About the Quartermaster
Max Barashenkov was born and raised in the frozen wastelands of Russia, has a hang-up about using typewriter fonts and, sometimes, speaks about himself in the 3rd person. It's a stylistic choice, he tells himself. The fool.
Max moved to South African shores at the tender age of 12 and quickly fell in love with pulp science fiction, learning English from the likes of Andre Norton and Harry Harrison. He sourly disappointed his scientist father by studying Film and Media at the University of Cape Town. In his Honours year, under the influence of his Narrative Literary Journalism class, he began to write and, well, he hasn't stopped since.
Upon graduating with an Honours First Class in Film Studies, Max embarked on freelance journalism career, writing mostly about music, festivals, travel and the freaks he met along the way. Publications in a range of South African magazines soon led to stint at Vice SA, first as an intern then as online editor. Having tasted the editorial blood, he then found a new home as a regular contributor and editor at Mahala.co.za, fighting the good fight against the mediocrity in local music. Continuing to publish in a wide range of publications, including Rolling Stone, he furthered his editorial experience at FHM magazine as Features Editor. That would be the time that he realized that an editor gig at a corporate magazine was perhaps not for him, did a 180 and went to work in the least corporate field he could imagine - advertising. Ahem.
Learning the advertising ropes at Matt Advertising, he quickly found the new field to his liking, mastering the copywriting trade and starting to apply himself to strategy and digital. In 2018, Max left Matt Advertising to join the Songhai Tourism and Investment Arm as Creative Director, with a particular focus on one of the businesses - Songhai Tourism and Events, a corporate events and incentive agency. Here he created RPG games for banks, solved a host of internal corporate HR issues, took part in several major brand launches and concocted a variety of unexpected experiences that he somehow managed to sneak into stiff corporate environments.
In 2020, Max moved to the United States and soon joined Publix Supermarkets as a Senior Copywriter. There he worked on a host of video projects and sunk his teeth into a wide range of multicultural campaigns.
While he is not working, he spends his time composing essays instead of bios.