The Inquisitive Inkpot
Exploring Tales and the Art of Telling
Tag: writing
Chapters open, chapters close
In the first quarter of 2025, I shared that I’d be pitching my first feature screenplay to three film professionals. Two were producers, one was a screenwriter from Hollywood. Four months later, here is the update: All three requested the script—meaning, they asked me… Continue Reading “Chapters open, chapters close”
Ready or not, here goes something
It’s here: the finished, revised, pitch-ready screenplay for my first feature film. Next week, I have three pitch meetings scheduled with different producers at the international NRB convention in Dallas. This is where media professionals from all over the world gather to share ideas,… Continue Reading “Ready or not, here goes something”
Beating the board… and the clock
How screenwriting guru Blake Snyder’s beat board tool has transformed my writing process.
Outlining and Bacon
Outlining will not save your bacon—it will just help you make the bacon in the first place. Every form of writing will have its own outlining standard (novels, articles, dissertations, screenplays, etc.). And within each category of writing, every writer will have his or… Continue Reading “Outlining and Bacon”
Overcoming the Research Roadblock
Research can either make or break a story, so we writers have to get it right. Time periods, cultures, social/government systems, technology—anything in your story that ranges beyond your area of expertise is going to require some intensive research. I learned this the hard… Continue Reading “Overcoming the Research Roadblock”
Getting a Script Noticed
Submitting a script for production and submitting a novel for publication require different things. If you’ve read my article on making the “pitch” for a script, you already know this process can be uniquely intimidating. Impressing powerful people always is. Even so, there’s plenty… Continue Reading “Getting a Script Noticed”
A Blogging Milestone: the 100th Post
Two years ago, the term “blogging milestone” seemed ridiculous—even pretentious. The last blogging milestone I made a post about was the 30th one, in February of 2020, which was more like an announcement of The Inquisitive Inkpot’s identity shift. I don’t think even after… Continue Reading “A Blogging Milestone: the 100th Post”
Confessions of a Covid-stricken Writer
I thought covid would give me an unparalleled chance to keep writing. How wrong I was. Days before I received my positive covid test results, I had struck a gold mine of creative energy. My second children’s book has been progressing toward publication, and… Continue Reading “Confessions of a Covid-stricken Writer”
Evaluating Illustration Thumbnails
Easter, Sunshine, and Thumbnails: who could ask for anything more? This beautiful, sunny Easter weekend was made even more enthralling when my illustrator sent me the complete set of thumbnails for Bertrand the Bashful Bumblebee—my next children’s book, on track to be released this… Continue Reading “Evaluating Illustration Thumbnails”
The Writer’s Creative Conscience: staying Accountable
Every writer has a creative conscience. By “creative conscience,” I don’t mean a moral compass that dictates what we do and don’t create. I mean a still, small voice that haunts us when we aren’t creating and hounds us for not achieving milestones. The… Continue Reading “The Writer’s Creative Conscience: staying Accountable”
