Category Archives: writing
Ptara announces “brief speech” campaign
We have no problem with the kind of so-called “political correctness” that is designed to protect people’s feelings. The staff at Ptara see no reason to use offensive, vulgar or degrading language. What is annoying is when people chose to … Continue reading
Recording History before Time Runs Out
Time can defeat us in many ways. A contact of mine is raising money for a documentary about Basque children who escaped to England in 1937. The contact only has a few hours to raise another tens of thousands … Continue reading
Who needs dialogue anyway?
In film school, we usually learn to shoot without dialogue. Historians nostalgically look back to the silent era. Purists, like Hitchcock, have complained that today’s movies are too talky. But aren’t we a bit hard on dialogue? Even Eisenstein, the famous Russian formalist … Continue reading
Why is Tripoli so popular with historians?
In October, I had no idea what was going to happen in North Africa. Yet, I felt drawn to write a history of the “Barbary pirates.” I didn’t yet realize what would happen this year, nor did I know that … Continue reading
How is character related to plot?
Character and plot are two different words. So why do so many self-proclaimed experts say that “character is plot”? (Are they just copying F. Scott Fitzgerald? Or do they have a point?) The extreme film where character “is” plot is … Continue reading
What’s so important about a silly little name?
What’s up with the “Arab” Gulf? I checked my old geography books. Everything from the Twentieth Century tells me that: the Indians have an Ocean, the Arabians have a Sea, and the Persians have a Gulf. Somebody wanted to change … Continue reading
When can writer’s block be a good thing?
Johnny is fed up with the day job. On the way home, he thinks of a ripping satire involving his boss and coworkers that he just “knows” will win awards. Johnny starts planning his career. This one he’ll give for … Continue reading
What is your identity as an author?
“Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm” – Groucho Marx? When speaking to a computer, all you have to do is use the correct syntax and the computer understands. Huh? For … Continue reading
