Critiques, grading papers, political wonkery, phone calls (morning, noon and night), a zoo of animals all demanding my attention…
Welcome to my life as of late. Plus I’m deep in the outlining phase for a novel.
When such insanity ensues (and when doesn’t it?), nothing works better for plotting out all of a story’s highs and lows, character arcs and plot threads than a set of index cards, thumbtacks and a black marker. Maybe it’s from so many years in the TV/Film industry, but I always work better with visual aids.
I’ll usually start by coming up with titles/themes for each sequence — each dramatic block of action that will move the story forward. Once those are written up and strung horizontally, I’ll move on to the actual scenes (all the cards below) for each sequence. Scene beats I’ll usually just plot out on paper right before I write a scene out.
The best part of putting the entire story up like this is that I can walk past the cards a few dozen times a day for the next few days and figure out what’s missing, what drags on too long, or where moments can be combined. Again, it’s about ‘seeing the whole picture’… (sort of like playing chess and making sure you look at the whole board before making your next move).
Ready to Stop Circling and Start Rewriting?
If you've got a draft and a diagnostic full of red flags, you don't need more coffee and willpower. You need a plan, a structure, and a room full of writers doing the work alongside you.
The Screenplay & TV Pilot Rewrite Workshop runs July 11 through September 26, 2026 — twelve Saturdays, 2:00 PM ET, live on Zoom. Small group. Real feedback on your actual pages, every week. A six-phase framework that moves from structural diagnosis all the way through line-level polish.
You'll leave with a rewritten script. Not a half-finished revision. A rewritten script. Registration is now open.
Ready to Build Dialogue That Actually Works?
All of this is easier said than done. (Yes, pun intended.) Which is why we do it together, live, with your actual characters.
Build-A-Dialogue is a free three-hour workshop — Saturday, June 6th, 2:00–5:00 PM ET, live on Zoom. No theory lectures. No homework. Just writing.
Hour 1: Voice. Hour 2: Subtext. Hour 3: Conflict. You'll leave with completed exercises, a Character Voice Sheet you can reference for your entire manuscript, and a Subtext Diagnostic for testing any scene in your current work. Registration now open.
The down side? I’m so ready to get writing on this thing but the next four days are all about the day job (not that I’m complaining, I really do enjoy working with my students!). The story’s all there and it’s just asking to be written. But for now, it’s about hushing the voice in my head that says, “Goal, motivation, conflict. Goal, motivation, conflict. Goal, motivation, conflict. ”
Geez. Just let me write the thing already, for crying out loud!
Music: Massenet:’Méditation’ – performed by Yo-Yo Ma
Drink: Jura 10 yr
Chocolate: Scharffen Berger