This is on the verge of becoming a straight up writing blog.
I am not really surprised by the development. My life is largely about writing right now and I am moving towards a life that is mostly centered around producing quality fiction. As I blog I’m listening to John Truby speak about the story to Film Courage. I’ve been a fanboy of his since reading The Anatomy of Story. I considered making parts of it canon for my screenplay writing class, but opted to go building block mode and focus on genre and storyform with this 100 level class. Now, these students expect to produce some legitimate screenplays this semester. I am going to go to the mat to see that they develop something that will get them there, but expecting a completed screenplay is counterproductive.
I expect to cultivate effort and a sense of the writer’s life.
This is a bit of a co-dependent effort. Their success is my success and all… The more I allow myself to lock into that writing life and being successful in that fashion, the better I become as a writer and a teacher and really as a more complete person.
Some Thoughts:
- The one thing that constantly surprises me in life is bold absurdity. I mean when someone calmly suggests something outlandish and makes it seem like what is being suggested is truly legitimate–practically a layup. Part of it is the delivery; a subtle presence that makes you seem the fool for not agreeing. Part of it is the sheer boldness of the request. When things are foreign it can be difficult to know how to react. Couple this with that smooth delivery and you might get snookered. I’ve learned to take a beat and think everything through.