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"copywriting"
This is how I sit and think. At a colorful threshold. When I have a team of professional photographers documenting my moves. How fun would it be if this were an every day thing!? Photo by Kyle Hepp (www.kylehepp.com)
A confession: I love and resent this website.
I love that it has given me a way to keep in touch with faraway friends and family. I love that it has connected me with like-minded people all over the world. I love that it has given me the opportunity to review books before they go on sale.
But I resent how it fuels a steady stream of doubt.
At least five times in the past few months, I’ve showed up at a meeting with a Chilean I’ve met through mutual acquaintance. Almost always, this is a man with an engineering background. We speak Spanish.
Not far into our conversation, he’ll politely say, “So, I looked at your website. It’s interesting, but I don’t get it. What are you and why do you write that thing?”
What are you – qué eres – is a way to ask if I am a journalist, a lawyer, a publicist, an engineer, or something like that. A title. Defined by a university degree, which often takes five or six years to complete.
My history does not fit those categories. I usually say I am a translator or an entrepreneur.
I should revise this blog to say that. Make it specific, concrete, perhaps in Spanish.
But the doubt doesn’t just come from potential collaborators; it comes from inside my head.
Changing sidebars / pages / design forces me to think: what, how, why. To do. To write.
Am I writing to update friends and family on the coolest places I’ve been lately? To share my research on mineral rights regulation in Chile? To reflect on how my perspective has changed? To illustrate why you should hire me?
Face to face, I’d never bring up those topics in the same place, in the same way, especially since I live in more than one language.
Asking those questions makes me not want to write.
At least not here.
I write a lot. Scribbles crowding unlined notebooks.
But those scribbles don’t seem fit for this Google-friendly, quasi-official version of who I am and what I do.
I want to work face-to-face with professionals here in Chile who value how my experiences living in three very different cultures can help them explain why their work matters. This is translation: a form of translation that goes beyond words and digs into what is left unsaid.
I also want to show young North Americans that it is possible to build your career overseas. Not easy, but I can help you find your way.
I should write for those audiences – or even better: just one – not for people who have been following me all along. (I love you Mom!) But I’m not sure how.
I must be brave: to stand for my vision and stick with it long enough to see what works. I must listen carefully, filtering through contradictory advice, especially from the people closest to me. I must stay humble enough to change course.
I am lucky. I’ve won a contest that might help: a Voice Profile by Abby Kerr. She describes her role as Copywriter and Voice Ally, and she has profiled the distinctive voices of dozens of online entrepreneurs. I invite you to read more about it on her blog.
Hopefully this will help me choose words that better answer that troubling question – qué eres? – especially in translation.
Whoa, this has been a crazy week!
I’ve been busy helping Chinese and Chilean businessmen communicate more effectively, as a freelance Chinese-Spanish interpreter. Several well-intentioned people have suggested names for my hypothetical future China-Chile translation and consultancy business.
This photo illustrates one of the many meanings of China in Chile.
First option: ChichiSolar, as in China-Chile Solar Services, or something like that. This inspired way too many giggles, since in Spanish “chichi” is a childish word for breasts or urination. And in Chinese, the sound “chichi” brings to mind two things: sadness and Valentine’s Day. Therefore, ChichiSolar sounds like some sort of nude tanning salon or a Valentine’s Day pity party. Totally not OK for a serious business started by a young woman! (For more notes on the connotations of these sounds, check out this post by Fritinancy.)
Second option: TransLeslie. Now this one sounds like some sort of transgendered lesbian. Not that I have anything against transgender or lesbian, but the name seems to distract from the value proposition of connecting China and Chile.
Any other suggestions? 
Also, my last post on the Top 10 Reasons Why Start-Up Chile Rocks was cross-posted on the Start-Up Chile blog and here on Oh Hey World. I mentioned that I connected my dad to Ken Seville, a Start-Up Chile entrepreneur focused on connecting military veterans with good jobs. I am happy to report that my dad responded immediately with three friends who are military veterans and MBA / tech entrepreneur types in Silicon Valley, which totally proves my point about how Start-Up Chile connects people to those inside and outside the room.
Have a wonderful weekend!!
The convenience store I frequent inconveniently did not have what I was looking for, but it did have something even more inspiring: pañuelos desechables (disposable handkerchiefs). Why did these inspire me? Let me count the ways…
夏 (xia), the character in the center of this side of the tissue box, means “summer.”
And 音 (yin), the character in the middle of this side of the box, means “sound.”
So, if we put it all together, what do we get?
The sound of summer is blowing your nose? Summer sounds better with Elite facial tissues?
To add another layer to this pun, the Spanish word for “blow your nose” is sonar – very literally, to make noise. So could it be: make noise this summer with Elite Premium facial tissues? Hmmmm….
