One of the precepts of comedy is that as absurd as the scene gets, the actor cannot laugh. A comedic scene develops through the development of absurd and humorous elements, stacking on top of each other. These elements build, bringing tension, and can only be diffused through laughing. Laughing brings the catharsis. If the actor laughs then it takes away the pressure on the audience to laugh.
Read MoreAndy Warhol wanted to be a writer so, in the mid-sixties, he decided to write a novel. Of course he didn’t sit down and write a book – this was Andy Warhol. Instead he carried around a tape recorded when he hung out with Ondine, one of the Factory actors, and the emerging novel is the transcription of those conversation. Warhol knew this wasn’t how to write a novel but he wanted to do it the wrong way “because doing something the wrong way always opens doors.”
Read MoreThe word character – as long time readers will remember – did not mean dramatis personae. The word comes from the Greek meaning an engraved mark. As in to draw a character on a piece of paper. Put some together and it becomes a word. The term also meant to mark on the body, or the soul. It was not until a few hundred years ago that the term became applicable to a person in a story. Hamlet was not a character – the meaning changed more recent than Shakespeare’s death.
Read MoreI’ve been working on a novel through this year. It came to the point in writing this third draft where it was clear that one plot just wasn’t working. I cut it out.
Read More
