Ferris Wheel

Some people think that working in the creative industries is one of the greatest luxuries a person can have. Travel to the villa in Spain, sit by the pool, sip some sangria, fire off a chapter every few days, sip some more sangria, see fifty missed calls from your editor, reply with a text message saying, "the creative process cannot be rushed, dear boy". If this is what you imagine the creative industry to be, think again. I'm a journalist, and perhaps that is my problem, thinking that journalists work in the creative industry. We churn out copy like Ford churned out Model-Ts, you can have any colour so long as it's black.

I spend all my time trying to come with ideas that I reckon will work on television, radio, or print. Every week, the African Shirts Ideas Factory cranks out up to twelve distinct ideas for the media. How many get approved? I'll tell you when I get an approval. The key to getting work approved is to know the different media outlets very well. You need to know and understand them inside out. This gives you better insight into what to pitch to them, and how to pitch to them.