Advice on Writing: None

To give advice in writing is one of those paradoxes. Inevitably, whatever “lesson” or “rule” you learn will be proven wrong by some amazing exception. And then another, and another. Until you’re not sure if the rule ever made sense. Or, perhaps more efficiently, a real-life writer will immediately rebut you, “No, actually, my entire writing strategy rests on the opposite approach to what you just said. Did you like my novel? Well, I wrote it–” with no outline, with no commas, from the 2nd person POV, ad infinitum.

Well, I wanted to share one fantastic article that picks apart the idea of “killing your darlings.” Redefining Ornament: An Argument for the (Seemingly) Inessential by Ayşe Papatya Bucak. A good friend and fellow writer shared it with me because she felt utterly liberated after reading it, and honestly, so did I.

Bucak makes a compelling argument for allowing the writer to take detours, to sit and listen, to be with a tertiary character for a minute, to add lots and lots of detail. The argument is not to be as excessive as you like. Some darlings do indeed need to be killed so the reader doesn’t get lost. Unless of course, the point is that they get lost…

But I digress. Instead, I believe the takeaway is to allow yourself the potential to find hidden connections in the apparent “extremities” of your story. Why did you feel the need to describe the wallpaper? Is it blue for a reason? Because blue was calming to the main character’s mother long after she lost her memory to Alzheimer’s? What if you don’t spell that out – is it still “essential?” The reader doesn’t have to know why it’s blue. So long as it’s part of the DNA of your story they will feel it.

So, there’s my advice, until someone proves me wrong of course.

Veterans Writing Project - Applications Open

This is a general call for any and all military veterans who are passionate about screenwriting!

The Veterans Writing Project is now accepting applications for the next class. I've had the honor of mentoring with the Project for the last three years and I can honestly say there's no other program like it. We'll teach you how to network in the entertainment industry, how to pitch your stories, and we'll help you develop and hone a powerful and original work of writing. Not to mention, all the great panels we moderate with industry professionals (writers, directors, executives, managers, agents, and much more).

Check out the program here.

You can apply directly here.

If you're a veteran who wants to work in Hollywood (or already does), there's no reason not to apply!


Why Does a Movie "Hold Up" or Not?

Alright, first post of 2023! Over the holidays, my wife and I had some serious movie marathons, which mostly comprised of films she missed when they first came out. They’d been hanging over her head for years and it was time to right some wrongs...

Avatar (in advance of seeing Avatar 2). The Fugitive. Rush Hour. Wolf of Wall Street. Easy A (that one was for me, she’d seen many times before). Police Story. Eclectic, I know!

Most of these held up, some better than others. Rush Hour was still charming and hilarious, the physicality of Jackie Chan is timeless (as evidenced by the ever-perfect Police Story), the odd chemistry between Tucker and Chan is still vibrant. But there are plenty of moments that “bump” today’s sensibilities — anti-Asian jokes, Black man stereotypes, misogynist jokes that were eviscerated by #MeToo. Despite these moments, the film worked - we were still rapt, and laughing, and cheering for them. Then we tried to watch Rush Hour 2 - oof… it is somehow a magnitude more problematic. Especially in the gross misogyny department (the massage parlor, the spying on the DEA agent “strip tease,” it permeates almost every scene). And within thirty minutes we decided it did not “hold up” and we stopped watching.

What does it mean for a movie to hold up? It worked with audiences at the time of its release and doesn’t now - but what does that really tell you? Is the storytelling still good but its nature too problematic? Obviously there are problematic films that are still hailed as classics. Was it specifically responding to a moment that meant the particular historical audience connected with it - but we couldn’t because we don’t have the context?

Ultimately, I think it’s really an informal, personal equation. The peccadilloes of dated style and the larger offenses against progressive thought go up against the quality of the universal aspects of the storytelling. Rush Hour might have been problematic but it was inherently a good enough comedic romp. Rush Hour 2 was more problematic and ultimately, on its own legs, lower quality storytelling. Less original and leaned on its grosser instincts. So the equation tips.

Every film goes through this subjective sort of calculus I guess. Watching at home, so many years later, Avatar was strange. Without the spectacle to distract as much, on a smaller screen, you feel the runtime more. You notice the cultural appropriation. Does it hold up? For me, sure, because I go for the world and visual feast - I go to have a “video game” like roller coaster ride - not for much else. If the effects didn’t miraculously still look so good, it would’ve tipped the scales to “not hold up.”

The most interesting question to me is what sort of societal and industry changes will lead a movie made today to hold up or not twenty years from now. Some of my favorite movies of 2022 (separate post incoming) - Tar, Banshees of Inisherin, Fabelmans… will they hold up in 2042? Will they have stepped on some invisible boundary through history that renders them irrelevant?

Surreal Photography to Close Out the Year

Well, the year’s end is upon us and I am behind on my pilot rewrites. So, today’s post is going to be short and sweet and visually focused. And it might be the last one for 2022!

I’ve been exploring what’s going into the public domain in 2023 for potential adaptation and a lot of my research takes place on, surprise surprise, the Public Domain Review. It’s an incredible website, filled with sundry strangeness and eccentric stories and fascinating histories.

