The Busy Creator Podcast, episode 12 with Co-Founder of It’s Nice That and Design Entrepreneur Will Hudson
Will Hudson (@WillHudson) is the Co-Founder and Director of It’s Nice That, a publishing company that champions creativity across the world of art & design. Together with Prescott, he discusses how It’s Nice That began as an art school project and grew into a publishing empire cum creative agency in London. We also hear about Will’s productivity habits, and how he manages the assault of so much email.
Show Notes & Links
- Prescott and Will met a few times, in New York and in London
- It’s Nice That began as a university project
- INT publishes about 9 articles per day, across art, design, fashion, film, animation, etc.
- The difference is “creative expertise” and giving all submissions equal weight
- Printed Pages, quarterly magazine
- Here London, annual creative symposium
- Nicer Tuesdays, a monthly event
- First Broadcast, audio-visual site
- Company of Parrots, a shop
- This At There, London events listing
- Studio Audience, weekly podcast
- Core offerings: online, monthly events, the magazine
- INT Works is a creative agency that now operates independently from It’s Nice That publication methods
- “Don’t get too content with the way we publish content”
- Will’s background is graphic design and photography, but there was “academic interest”
- Alex runs INT Works and client projects; Will runs editorial. Happened naturally that way.
- It’s Nice That’s editor-in-chief, Rob Alderson (@RobAlderson)
- “… become the Ambassador of the company, rather than the Sergeant Major.”
- the commute from Brighton to London
- “Email seems so defunct for a 21st century operation.”
- Email: 10% need a reply; 20% get a reply for politeness; the rest is rubbish
- Online editor Liv Siddall (@LivSiddall)
- An article exists to: showcase the work, and to give context (not just a gallery)
- Special effects dad creates videos of his son
- Google’s search algorithms
- Facebook’s sharing of page content
- Banner advertising vs. new, interesting content
- Vice
- Steer, web development courses
- WorkOutOfWork.com
Tools
- One sheet of A4 paper (double sided) for the week
- Paper and Pen, to make sure.
- Macs, with email.
- Evernote
- A3 sheet of paper for Editorial planning
- Google Doc
- Folders of screen-grabs
- Highrise
- Pocket (formerly Read It Later)
Techniques
- Mix old-school and new-school methods
- T.R.A.P. your email (Toss, Reply, Action item, or Pass). Leave off the last P for procrastinate.
- Pick up the phone to save time on Email
- Have a Monday morning meeting with everyone. Keep it to under an hour.
- Build a system that will be stressed down the road
- Host editorial meetings to preview ideas and prioritize publishing order
- Write your blog posts with future discovery in mind
- Approach change positively, as a challenge, even when it’s from Facebook
- Move email conversations to Twitter to keep them short
Habits
- Do an hour’s work on the train during the morning commute; use the time to clean up thoughts and work through email
- If someone emails you personally, respond. Even if it’s short.
- Take a screenshot of your [company’s] website everyday
- Get the early start — 1.5 hrs in the office before everyone else arrives
- Change your routine so you can see things differently, and re-evaluate priorities
Get The Episode
- Download The Busy Creator Podcast, episode 12
(MP3, 47:14, 68.4 MB) - Download The Busy Creator Podcast, episode 12
(OGG, 47:14, 43.3 MB)
Subscribe to The Busy Creator Podcast on iTunes
Something to add? Leave a comment below to participate in the conversation.
