Copywriting
I am a commercial copywriter. I write books, features, brochures, website copy, email campaigns, print newsletters, blogs and more. My clients range from property developers to city councils, and from art galleries to education establishments. Here are some of the people and projects I have written for.
Cornerhouse.
Working with Modern Designers.
Cornerhouse is not your average art gallery. It combines arthouse cinema with digital media, and a vibrant café and bar with cutting edge contemporary art. In line with its boundary-breaking approach, Cornerhouse decided it wanted more than just the average annual report. So, working closely with staff there (and with Modern Designers), I came up with something a little different from the previous year’s traditional report. The final report – called One Year at Cornerhouse – came complete with a highlights section (mini features written in an engaging, journalistic style); a glossy photo section (showing in pictures some of the organisation’s impressive creative output) and then, at the back, a summary of the organisation’s achievements over the past 12 months. The end result is an annual report that befits such a dynamic and innovative organisation.
Culture Northwest.
Working with Culture Northwest.
For the best part of a decade, Culture Northwest was the advocacy and industry body for the region’s creative and cultural industries. Its regular board meetings were always ambitious in scope: as well as tackling the mundane stuff, each meeting tackled a particular, pertinent issue facing the sector, from green politics to ageism. I was commissioned by Culture Northwest to write a ‘think paper’ to be published after each board meeting. The papers covered sustainability, funding in the arts, multiculturalism and the ageing population. They took as their starting point some of the debate raised during the meetings but went one step further, collating research and interviews and then formulating a considered response to what were, at times, some challenging subjects. The papers are available to download from www.culturenorthwest.co.uk.
What’s in a word?
Working with Tate Liverpool and Modern Designers.
Another Tate Liverpool project, What’s in a Word focused on improving the Tate’s written communications. After conducting a review of pretty much everything written (from press releases to publications, and from on-site signage to leaflets), I conducted a survey to gauge what ordinary visitors thought of how the gallery “spoke” to them. Armed with this information, I published an illustrated, 24-page staff guide to writing good copy. Simple, but effective.
Central Salford.
Working with Creative Concern and Central Salford URC.
Salford is changing. Come 2011, it will become the new home of the BBC in the north – and also launch the largest digital media development of its kind in the UK. Media City, currently being constructed at Salford Quays, will build on Greater Manchester’s current strengths in TV, film, radio and digital media production. To put it into figures, it will employ 15,000 people, provide space for over 1,000 media, creative and related businesses and generate around £1bn for the regional economy. For Creative Concern, I researched, interviewed and wrote the first ever publication to detail the shape of Media City.