Russell Davies' Career Lessons, David Abbot's Copywriting Tips and a Your Next Podcast Binge

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10 stories we've enjoyed this week

Illustration by Kyiv-based illustrator Sergiy Maidukov - Hire him

Hi All,
We're always looking to build our database of freelancers. We've made a lot of films and animations recently and have more coming up. So we'd love to hear from any of you hugely talented and creative readers with expertise in motion graphics and animation. Find out more about what we are after here.

As mentioned last week, the researcher role we've been advertising has been extended until the end of March. If you'd like to join our team apply now or share with anyone you think fits the post.

Thanks for reading and have a wonderful weekend.
Hugh

The Short Story

Russell Davies Talks to Neil Perkin For Google Firestarters
(50 min watch)

David Abbott's Five Rules For Good Copywriting
(1 min read)

Formats Unpacked: Long Lost Family
(6 min read)

It's Tough to Build a Corporate Culture in a Remote World
(8 min read)

Interactive Story on Russia's Mistakes and Ukraine's Resistance
(Interactive)

Looking For Your Next Podcast Binge? This is an Impressive Thread!
(Thread)

50 Stories About the Things We Miss
(Book)

Artist JR's Cover for Time
(Image)

The Book That Changed My Life
(5 min read)

Surrealist Make-Up
(1 min read)

How can we help you?

Storythings is a strategy and content company based in Brighton and London. We'd love to help you with some creative and bold ideas.

Here's 3 reasons to get in touch.

1. You want to talk to us about content production: podcasts, videos, animations, illustrations, editorial.

2. You want to talk to us about content strategy or format development.

3. You want to create a brand or an identity that makes it easier to communicate your message.

We do other things too. We're very friendly and always enjoy meeting people, so get in touch.

The Full Story

Russell Davies Talks to Neil Perkin For Google Firestarters
In this fascinating conversation, Russell Davies talks to Neil Perkin about what he's learned and the mistakes he's made working with some of the world's biggest organisations. Before becoming VP Marketing at Bulb Energy Russell led communications and digital strategy at organisations including Nike, Honda, Microsoft, Apple and was the Director of Strategy for the UK Government Digital Service for four years.
(50 min watch)

David Abbott's Five Rules For Good Copywriting
I've just bought The Copy Book. It's very good. It open's with an interview with David Abbott, the copywriter responsible for some legendary VW and Economist ads. I love rule number 4 which touches on a lot of what Russell talks about in the link above.
(1 min read)

Formats Unpacked: Long Lost Family
If you've never read a Formats Unpacked but are interested in what makes great content great then give this go. Adam Gee takes a close look at a TV show that takes a simple idea and applies it to over 150 stories, keeping the viewer hooked every time: "It is as relatable a format as you could conceive – pretty much every one of us has a mother and father, present or absent. It follows a most fundamental human narrative, the quest story – set in motion when child and parent are separated, it reaches resolution when they are brought back together, the most emotionally satisfying of culminations. "
(6 min read)

It's Tough to Build a Corporate Culture in a Remote World
An interesting piece in Wired about how difficult it is to build company culture in a hybrid workplace, regardless of what digital tools we have at our disposal. As you may know, we're just about to begin a big piece of research into how hybrid working has impacted how knowledge is shared and what this means for your content strategy. Get in touch if you think this is of interest to you and would like to partner with us.
(8 min read)

Interactive Story on Why Russia's Mistakes and Ukraine's Resistance
It's not often I'll post something like this but this interactive from the FT's Visual Storytelling Team is really good. It's a simple piece of scrollytelling that breaks down a lot of info into short and concise paragraphs and uses videos and maps to enhance the experience.
(Interactive)

Looking For Your Next Podcast Binge? This is an Impressive Thread!
I was looking for a new podcast binge. Then this came along. It will be a long time before I run out of podcasts to listen to.
(Thread)

50 Stories About the Things We Miss
I'm a big fan of Rob Walker's Art of Noticing Newsletter and his new book looks wonderful. We made two podcasts last year about objects. One for the Science Museum about everyday objects from their collection that have big stories attached. We also made one for WaterAid telling stories about everyday objects celebrities can't live without. This is a lovely idea. The beautifully illustrated book brings together 50 true stories of lost objects from 50 writers, artists, thinkers and storytellers.
(Book)

Artist JR's Cover for Time
A scroll-stopping image and clip.
(Image)

The Book That Changed My Life
Austin Kleon's excellent 'Steal Like An Artist' is ten years old. Here Austin tells the story of how the making of the book was an act of theft. It's a nice story of the evolution of an idea that has served him pretty well over the last decade.
(5 min read)

Surrealist Make-Up
This is bonkers. But brilliant.
(1 min read)

We hope you've enjoyed this week's newsletter. I'm sure some of your friends would love to read it. Sharing it would be really appreciated. If you've received this from a friend you can subscribe here and get it direct to your inbox every Friday.

Thanks for reading and see you all next week,

Hugh, Matt, Anjali and the team at Storythings

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Russell Davies' Career Lessons, David Abbot's Copywriting Tips and a Your Next Podcast Binge

10 stories we've enjoyed this week

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