New Course on LinkedIn Learning!
Check out my new mini-course “Learning Screenwriting” on LinkedIn Learning
The NYT Keeps on Shrekkin'...
Twenty years ago, movies changed a little. I’m proud of the little part I played.
TOOTSIE: FROM MOVIE TO MUSICAL
Recently I had the privilege of spending time with Robert Horn, who won a Tony for writing the book to the Broadway musical “Tootsie.” We shared the unique opportunity of comparing scenes from the Best Picture winner with analogous scenes from the musical, and discussing the fascinating process of adapting a classic and setting it to music. It’s a master class for writers of comedy, film, stage, and music.
Don’t find time to write.
“I can’t find time to write.” It’s the single most common plaint of the creative or commercial writer, right before, “I don’t know what to write.” Today we focus on solving the first problem. Ready?
Forget about it. You’ll never find time to write.
And don’t think I’m about to say, “You must make time to write, grasshopper!” If you think you’re capable of creating time, you’ve got a bigger problem than finding time to write. (See “ grandiose adjective gran·di·ose\ˈgran-dē-ˌōs\.)
A File Format That Will Make You a Better Writer?
There’s a file format — a structure for saving data — that is as powerful a tool in the writing world as a U.S. passport is in world travel. It’s known by the acronym OPML, and those letters should become as familiar to you as QWERTY.