Overqualified by Joey Comeau

You may or may not be familiar with a thoughtful and dark humoured three-panel webcomic by the name of a softer world (if not, why not?). Furthermore then you might have discovered the multitude of writings by one half of the duo behind it all, Joey Comeau.

Joey wrote 'Lockpick Pornography', one of my favourite books in recent times, a short novel which is blows apart social norms and despite (or maybe because of) the extremes the characters go to you find yourself gleefully wanting in on the ride. It totally made breaking into schools and leaving pro gay pamphlets sound like it might be a fun thing to do. The unafraid, uncensored, always honest and sometimes tender way Comeau writes can't help but stir you into some emotional or thoughtful response. It serves to both provoke and endear but certainly never resulting in indifference.

This month he released a new book tiled 'Overqualified' which is made up of cover letters for job applications that Joey had originally posted online. Most of the letters were all actually sent to the companies they are addressed to in the spirit of the inspiration of the project...

"Cover letters are all the same. They're useless. You write the same lies over and over again, listing the store-bought parts of yourself that you respect the least. God knows how they tell anyone apart, but this is how it's done.

And then one day a car comes out of nowhere, and suddenly everything changes and you don't know if he'll ever wake up. You get out of bed in the morning, and when you sit down to write another paint-by-numbers cover letter, something entirely different comes out.

You start threatening instead of begging. You tell impolite jokes. You talk about your childhood and your sexual fantasies. You sign your real name and you put yourself honestly into letter after letter and there is no way you are ever going to get this job. Not with a letter like this.

And you send it anyway."

I can vouch for it being completely fantastic and if you still don't believe me check out some examples here or check out my personal favourite letter addressed to Nintendo.

Buy the book here.
http://www.asofterworld.com/

Lee, x.