The Series Character
A movie series has a built-in audience. Film studios, promoters, and financiers count on it. But when the actors playing a beloved and well-known character change within the series, there […]
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Novel Writing vs. Screenwriting
In April of this year, Victoria Griffin of Modern Publishing, interviewed me about the craft of writing. The interview resulted in three separate podcasts that covered distinct discussion areas. One
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Intellectually Speaking
Some of my favorite and least favorite movies are based on books, short stories, magazine articles, and poems. In the screenwriting world, these are referred as IP or intellectual property.
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Retcon, Reboot, Remake
Recycle, Reuse, Renew—just a few “R” words that shape our environmental conscience. And in the movie and tv industry, recycling takes on a variation of “R” words as in Retcon,
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Behind the Curtain
If done well, exposition should not expose itself. A scene from the classic film “The Wizard of Oz,” based on Frank L. Baum’s children’s novel, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,
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Strictly Speaking
As authors and screenwriters, we imagine characters that speak themselves into existence. And if they don’t sound out a word, there’s an expression, a look, a gesture that can speak
The Perfect Blend
Opinions abound on genre mixing for film and literature. I’ll venture that books, fiction and nonfiction, get more latitude with seemingly endless subgenre classifications and Amazon site keywords Films are
Behind the Scenes
Movie scenes should flow seamlessly with no obvious changes in wardrobe, set pieces or any other visual disruptions. Admittedly, these continuity mistakes would have to be glaring for me to
The Suspenseful Moment
It’s more than suspense. It’s the moment when the audience holds its collective breath. Time seems to stand still, and we’re not sure we want the scene to unfold. But
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Do Your Homework
Revisions are at the heart of any writing. We write to rewrite. Currently, my first book, “Unearthing Christmas” is under revisions for its third publication. To date, it’s received remarkably