A number of Hired Guns are presenting at SXSW Interactive this year. This series profiles a few of the proud and the brave. Please tweet and like this story so as a community we can build a little buzz for them.
How to Create an Internet Phenomenon for Peanuts
Tuesday, March 15, 12:30
Presenter: Larry Smith
Your Twesume
(your resume in 140 characters or less).
“Everyone has a story. I help you tell yours.”
What inspired you to submit your idea?
As I’ve told and retold the origins and subsequent amazing journey of the Six-Word Memoir project, I’ve thought a lot about the reasons it caught on. Whether the audience is members of a youth writing center in Bushwick or 800 big brains at PopTech, there are some clear lessons about why Six Words works so well, and how and why it spread across the world in an organic, authentic way.
Why are you the expert on it?
I created the phenom and have nurtured its growth carefully and obsessively for five years.
Why did you want to speak at SXSW?
These are my people! I’ve learned so much in the years I’ve gone to SXSW, and I’m thrilled to offer any knowledge I can back. Above all, it will just be fun.
Who should come to your talk?
Anyone who loves stories on how things start and grow; anyone who is interested in starting or growing his or her own project; anyone who loves the Six-Word Memoir project and other projects that have gone from nothing to wildly popular without tons of money….
What will people walk away learning from you?
How I did it and how they can, too. If you stick to it and truly, truly love it, it’s quite possible to turn a passion into something that goes viral and even makes a profit.
What do you hope you learn from your SXSW experience?
Same as always: meet new people; fill my head with new ideas; stay up late and get up early; have a blast in Austin.
