Storytelling is a hot thing right now. It’s the new buzzword. It’s also the most ancient human art form. People ask me a lot about it. The thing is, it’s not all that tricky. Can I make it simple for you? To make something a “story”, you need only four basic elements. 1. Character. One… Read More →
Are Those Bushes Moving? Breaking Patterns in Advertising
So called trends in advertising are simply a symptom of the creation of a pattern in a market that is so observable that it has become boring to them. The brain is wired for this biologically – proto apes scanning the jungle for jaguars. If it’s not new and novel, it’s probably plants. If it… Read More →
We Are All Pirates Here
Who were the first really outrageously wealthy people in our civilization who were not born kings and queens? Seafaring merchants. Who using the power of technology, were able to sail to remote places and secure cheap and abundant goods and merchandise there. But then sail SOMEWHERE ELSE where those goods and merchandise are NO LONGER… Read More →
5 psychology secrets for great interaction design
While it’s not about copy per se, I found this article had quite a few interesting tidbits about the mental magic that happens when people interact with something. In particular, pointers number three (use emotion) and four (mental triggers) are very relevant to our mutual interests in the Cult. I feel like these principles can’t… Read More →
Productivity Hack for the Lazy
So, productivity wonks are all familiar with this thing called the Pomodoro technique. Basically, you work for 25 minutes, then take a five minute break, then repeat for your whole work day. Here is a fun way I sort of implement this when I am in my office. I have a record player here, and… Read More →
How Faith Healers Scam People
Man, I really love Cracked.com – I hated the magazine as a kid because MAD was better, but this beast they have now is worlds different. Their podcast is also one of my favorites. Anyways, I digress. Here is an article about phony faith healers (or basically all faith healers). I’m posting this here because… Read More →
Prepared Writers Never Get Blocked
Here is an older piece from copyblogger that I saved from over a year ago. It definitely serves up a decent answer – more of a strategy, really – for dealing with a problem most writers face. What happens when the page is blank and you’re out of ideas? The author says “…writing good content,… Read More →
Our Name Is Alive
So here it is. The private “little” group I started on Facebook 3 years ago has grown so large that it is leaking out into the wider world. For those who never heard of the Cult of Copy, as of this writing we are 14,000+ member group on Facebook, and all we talk about all… Read More →