2 Nov, 2017

Here’s The Pitch!

By |2017-12-20T14:40:27-08:00November 2nd, 2017|The Writer's Life|Comments Off on Here’s The Pitch!

Pitching may be the toughest thing you do as a writer.

In my life as a playwright, I have the luxury of writing FIRST. Rarely have I been in the position of telling someone what I was going to write before I wrote it. That means I have […]

20 Oct, 2017

Write. Don’t Tell.

By |2017-12-01T18:09:09-08:00October 20th, 2017|Creative Survival, The Writer's Life|Comments Off on Write. Don’t Tell.

This happens all the time: I’m out somewhere and I meet a new person who is excited to hear that I’m a writer and a writing coach. The person claims she is “not yet” a writer, but has “great ideas”. Then she proceeds to tell me […]

4 Oct, 2017

Call & Response

By |2017-12-01T18:09:09-08:00October 4th, 2017|Creative Survival, The Writer's Life|Comments Off on Call & Response

In any dramatic scene, the energy should flow back and forth – like a tennis match. Someone says or does something and the other person responds. In the best scenes this movement is palpable – the power dynamic shifts – and the resulting momentum moves us into […]

22 Sep, 2017

Here’s What They Think of Your Writing

By |2017-12-01T18:09:09-08:00September 22nd, 2017|Creative Survival, The Writer's Life|Comments Off on Here’s What They Think of Your Writing

Recently, I saw a post on Facebook about contest submissions for writers. The person who posted was making the point that assessments about the winners and losers are “sometimes subjective”. I posted an alternate view: they’re always, 100% subjective. 100% of the time. 

It can […]

8 Sep, 2017

What’s Your Question?

By |2017-12-01T18:09:09-08:00September 8th, 2017|Uncategorized|Comments Off on What’s Your Question?

Recently I’ve been posting on Twitter, inviting people to send in questions about playwriting, TV writing and the “writing life”. I’m willing to answer the juiciest questions on video, posted to my YouTube page. Part of the reason I coach, is that I enjoy being […]

25 Aug, 2017

Stop Thinking

By |2017-12-01T18:09:10-08:00August 25th, 2017|Creative Survival, The Writer's Life|Comments Off on Stop Thinking

This strange phenomenon happens all the time. I encounter a creative person who says they’re stuck. Often they paint themselves as desperate: looking for a lifeline from anywhere. Sometimes they claim to have no resources, no idea how to find their way to a job in their chosen creative field.

We […]

27 Jul, 2017

Wisdom From Comic Con!

By |2017-12-01T18:09:10-08:00July 27th, 2017|Creative Survival, The Writer's Life|Comments Off on Wisdom From Comic Con!

For the first time, I was invited to speak on a panel at Comic Con. The UCLA Extension School put a panel together of instructors who work in the entertainment industry. I was honored to be one of them.

If you’ve never been to Comic Con (I hadn’t […]

13 Jul, 2017

People Die

By |2017-12-01T18:09:10-08:00July 13th, 2017|Creative Survival, The Writer's Life|Comments Off on People Die

When I was in playwriting school, there were three distinct groups of artists under the umbrella of the school’s Drama Division: playwrights, directors and actors. We collaborated on occasion, but we had separate tracks in terms of classes and focus and goals. In the second year of […]

30 Jun, 2017

Curating, Conversing or Creating?

By |2017-12-01T18:09:10-08:00June 30th, 2017|Uncategorized|Comments Off on Curating, Conversing or Creating?

Someone told me this week that they’re cutting back on Facebook. I get it. It can be a time-suck. It’s tempting to spend time liking and posting and commenting. Your creative work (and other work) can be ignored in the wake of all that activity. There are […]

15 Jun, 2017

Start Again!

By |2017-12-01T18:09:11-08:00June 15th, 2017|Creative Survival, The Writer's Life|Comments Off on Start Again!


I was talking, recently, to an artist friend who was experiencing some frustration about his creative life. His big issue was that he felt like his projects weren’t moving fast enough. He expressed a desire to have the artistic life of a friend.

 

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