Writing
8.27.15 “All of us wished we possessed a tail we could wag.”
Specific and unsundry links, meanderings and etc. from the day. Plus, kids taste dark chocolate for the first time!
Read More8.26.15 “It’s nice to look down and see a new piece of jewelry on my finger”
Current wanderings in my brain, links, and photos. Come on in.
Read MoreHere’s how the story doesn’t end: TV adaptations that make it up as they go along
TV’s rapacious interest in book adaptations has been expanding lately. Today, novels are seen as springboards and not holy writ, and TV shows are happily going way off the reservation.
Read MoreSad songs say so much: the enduring appeal of songs that hurt your heart
You don’t have to look far to find songs about sadness. Popular music of all genres has trafficked forever in lyrics that tell terrible tales, suggest dark motives and insist that we all live in a vale of tears. Plus, there’s a catchy chorus.
Read MoreDavid Letterman’s caution in the name of comedy: My visit to the first ‘Late Show’ in 1993
So I guess this is how it happens: You do something long enough and you start being able to flash back on your own work. In 1993 I wrote to Late Night With David Letterman in the hopes of being able to get a ticket to one of his last NBC shows before he jumped…
Read MoreRemake, remodel: “Mad Max: Fury Road” and the delicious taste of a reboot done right
When I go to the grocery story for ice cream, I know exactly what flavor I want. Maybe I’m flexible on who’s making the flavor but in general, give me what I know I already like. Ice cream makers aren’t the only ones in on this truism; advertisers are well aware that once consumers find…
Read MoreContain yourself! Four shows whose “bottle” episodes are short bursts of perfection
Into the life of every TV series, a breather must fall. Here you have a successful plot engine chugging along, peopled by a beloved ensemble cast, all of whom who up every week to continue an ongoing story. But that can get tiring. Everyone needs a palate-cleanser. Which is what happens when a showrunner and…
Read MoreWriting Dead: Why Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse still ask the big questions in ‘The Leftovers,’ ‘The Returned’
Years after “Lost” went off the air, two of its co-creators, Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, are still asking the big questions in “The Leftovers” and “The Returned.”
Read More“Last Man on Earth”: Laughing, or not, at the end of the world
Can the end of the world be funny? It sure can be serious: One of TV’s most popular shows has been showing just how un-funny the end of the world can be for five seasons now. In fact, The Walking Dead has pretty much rubbed our faces in not only how bad it is when…
Read More10 scripts, 2 Oscars: Which writers will take home the best screenplay awards?
The writer on a movie set is a second-class citizen, a vestigial remnant that might once have served a purpose but who, once filming has begun, can only get in the way. Once a script leaves the hands of its screenwriter, unless said screenwriter is also directing, they’re less useful than an appendix. Nobody wants…
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