Well Elite’s copywriter is clearly more skilled in Spanish than in Chinese. The slogan under the brand name, Maxima Suavidad, means “maximum softness,” which speaks right to the benefits of this product. And the line of text at the bottom is even better: triple hoja polisuavizados. The tissues are “three ply” and the copywriter has invented a word that seems to imply a multi-step softening process.
I discovered this box of tissues on my way to a meeting, during which I helped Chinese and Chilean businessmen understand each other. We spent many hours together on the road, which gave me plenty of time to extrapolate what this clumsy copywriting could mean for the current state of China-Chile relations. (Yes, I know, I know… there is lots and lots of Chinglish in China, and it’s inspired giggle-worthy photos like this one.)
Here in Chile, I see plenty of enthusiasm for China, in terms of business opportunities, language, and cuisine. For the Chinese, Chile is an untapped source for natural resources, wine, and specialty produce. This is well-intentioned and it’s early in the game.
So, where to go from here? Perhaps the best first step is to brainstorm a better Chinese slogan for this brand of facial tissues. I mean, if Elite is eager to use Chinese, perhaps it’s best to use the language to describe the benefits of this product. How about…
春风 (spring breeze)
幸福 (happiness)
顺利 (smooth and successful)
What would you suggest? Are the characters just there for decoration? Am I reading into this too much? It’s the sound of summer.
Today, these have made me smile:
1) China-style Christmas celebrations have given me more than my share of opportunities to belt out “Baby.” Today I stumbled across this awesome ad, featuring Justin Bieber and some quality copywriting.
Via Mike on Ads who rightly recognizes “quality quality creative work!” (Also, here’s a fun link: this 13-year-old kid in California translated “Baby” into Chinese! And I learned about this from Forbes, of all places!)
UPDATED: Here’s “Baobei” on Tudou and Youku.
2) My parents are planning their first extended trip to Southeast Asia (for as long as I’ve been alive, anyways…). As we chatted on Skype this morning, I found this photo:
Taken in a Lao village in the hills above Luang Prabang, February 2007. That's me with the red hair!
Perhaps my favorite travel photo ever. Here’s the story behind it, as I wrote in an email I sent home then:
After several hours of walking, we arrived at the Cmoe village where we were to spend then night. There were children everywhere, with few adults in sight. Our guide explained that most of the fathers were away, either hunting in the forest or working in the cities. Most of the mothers were busy with all sorts of work, from fixing thatched roofs to cooking. Small children were working hard too; I saw some boys who couldn’t have been more than five gathering wood. And the average family has at least five children, since infant mortality is common and healthcare is scarce, For all of these reasons, I wanted to play with the children. It took me a few minutes to think of a game to play that did not require a common language, but then it struck me: follow the leader! So much fun!
3) I’ve been listening to Abigail Washburn‘s latest album on repeat.
I saw her and Chinese musician Wu Fei live at Capital M a few weeks ago. She’s so talented. Her new album, City of Refuge, is free to hear on NPR Music for the next week. And her story is so familiar:
Isn’t there a saying about best laid plans going awry? Well, Abigail Washburn had a plan — and it was a good, solid plan. She was going to head to Beijing, study law and continue to make music on the side. Instead, she got a record deal, her group Uncle Earl took off and her debut solo recording, The Song of the Traveling Daughter, blew everyone away. In this case, it was a best laid plan that got better.
Once again, Washburn is changing lanes in the musical world: “This new project,” she says, “incorporates what would’ve in the beginning of my career seemed like an unexpected move.” That move takes her outside of the her comfortable folk and roots sound and pushes her toward a more rock and pop feel. She chose the ideal producer for this journey in Tucker Martine (The Decemberists, Spoon, Sufjan Stevens).
City of Refuge showcases Washburn’s lyrics and voice more than her previous recordings. In “Burn Through,” she convincingly plays a tough character who isn’t “going down with the rest of you.” She also sparkles in the role of a troubled soul trying to figure things out in “Last Train,” which also features a remarkable turn by fiddler Rayna Gellert.
Washburn still showcases her signature clawhammer banjo playing on City of Refuge. Those moments are mixed with quietly lush orchestration (“Bring Me My Queen”), standout guitar riffs from Bill Frisell, a guzheng (a Chinese zither) played by master Wu Fei, and backing vocals from Old Crow Medicine Show‘s Ketch Secor and Morgan Jahnig. [more]
Also check out Abigail’s other appearances on NPR Music:
Learning to play old Chinese music in Chengdu, sparked her interest in traditional American music. I find it her voice both hypnotic and relaxing. I hope you like it too.
I'm Leslie and I connect entrepreneurs in Chile, China, California, and beyond — especially through translation, training, and trade. More about me.
