| trade show, storytelling, publishing, best stories | 4 Mar 2008 |
| One of the most satisfying things by agkennedy |
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One of the most satisfying things about being immersed in the world of publishing is that you are never far away from a good, meaty story.
I have a theory that some of the best stories are told by editors and journalists who spend most of their time writing about machinery. They are so good at telling stories that are not about machines! I was in the enviable situation of being on the receiving end of one of these glorious stories not so long ago. It was at the end of a busy trade. I was sitting on our stand, to tired to get up. The storyteller was English and the story was true. He knew it was funny and was supremely confident in his delivery.
It went something like this: Two tired English businessmen were coming home from a trade show. They were travelling first class and they boarded the train and entered a private wooden panelled compartment, joining another passenger. They sat opposite him and took note of his well-pressed suit and suitcase above his head on the rack. They exchanged polite nods of approval at each other's business like appearances while one rolled the sliding doors shut. Nothing more was said apart from the occasional excuse me, as one passenger wished to pass the other to go to the toilet. The journey went uneventfully, and finally the train pulled into a station. The man with the case looked around, got up quickly and left the train.
As the train started to pull out of the station the Englishmen saw that the man's case was still on the rack. What should they do? They looked out the window and there were passengers rushing around like ants in all directions. "Oh God his case, he has left his case! Quick, open the window, surely he would appreciate us throwing it to him," said one to the other, as he seized the case from the rack. The other gentleman quickly grabbed the window latches with both hands and they flung the case onto the platform so that their fellow businessman could retrieve it. Feeling extremely satisfied with their fast-thinking, they sat back down, very pleased with themselves.
Unfortunately, at that moment the passenger returned - holding a tray of coffee and a sandwich - He sat back down in the seat below where his case had been. He smiled and sipped his coffee, acutely unaware that his case had just been unceremoniously flung out of the window. He had simply left the train to run up the platform to get on at the buffet car, saving himself having to push past passengers in other carriages! The two Englishmen stared at each other in horror. For two uncomfortable hours they sat together staring at the space where the case had been and wondering what on earth to do. Should they tell him? If they where going to tell him, it would have to be before he discovered it was missing himself. He smiled at them again, and they smiled nervously back. Eventually the man twisted round, as if to retrieve his case from the luggage rack. Nervously the gentlemen decided it was time to own up. "Excuse me but your case sir.We err. We…..We thought you had left the train, so we…." The story was unleashed and they waited for the potentially ballistic reaction. To their surprise he started to laugh. They tried not to laugh back, but on realising that his laughs were for real, they all exploded into fits of laughter. They had chucked his case out of the window!
The man eventually admitted that the loss of the exceedingly dull work inside the case was worth the pleasure that its dramatic loss had delivered them. Beautiful isn't it? Be careful though, if you are travelling by train to Dusseldorf for Interpack this year, be aware that these two gentlemen are still very much in the industry. I state my case!
