Friday March 10, 2006

Pulp Fiction

I figured The Lit List would be completely worthwhile even if it only turned up a thing or two that I found interesting enough to blog about. It already has. Ten years ago, AdPulp editor David Burn tried to get a job at Wieden + Kennedy, then wrote a short story about it. (And it is fiction—it does not claim to be fact.) It’s called “Fort Wieden”, although it could easily be subtitled “The Man in the Gray Flannel Shirt.” In the story, the agency’s gatekeeper tells him:

“If you’re truly serious, I suggest you sell your car. Disconnect your cable. Do whatever, because all your time and money has got to go into your book. When I look at a book, I know how much time was spent on it, and by the looks of yours, I’d guess you spent, what, a month? Try a couple of years, then come back and see us.”

Sound familiar to any adgrunts out there?