In past professional lives, I was a creative copywriter. (Also, hopefully in future lives.) I enjoy the word puzzles that come from collaboration with designers and other creatives. Paired with visuals, words have the power to direct focus and set tone. They can have more impact than you might expect.

In the interest of exercise and having a little fun, I’ll walk you through how my brain works in that capacity. I’m no designer, so I’ll use a photograph of a flower I took while on a walk through Valley Forge. Then I’ll add some copy to show you just how much words can direct your thoughts.

As a note, it's worth mentioning this is not a full depiction of my personal process. The act of illustration removes authenticity, and in the interests of time and clarity, this is shortened and constructed. Additionally, it’s not common for writers to receive an image, without direction, and be told to add copy. Direction is usually given early, and then all involved parties work together to get to the end result. That said, let’s get started.

The easiest method for me to create copy is wordplay. It’s where my mind goes first, because puns are within short reach. 

It’s already apparent to me that we need to narrow the scope, just so I can aim the copy and show variations. So let’s break this down by theme, and then by message.

First up, motivational posters. The image has the dark nice area up in its top left, and the focal point is in the middle of the canvas. The general layout reminds me of that suite of motivational posters in waiting rooms and offices everywhere. (Like that cat, hanging in there, for all of time.) Hover over the image to see short descriptions about the copy.

Okay, last round. Let’s try gardening advertising. We’re looking at a flower, so it feels apt. At the risk of them sounding a little bit stale, I'm going to keep them generic, meaning they could apply to any gardening company. After going through this process, these started to feel like campaign concepts, three options a creative agency might pitch to gauge the client's interest and potential direction. Think of them as ready for a stamped-on logo. 

Generating ideas is a difficult process to show, especially as a writer. It's inherently our aim to present those ideas in realized form. But there you have it.  A few takes with subtle variations.

I'm planning on continuing this series over time, so check in and follow as I play along. I promise, they'll get better as I go.