Warning: This is going to be a craft post, likely boring for non-screenwriting nerds. I’m reading a new book by Yves Lavadier called Constructing a Story, and I’m reading about character arcs. One thing that we talk about in drama is character want versus character need. The want tends to be a tangible, external, and a conscious … Read more
Saturday was Earth Day and March for Science day. I almost went to the march, but did not. It’s okay though, because I made it a point to like all the Facebook posts of friends who did go. (That last sentence was supposed to be tongue-in-cheek but really just makes me feel sad for reasons … Read more
Another interesting concept from my directing class is the idea that when you compose a shot, you can usually find within it a triangle. And the point of the triangle that draws your focus is the APEX of the triangle. When the idea was introduced in class, I was intrigued–but wondered, beyond aesthetic benefits, what … Read more
A couple of weeks ago, I finished a short course in book reviewing. We discussed things like the changing culture of reviewing with the advent of social media and decline in traditional publishing, and the recent debate regarding the pros and cons of printing a negative reviews. We also made a couple of stabs at … Read more
Reading: Just finished Jay Antani’s The Leaving of Things, about a young Indian man who has spent most of his life in Wisconsin but is forced to return to India with his family when his father takes a job there. It’s set in the 80s, and really manages to evoke time and place, mostly in … Read more
This was in my inbox this morning. A Fond Farewell… Thank You for Shopping at Borders
I returned two really nice books to a large chain bookstore using their included gift receipts. It is my intention to buy these same books in their electronic form for my Kindle. I felt especially bad about this when, as I was driving my car today–with the soon-to-be-returned books in the passenger seat beside me, … Read more
Since last weekend I have had the luxury of thinking about only one script for a several consecutive days. It has been great. I may have already mentioned that the script is an adaptation of a Vietnamese novel that I am co-writing with another woman who has actually read the novel (which is in Vietnamese.) … Read more