It was there that I came across two articles. In Search of True Color and The Kept and the Killed, both written by Erica X. Eisen. In these articles, Eisen surveys collections of alluringly flawed old photos and analyzes their time in history and the record they leave behind. Eisen provides the context, I’ll just share some of my favorites here. It might be fun to take them in standalone first, see what feelings they conjure up. I know I’ll be keeping them in my mind’s eye for inspiration, and perhaps a writing prompt or two in the weeks to come.

And with that delightfully odd note, happy holidays and New Year’s to you!

Musings on Mentality

I used to believe that productivity can only come out of a rigid schedule. Wake up at an exact time every day. Begin writing at an exact time. Set specific and rigorous deadlines for yourself. Be consistent in your process and hold yourself to it with every project.

Well, I’m starting to realize that “rigid” and “productive” aren’t synonyms - and “consistency” in the writing process is something of a laughable myth. Every project is different; it has a different voice, new characters, new intent - and that newness will leech into the process and mutate it. Every time it seems! Maybe it’s just me. I’m always roving and searching for new genres, genre-mashups, ways to flip things on their head - and that usually means flipping my own process on its head.

But that’s okay. I’m realizing that fluidity, that real flexibility is the goal. Not just with the process from the 30,000 ft. view (research to beat sheet to outline to draft to revisions, etc.) but even from the day to day approach. I still aspire to be rigorous and ambitious and productive of course. But some days, my inspiration may take me down a rabbit hole of in-the-weeds research when I “should” be breaking story structure. Maybe I need to know how polymetallic deep-sea nodules are harvested before I can understand who this scientist is truly - what decisions she’ll make… and that’ll determine the structure.

The process is only arbitrary if you decide what you’re doing in a vacuum, away from your actual story. Maybe I’ll become more methodical with every project, but something tells me this method accepts chaos as an ingredient. And that’s okay… as long as you do actually stick to those deadlines!

A Few Recommendations

Well, it has been a minute. In an attempt to make more regular postings here, I’m going to start off with something befitting of this page’s name, miscellaneous (random, truly) recommendations across mediums.

Branko Mataja [MUSIC] - an incredible guitarist with an equally incredible backstory. But before you read anything about it, just sit back and closed eyes listen to his music. It’s truly unique. Psychedelic reinvention of Serbian folk songs by way of California surfer. His mesmerizing instrumentals have become the only soundtrack for me as I write my new pilot - a spy thriller set in the islands of the Mediterranean. Enjoy!

Andor [TV] - I know, you’re as surprised as I am that I’m head over heels for a Star Wars show! The truth is, I’m not naturally a Star Wars franchise sort of guy but this show breaks the mold in every way imaginable. And actually, I shouldn’t be surprised because it’s Tony Gilroy (along with Dan Gilroy, Beau Willimon, and Stephen Schiff - brilliant writers all). The show takes what it wants of the SW universe and uses it to tell a gritty, neo-noir tale of revolution, evil corporatism, and modern colonialism. I’ve never been as intrigued and horrified by the Empire and the misguided, ambitious people who make it function. Even the structure of the show itself is quite unique, so far it feels like it’s built in three episode chapters with a very movie-like rhythm to each one. Thank god it has a staggered release, the show is easily binged but I think that would miss the point!

Banshees of Inisherin [MOVIE] - I mean, Martin McDonagh reunited with his dream team, Farrell & Gleeson, in the searing landscape and setting of all his old-school plays, the Aran Islands. Nuff said. Except that Farrell deserves an Oscar.

The Candy House [BOOK] - It will come as a surprise to no one that Egan’s novel is fantastic. Even more wild and ambitious than A Visit from the Goon Squad with the same focus on memory but as incisive a look at technology too. She has single sentences, passing observations even, that strike harder than entire books.

Okay that’s all I got for now. More to come soon.

Oscars 2022

It’s been ages since I posted here but, since finally finishing my last season on Motherland: Fort Salem, and recently having moved back to Los Angeles - the dust has settled enough that I can return to the musings here, at least for a moment.

Wasn’t sure what to write about, until I remembered that the Oscars were happening this weekend. It feels like a strange year for the Oscars, a mix of controversy (cutting out the live awards for most below the line categories), and strange just for the mix of films — classic Oscar bait sort of fare, fascinating international films that don’t fit clean categories but are getting recognized, and then a lot of actor recognition for movies that otherwise were brushed aside.

Well, my top film was Drive My Car. Gorgeous, haunting, with this inexorable emotional momentum that just builds so beautifully that you don’t even feel the three-hour runtime pass you by. That one is going to stay with me. Second, Power of the Dog. Not quite as precisely cutting, shocking, and brilliant as the novel (one of my favorites) but close! And still, extremely gorgeous. My guess is that it will be the awards sweep of the night.

Other favorites include the short film, Please Hold, by my old Motherland colleague - the brilliant KD Davila. That one is truly Kafkaesque for the modern world in all the most scary ways. It’s amazing, and excruciating. I also found Flee very affecting, the story of an Afghan refugee told in a visually innovative way.

But overall it feels like a quiet year for quiet films. My biggest optimistic takeaway is that international films are gaining much more access the Oscars (ever since Parasite) - and hopefully this will broaden Hollywood’s perspective and taste. I look forward to seeing how the slate for 2022 changes things for the next round.