The following is an excerpt from my upcoming book, Minor King. This is from Chapter 14, where the protagonist, Jim Christianson, is confronting his wife Tabitha who was released from her job at a law firm the day before. *** In all the years I’d known her, I’d never heard her say one “off” remark about life in the system. It took her getting canned by an arrogant man who maintained a position of power because of money. I wanted…
If you know me, you know that I preach the concept of word of mouth being the best form of advertising in history. And, despite popular opinion, it’s not because of social media, either. Social media only expedites WOM. People have been sharing good and bad experiences with each other forever via speaking to one another – the literal sense of word of mouth. When we share good experiences with people, it spreads a positive ripple more powerful than any…
Everyone’s got their favorite album. And while it’s easy to list Dark Side of the Moon, Thriller, or Led Zeppelin IV as the greatest album ever in terms of numbers, personal favorites are different. This afternoon the song Full Catastrophe of Life popped up in the playlist and I was reminded once again how much I love the album Mr. Happy Go Lucky by John Mellencamp. Every haunting, deeply textured song resonates with me. Sure, Mellencamp is known for some pop hits…
Had a dream last night that me and my wife were on a small island. It was nighttime and I was preparing a romantic dinner on a blanket spread out along the shore. The full moon illuminated everything. You could see far out into the water. There were a few other people on the small, treeless spit who were all very friendly and who looked like they were there for similar reasons. Suddenly someone noticed a ripple on the surface of…
Stick to the mainstream, Jim. You’ll be happier. But what of my dreams? Fuck your dreams. They’re unsustainable. There’s no money in them. Especially yours. Best to just get in line and receive your fair helping of happiness as it’s been defined for everyone else. You’re not special, you know. Trust me, I know. But what if there’s something else? A different path than everyone thinks is right? You know what? There actually is a different path. But the thing is–you’re not the…
So you’ve got a great business concept. Awesome. And because it’s yours, the whole thing makes perfect sense. However, when you explain it to others they don’t seem to get it as quickly, and so you end up launching into a loquacious explanation that seems more confusing than clear. It’s a common frustration for entrepreneurs, and something we encountered in the early days of Boxman Studios. As a copywriter, it’s my job to simplify complex ideas. When I was approached about the business…
