Kudos to director Sara Nesson

... for her short Oscar-nominated documentary, "Poster Girl," which we saw Saturday at the WGA. Terribly moving and provocative! I expect more great things from her.

A Writers Time

HAVE AN AGENDA and revise it regularly to keep your priorities current.

Hollywood would rather pay more for more than less for less.

Screenwriters:

“Too good to be true. Remove goody-goodies from your script. Every character worth recommending is a mixture of positive and negative traits.”— Jennifer Lerch, 500 Ways to Beat the Hollywood Script Reader

Tips For Novelists

What makes for good novel writing--lush narrative, detailed description, inner monologues--often makes for poor screenwriting, which is brief and evocative

Tips For Writers

The key to success (and sanity) is to remain flexible while simultaneously being relentlessly organized.

Tips For Screenwriters

Nothing teaches screenwriting better than the screenplays of your favorite movies.

Tips For Writers

Storytellers are born, not made. But you can always improve your craft.

Yes, it’s true,

the gatekeepers can tell in the first two pages whether your work is ready for representation. Because so many people seek representation they don’t have time to keep reading.

Screenwriters:

Don’t refer to actors by name in your screenplay. You’ll limit your readership one way or the other!

Best 5 Movies I Saw in January:

The Fighter

Inside Job

The King’s Speech

Black Swan

The Kids Are All Right

Tips For The Novelist

In a good novel, characters tell the story.

Tips For Writers

If you don't drill new holes, you don't advance. The more an individual writer can write in different media, the better chance he or she's going to have financial freedom.

Tips For Writers

Make anything old new again and you can sell it.