April 2006

Opinion: Britain is Producing Far Too Many Designers

Something rather interesting has happened in the past six months: the government is talking about 'creativity' again. Having remained rather quiet on the subject since the demise of 'Cool Britannia', it is now telling anyone who will listen that Britain's creative industries are essential in the struggle to keep pace with the world economy, and China in particular.

Round Peg / Square Job - Career Guidance for English Graduates

You might think that you chances of getting the job are lower than the chances of Jon Prescott squeezing through the ticket barriers at Westminster tube but this does not have to be the case. How do you knock your square peg through their round hole? You need adapt and persuade them to adapt with you.

Beep, Beep, Splat - The Life of a Games Writer

"People really write games for a living? Actual scripts?", a look of disbelief.
"Yes".
"So, you write 'Beep, beep, splat', right?", they laugh into their pint.

New Thinking: 21 years Old

New Designers has become the leading graduate showcase since its modest beginnings 21 years ago. Younger than many of the designers whose work it showcases, the exhibition has an enviable CV. From modest beginnings representing just 150 individual designers at the RIBA in 1985 New Designers 2006 will present the work of over 4,000 graduating designers.

Foreign Accents (Part 1 of 2)

Chennai is a tiny coastal metropolis in south-east India, a popular destination for tourists but better known as the gateway to Pondicherry, particularly since Life of Pi. Leafy and humid, the city is about one-third the size of Mumbai; making it by London's standards roughly the size of a jumbo wart.

The Rest of the Iceberg

Goat World, Potato Storage Weekly, Packaging News, Hoof and Shin, Convenience Store News, American Cemetery, Concrete Quarterly, Modern Ferret - all these titles would qualify as guest publication for Have I Got News For You, the unfortunate trade magazine or industry weekly used by a pre-coke-and-prostitutes Angus Deayton as fodder for his humorous repartee.

The Writer's Workout

Writing is a skill, which seeks continuous improvement and is a learning which will never be completed.

Books

With the plethora of 'how to' books on the market, how do you choose the ones which will constructively help you to improve your writing?

Getting Into Publishing

It seems that as soon as you are accepted in to a University, something you have spent the majority of the previous year sweating over, rather than being able to relax and concentrate on your degree, you are immediately interrogated about what you intend to do next!

Enterprise: The Chancellor's Vision

Few can doubt that Britain's post-war history of economic decline - when we suffered high unemployment, poor educational standards and low levels of business creation - arose from poverty of aspirations.