THE OTHER NETWORK WRITER'S ROOM
INSIDE THE ART, CRAFT AND BUSINESS OF WRITING for Film, TV, Books, Stage, Print or Digital Media (with Particular Attention to Comedy)
Category Archives: Rewriting
7 Tools for Critical Thinking (from Philosopher Daniel Dennett)
As I say in my book, “How To Be A Writer Who Writes”, (a phrase I love saying and really should say more), different phases of the writing process call … Continue reading
Space Talk: What Astronauts Can Teach You About Writing Dialog
Thanks to 101books for this funny post on what the astronauts can teach us about writing dialog. 101 Books doesn’t specify, but I’d say this excellent snippet of dialog can … Continue reading
Why I Love Index Cards as a Writing Tool (Pt. 2): Full-Color Edition
Writing doesn’t always look like ‘writing’. For the last 2-3 weeks, my work on the current screenplay has consisted of staring at a wall of index cards (in photo at … Continue reading
How To Get Feedback on Your Draft
“Don’t pay any attention to the critics—don’t even ignore them.” — Samuel Goldwyn 1. Get feedback BEFORE re-reading your draft (if you can possibly wait) 2. Ask for the kind of feedback you … Continue reading
When to Stop Rewriting (Pt. 1): Don’t Be a Chicken
If you can’t tell whether a scene is better before or after that 4th rewrite, stop. Like a doctor who takes the Hippocratic Oath, rewriters should “first do no harm”. … Continue reading
Rewrite Desk: 4 Reasons to Cut Something and 14 Things to Cut
“I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.” — Michelangelo I’m a cutter. I love deleting. Sometimes I don’t wait to re-plan the rewrite. Sometimes … Continue reading
Do you really want to call it “DEATH of a Salesman”? (Even Arthur Miller Got Notes)
Screenwriter Nicholas Kazan wrote a memorable article for the Writer’s Guild Magazine about receiving notes. His father features in the story, which revolves around the first draft of Arthur Miller’s … Continue reading
How the Kingdom Came: Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola on Collaboration
Writing partners can be tricky, time-consuming and problematic, but when it works, it works. It worked for Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola, who co-wrote Moonrise Kingdom. They talked about the … Continue reading
Think You’ve Re-Written Your Scene Enough? Tony Kushner on Re-Writing “Lincoln”
Playwright/screenwriter Tony Kushner (“Angels in America”) got nominated for an Oscar for his dense, literary and poetic screenplay of “Lincoln” (adapted from Doris Kearns Goodwin’s book “Team of Rivals), but … Continue reading
“How To Be A Writer Who Writes” – Strategies and Tactics to Start and Finish Your Book or Script!
“YOU WANNA WRITE? READ THIS” – Marc Weingarten (author of “The Gang That Wouldn’t Write Straight”) “INFINITELY PRACTICAL” – Terri Jentz (author of “Strange Piece of Paradise”) “WITTY, WISE AND … Continue reading
Evolution of a Classic: Paddy Chayevsky’s Creative Path To “Network”
You may find it vaguely reassuring to know that the earliest rough drafts of even a brilliant script like “Network” were, well… rough. This great article from the NY Times … Continue reading
