ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, February 28, 1996 TAG: 9602280047
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MEGAN SCHNABEL
Two hours until your presentation, and you can't think of a single witty thing to say.
If writer's - or speaker's - block has you stumped, take a look at these block-busting ideas from Jeffrey Hedquist, president of Fairfield, Iowa-based Hedquist Productions Inc., who spoke Tuesday to the Advertising Federation of the Roanoke Valley.
Hedquist started his company when he was in his 20s. He still does voice-overs for radio and TV. Over the years, he's been the voice of Dutch Boy Paints, McDonald's and Jeep.
Here are his tips:
nListen to various types of music, then write an ad - or a memo, or a letter - to fit each style. "Sometimes the music alone will give you ideas."
nListen to people talking. Pay attention to dialects, inflections. "Eavesdropping is an excellent writer's block-buster."
nHold focus groups. "Sometimes we sit and write commercials for groups without actually sitting down and talking to them."
Hedquist's company is compiling these tips onto two audio cassettes, "Radio Writer's Block-Busters" and "Whole-Brain Radio." They should be available by the end of the year.
LENGTH: Short : 33 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: ``Whole-brain'' Jeffrey Hedquistby CNB