“Home is where one starts from.” - T. S. Eliot There’s nothing more primal than our quest for home. The dilemma is that our childhood homes may have been confusing, chaotic, or even violent. …
Screenwriting
Humor Is Not About Writing Funny
Humor connects us. It makes us care. I don’t mean one-liners. Humor is not about jokes, but it is about human behavior. It’s a vital aspect of any story, adding depth, richness, and humanity. Drama …
What is Success?
“The unexamined life is not worth living.” - Socrates Years ago, I was on the phone with a prospective student, and he announced, “I will consider myself a failure if my book does not become a …
Tell Your Truth
"A book must start somewhere. One brave letter must volunteer to go first, laying itself on the line in an act of faith, from which a word takes heart and follows, drawing a sentence into …
The Writer’s Place
"Where did that come from?" I believe there is something we writers are collectively seeking. We are all attempting to convey an experience, a true moment, to tell a story that somehow reveals more …
The Value of an Outline
What's the point of an outline? Whether consciously or not, every writer is in search of a process. A lot of writers want to dive right into their first drafts and start amassing pages. Though …
The Imperative for Dramatic Conflict
A director told me once that if you put two actors together in a scene without directing them or staging the scene, the conflict would begin to diminish. If the actors were on opposite sides of the …
Hold the Story Loosely
My 30-Day Outline workshop started yesterday. It is a powerful workshop that will guide you to a deeper understanding of your story. Late-registration is open until this Sunday, April 7th, at …
How to Master Storytelling: Ask the Right Questions
“It is a parable of art that, to be universal, you must be specific. Otherwise, you are just talking about an abstraction. So you have to talk about a particular person and a particular place. …
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Who is My Protagonist?
Some of you may be writing ensemble screenplays with multiple storylines and scratching your head wondering who your protagonist is. The key is two-fold. First, find the character that drives the …