I’m in a funk. A writing funk. I’ve been working on my first novel for a long time. A LONG time. Not always in novel form, but the story itself has been in my life everyday for about four years. Four years. First as a screenplay idea. Then as a TV script idea. And now […]
Every writer doubts their abilities. It’s the nature of the process. When working on a novel, invariably I will write something of which I am certain is effective that, upon further scrutiny, seems to suck. The reality is none of these are true; it is neither effective or awful. The fact that it can in […]
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug is a perfect storm of predictability. If you decide to adapt a single novel into a movie trilogy, the middle story, the bridge, is the hardest one to pull off successfully. Having the middle story as part of a prequel makes the project a recipe for failure with The […]
“I have an image of Prim in a white room, strapped to a table, while masked, robed figures elicit those sounds from her. Somewhere they are torturing her, or did torture her, to get those sounds.” In my last podcast I talked about the process of adapting a screenplay to a novel. The opposite path […]
Today’s podcast discusses some tips on how to adapt a screenplay into a novel. Here are a few steps to consider when adapting a screenplay to a novel. Step 1) Overview. Look at the story from a 30,000 foot level. Sketch out the basics of the plot (beginning, middle and end). Also, write down the […]
A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, I was a screenwriter. I wrote screenplays, won some awards, had some optioned and a few produced. One of those screenplays I wrote at the request of a friend of mine, Jenni Gold. I recently mentioned Jenni in a post about her work on the […]
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Does where you write effect how you write? When I was starting out writing screenplays, I read an interview with Patrick Sheane Duncan, screenwriter of the film Courage Under Fire, who said that he taught himself to write anywhere with a pad of paper and a pencil so that he could write whenever he was […]
Writing can be a painful experience. I spent the majority of my life around, involved in and pursuing a life in film. I studied it, I performed in it, I wrote for it, I directed it and I loved it. Some of my work made it to Hollywood, but most was of the independent nature. […]
Some people will not be denied. I have known Jenni Gold for about 20 years now. She and her husband Jeff Maynard have been fighting the good fight in Hollywood. They’re good people trying to make good films in a tough and unforgiving environment. Jenni was struck with Muscular Dystrophy as a child, but she […]
