Monthly Archives: October 2010

“I hate writing. I love having written.”–Dorothy Parker How does one find a voice? How does one cultivate style? Answer: You work at it. Sorry to tell you, but this is work. Are you up for this? If it takes writing a million words, are you ready to do it? Longevity, tenacity, determination. The willingness […]

Here’s one way to work your characters: Outline the major characters first, work down to key secondary/subplot characters. Try an INSIDE/OUT approach. People in life are never as they appear. How does the character appear to the world? What’s the façade? Write it down. Then write the inside.  The underside. Please tell me Dick the […]

“How Do I Write A Great  Character?” “I don’t write screenplay character biographies beforehand. I usually go in knowing some sequences: this is where I want to start, this is where I want to end.”— John Sayles “Character arcs always seem to be a big issue with film studio executives . . . so the […]