Brian Beatty grew up in Brazil, Indiana. According to him, it wasn’t nearly as exotic as it sounds. He moved to Minneapolis in 1999 because he assumed that Prince was throwing a party. Since 2000, he’s worked as a writer for a select handful of Twin Cities advertising and design agencies. He’s currently senior copywriter at HartungKemp (but, he readily admits, that his title’s a lot less impressive than it sounds—since he’s the only copywriter).

08.13.08

Prepare To Be Astonished

If you have a degree in what field is it? I’ve got an MFA in creative writing from Bowling Green State University in Ohio. The plan was to become the next great American novelist. But it turned out I didn’t have a great novel in me. Not even a not-so-great one.

Who was the client for your first advertising project? Some bank, I’m sure. Nearly everything I did my first two years as a copywriter was for one financial services client or another.

If you were to change professions, what would you choose to do? Whenever the futility of writing begins to get to me, I start hopping up on stages and doing stand-up comedy. I’ve been lucky enough to open for Louie Anderson and bomb in front of 5,000 people, perform on some of the best stages in the Twin Cities and play an industry showcase at the Hollywood Improv. It’s such a blast, and if I could live my dream, I wouldn’t be writing client copy I’d be writing for Letterman or Conan. And I’d have a killer TV reel.
 
What do you consider to be the greatest headline of all time? Bernbach’s "Think small." for Volkswagen.  

From where do your best ideas originate? While pacing and driving.

How do you overcome a creative block? I put intentionally bad copy down on paper—the worse, the better—until I’ve burned through to something that isn’t embarrassing.

If you could choose any product to create an ad for, what would it be? I’d like to script some fund drive spots for public radio and public television. I have a suspicion that many donations are bribes just to stop the begging; it would be nice if public broadcasters could entertain their listeners with something clever for a change.

Do you have creative outlets other than advertising? I play guitar and banjo, walk my dog and write poems and stories that end up published online and in literary journals nobody reads.
 
What’s your approach to balancing work and life? I still don’t have a cell phone.

What product/gadget can you not live without? My laptop. (I’m not a total Luddite.)

What’s your favorite quote? Novelist and screenwriter Terry Southern said, “The important thing in writing is the capacity to astonish.” I like to think I try for that as much as production schedules and client budgets allow—and even when they don’t—because I believe astonishment is the last, best business differentiator.
 
Do you have any advice for people just entering the profession? Be grateful you don’t have to wear a tie to work. Quit acting like you’re curing cancer. Clients really don’t care that you went to ad school.

What’s one thing you wish you knew when you started your career? Everyone thinks they’re a writer.