Writing in the Dark,, an apt metaphor for anyone who has ever tried to tap out words on a backlit screen. This book, a collection of essays gathered by Max van Manen, shows how "different kinds of human experience may be explored, the methods for investigating phenomena contributing to human experience…the process of inquiry, reflection and writing…a valuable and rich resource". That is to say, writing is an attempt to reflect what goes on inside us. Inside us is where "story" occurs.Scott Popjes maintains a busy schedule, writing, producing and editing major theatrical trailers, promos and EPK's and developing and producing TV series and films, such as "The Remarkably 20th Century" and "The Long Ride Home". Born and raised in suburban New Jersey, this everyman director/editor loves making movies.Ernest Hemingway - The man who ran with the bulls. His literary sparseness and compression, well-worn and well-earned, captured the attention of critics and public in a volatile age. In 1952, he received the Pulitzer for The Old Man and the Sea. In 1954, he received the Nobel Prize for his "powerful style-making mastery of the modern art of narration." He wrote from life. Until his life subdued and rescued him.Will Shakespeare - Aka "The bard". Arguably the best English writer to ever glide pen to page, populist hero as well as aristocratic raconteur, though we wish he had used all women instead of all men to populate his plays. (Not a prejudice, just a fact.) His sonnets remain divine. Rare is the writer who can scribble successfully in one genre, let alone two. Some postulate this poet and playwright was, in fact, more than one man…or woman. What would he have done with film, we wonder?Though he produced fewer than 40 paintings, Dutch painter Jan Vermeer is one of the most respected artists of the European tradition. He is known for his serene, luminous interiors populated by one or two figures. Vermeer grew up in Delft, Holland, joined the painters' guild in 1653, and worked as an art dealer to support his wife and 11 children. In 1672, war with France ruined Holland’s economy and Vermeer's business failed. Soon after, he died of a stroke at age 42, leaving his family bankrupt. Vermeer's paintings were largely forgotten for nearly 200 years, until 1858 when a French critic began to write admiringly about his work. Interest in Vermeer surged again recently with his work exhibited at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Contemporary writers have also been inspired by him, including Tracy Chevalier whose novel Girl with a Pearl Earring imagines the life of the girl in Vermeer's painting of the same name. L.Ron Hubbard - Whatever you may think of his other worldly beliefs, the full body of L. Ron Hubbard's work includes more than 5,000 writings and 3,000 tape-recorded lectures, spanning five, highly productive decades. A humanitarian and adventurer, he believes, "There are only two tests of a life well lived: Did one do as one intended? And were people glad one lived?" We add, "And can one write about it, anyhow?"Johannes Vermeer's "Lady Writing a Letter with Her Maid" records a prior chivalrous age where class decorum reigned. (Oh, well, you can't have everything.) One of the most talented painters in the Dutch Golden Age, that's the 1600's, Vermeer's work was forgotten for centuries. The most brilliant artists of any century are probably never discovered, their paintings hidden till ruin, their pages dropping to dust in unfound attics. We find this oddly comforting. No martyr of time, this particular masterpiece hangs in the National Gallery of Ireland. Definitely worth a gaze.Jules Verne - Ode to childhood and the player within us. Verne was born, aptly, in Nates, France in 1828. He promptly ran off to become cabin boy on a merchant ship but was caught and sent back to his parents. Thus constrained, his imagination wandered. He wrote story after story, became very rich, bought a yacht and resumed his initial intent - to sail around the world. Or Europe anyhow. Our favorite remains Twenty Thousand Leagues.
Paula BrancatoConsultation Program
With Integrity and Clarity

The Writers Place is proud to offer a specialized, one-on-one script consultation program by USC screenwriting Professor Paula Brancato. You send us your script: Professor Brancato will provide industry coverage, i.e. written critique, as per industry standards. After receiving initial development notes, you have the option of requesting a one-on-one phone or e-mail consultation with Professor Brancato.

A former investment banker and music industry CFO, Brancato has raised over $50 mm for independent film and entertainment projects, collaborating with major studios, television networks, new media and production companies and taking hundreds of scripts through the development process. She brings 15+ years of industry-wide business experience to the table and is ready to discuss elements of story, market positioning, packaging and financing as well as the detailed aspects of craft (structure, technique, etc.). If you have any questions concerning the consultation program email us at consult@thewritersplace.org .

"... what you're doing is working, as my recent experience at the Maui Writers Conference proves. In contrast to my disastrous pitch experience during the summer, my pitch to the industry for The Psalm 51 Miracle went extremely well. The editors were not only extremely interested and helpful, but one said that it was the best pitch he had ever heard." Eric Von Mizener, April 2007, screenwriter TREMULOUS

"I love how Paula is able to communicate not only creatively as a writer on what works with one’s story and what doesn’t, but as a businesswoman and what one should do to market, promote, and advertise. Paula has a rare gift in possessing these two distinct talents and a keen sense for what will become successful." Kristina Sisco Romero - November 2007 - Emmy award winning actress and screenwriter CAMP WAMAGUA

"After your comments, I felt such a sense of urgency. I've already rewritten the entire 20 pages (you were right, it didn't take long), and let me tell you that your one fix was MONUMENTAL. I have been struggling for 2 years to find the voice. You managed to diagnose the problem in a split second....and now it's so mind-bending how easy it is to write. It's just flowing. I will never be able to thank you enough." Laura Saari, Pulitzer Prize nominated journalist, author of WESTWARD HOTEL -- October, 2007

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The Writers Place will call you within a week of receipt to arrange a one-on-one consultation.

Consultation Fees:

Full Length Feature (not more than 130 pages): $495. ((Member Discounts Available))

Short or ½ hour teleplay (not more than 40 pages): $300.