Profile

Graphic Designing

Logos, ads, retail products and even the proverbial business card are all the doings of graphic designers. The images we see every day are created at the desks of creative graphic designers. Sometimes it’s something simple and sometimes it’s something so unique that it takes a special type of designer to think outside the box to make something happen.

Creative Directing

Working as part of a creative team can be tough. Really tough. The one in charge needs to be a coach or cheerleader some days and a quiet observer on others.

While it can be tough sometimes, it can also be amazing. When a member of your team shines, everyone feels a sense of pride. On the flip side, you ache when anyone on your team stumbles. It’s a shared ride and it’s not for the feint-of-heart.

As a Creative Director, you get to work with creative teams day after day and see ideas and brainstorming that is mind-boggling (in a good way). You also get to work with those who look at the bottom line (and often are the ones signing the paychecks) and see how they make things happen. Sometimes these groups are on the same page, and sometimes they’re not even in the same book!

A good Creative Director is able to make things happen and get the creatives and the bottom liners on the same page and ultimately realize that they’re all on the same team.

Writing - Long Copy

Copywriter. Whether in print, online, in Kindle books or anywhere you find text measured in the total number of words, there’s a copywriter behind it somewhere. This lucrative line of work takes a special kind of writer, however, and may not be for everyone. To see if you qualify for this kind of position, take a moment to answer a few brief questions:

1. Do you know why this question isn’t not the most good question?*
2. Can you write about things you love, hate or are completely apathetic towards?
3. Do you make up stories for your kids at bedtime?
4. Can you identify the English comma in this list, another list, or an imaginary list?
5. Are you willing to work for hours (or days) on a single sentence to find errors and better word choices, all so the instructions for how to turn on a blender or vacuum cleaner are epic literary masterpieces?

If you answered “NO” to all of the above questions, you may want to look into something less author-itarian (pun very much intended). If you answered ‘YES’ to any of the above questions, you may be qualified for a career in long copy creation! Whether it be instruction manuals, business flyers, public announcements or letters to consumers/employees, you can change the world from behind your keyboard!

Call 208-FLY-AWAY for details about how to enroll in this exciting program.

* This sentence butchering is 100% intentional. I ain’t not that bad at riting!

Writing - Short Copy

Slogans? $50.

Taglines? 15 minutes.

Being able to think of pick-up lines that embarrass your wife in public places*?

Priceless.

*My favorite being “Hey, lady, how ’bout some fries with that shake?” Note that this is best done when you’re a few steps behind her and you say it loud enough for everyone in the grocery store to hear.

Game Designing

The behind-the-scenes jobs required to get a game ready for production are pretty hefty. Coming up with the idea and theme are a tiny piece of the process. After that, there’s rule creation, playtesting, layout of all the components (pieces, manuals, boards, cards, boxes, promo items, etc.), working with artists, coordinating with manufacturers, scheduling with freight and fulfillment guys, quality control, and that’s assuming there are no no speed bumps along the way!

 

The pros? Your kids get to tell their friends their dad plays games for work.

The cons? Playing games is a very small part of the process.

Pillaging and Plundering

Yar! A knitted beard, a plastic helm and foam weapons are all you need to become a faking (fake viking). Plus, I just wanted to see if you were paying attention…