this as the XXXX promotion – this is internal speak.Just got it. Just sent it back. Do your fucking job properly and then we can.
Um… no. Of course not. It’s far better to sit firing off snide retorts on a blog than actually prove that you can string a sentence together.Your creatives must be near total demoralisation if people are constantly pestering you for your words of wisdom.
I am a creative, fuckface.
Ah yes of course the penny drops. The multi-dimensional art director who in a moment of dizziness revealed his poetic side and now must fend off the throng.Commiserations.
Um… no, I’m a writer.But thank you anyway.
Sooooooo… someone hired you as a writer. Then you revealed you could write… they started asking you for ads… you were pissed. Hmm.Another big sticky penny falls – you’re taking the mickey intcha?!Aha, I clearly need a colonic. Clogged up with too much festering naval-gazing angst
Again, thank you.
sigh
So, are you doing anything tonight?
That colonic’ll be finished by 7.30…
Wow, it’s like you already know me.
Are you me, or am I you?
Are there two of you?It’s ok if there is… I’m open-minded.
speaking of colonics, I just received one from Drop-a-Stone Direct and was really impressed. They didn’t rip me off, understood exactly the type of colonic I needed and were generally good buggerers to deal with…
Get out of it mate, I was just about to ask for the sale.
Apparently, if you aren’t amazed with the amount of feces that comes out your arse they’ll give you a hundy.
Is it hard for a faeces to get out of the suit department
A hundy? Is that some sort of new German underwear?
I’ve got coprophagia
I love colonics as much as the next guy but I just want to get back to what Darryl wrote about 35 posts ago.I was once paired up with a writer who started as a suit, went to one of the best ad schools and came back as a creative.He definitely had all the ability in the world to be a great creative and is still doing pretty well…somewhere. Problem was he could never let go of suit land. He thought it was such an added bonus that he used to be a suit, and maybe it was, but he should have kept that locked away inside somewhere. Anyway, he annoyed people to no end and continually reasoned himself away from the crazier ideas. He especially drove me nuts. I am all for some good old-fashioned rational thinking, but not until you’re done with the crazy bit.So, listen to Darryl. If you want to do it, then do it. And consider it a new start. The hardest part will be completely humbling yourself. Well, there’s also shopping for a new wardrobe, getting a tattoo and learning to say ‘cunt’ more.Sincerely,Jay B
I agree, I’m a creative now and having come into the game from a non traditional path I find it hard to throw reason out the door. It does get work out the door, but my cabinet is not exactly full of awards. The last post is very true. Think of it as a rebirth, throw reason out the door or you’ll never come up with crazy shit that people other than the suits and clients really love. Would the guys who came up with the latest RAV4 ad have done that if they were suits. I’d say with 100% certainty – no. They would have had people enjoying driving it, some talk about the features, some lovely shots of the car in different parts of NZ and the price. Probably even talk about the great fuel economy.
Mate if you think that the RAV4 ad is one of those ‘crazy’ ideas you’re still well and truly the suit you’re trying to escape. Just get back to it and stop pretending it’s not your calling.
1.59 – you’re obviously full of piss. And shit.
um yea, 1:59. the rav4 ad uses the old tried and true car ad format. seen it a 1000x this year already. a very similar one was done in india, but the wife doesn’t pull any tricks on the husband, he pulls them on her. well he only pulls one, he douses her in petrol and sets her on fire. not over a car, but just because. You should see it, it’s great, but the ideas been over done before. over a dairy payment or something my dad says.what ‘crazy’ shit you done 1.59?
that was funny.-jay b
Late to the post, but some suits who have made the switch to creative are Fred and Farid – they did the xbox work out of BBH London a few years ago, then went on to Goodby Silverstein. Now they’re back in France and have opened a boutique agency called Marcel, backed by Publicis.Actually, one of them was a planner, but it doesn’t seem to have held them back in any way. It’s worth looking up an interview with them because they do mention how they made the transition in some of them.Hope that helps – for some inspiritation if nothing else.
I reckon this person who wants to be a creative should just go and be a client.The transition will be a lot easier and you’ll get to say “no” – a word that isn’t used enough in advertising.
You need to go to Adschool. You need to prepare yourself for a very large drop in pay. You also need to watch your grammar. And you definitely need to be humble – don’t mention you’re the suit who thinks they ‘can do a better job’ ever again.