As we look forward to the tremendous shifts and changes this coming year will bring in technology, finance, entertainment and politics let us fully and completely embrace the indomitable and unconquerable force of love in our work.
Continue readingWriting Routine
I discovered a great website that discusses how various writers and artists approach their work and organize their day. Below is a discussion of the simple method Anthony Trollope used to write forty-nine novels in thirty-five years!
Continue readingDavid Frost & Richard Nixon – Power of Ambition
Frost/Nixon is an epic battle between two Power of Ambition characters.
Continue readingSubtext – Unspoken Communication
The subtext of a scene is the underlying emotion that changes or alters the meaning of the words spoken or the actions taken. Or it is what is “under the skin of a character.” Or it is what is under the surface of what a character says or does.
Continue readingEinstein and Writing
#ThinkpieceThursday – Einsten’s concise quotes are invaluable and timeless.
Continue readingMad Men – Art vs Commerce
Mad Men has had wide-spread critical acclaim, won numerous awards and has become a cultural reference– but it has a very small audience. This struggle between art vs commerce and high brow vs low prestige mass entertainment is a dilemma writers and producers wrestle with continually.
Continue readingCreating a New Character: Backstory
#MondayMusings – What is your character’s backstory?
Continue readingCreating a New Character – Fear
It’s important to look at the ways the character is most worried about failing others and becoming unloved or unlovable. This often is traceable back to the character’s own childhood fears. These early fears powerfully stay with us and color our adult lives.
Continue readingFear in Politics, Life, and Storytelling
In my Character Map workshops I talk a lot about fear. This article from the Huffington Post makes a clear statements about fear in politics, everyday life and storytelling. It is a wonderful summary of the discussion of fear I have with my workshop participants.
Continue readingEquinoxe Germany
I’ve been at beautiful Schloss Elmau in the Bavarian Alps. http://www.schloss-elmau.de/ It was a fabulous setting for the recent Equinoxe Germany workshop.
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