“…Looking for less interference and fewer turkeys.”
And if that doesn’t sum it all up, what does?
Will Smith was a writer and co-star of the most popular and most excellent BBC series THE THICK OF IT. Now he tells us about his life-changing decision. Not as big a deal as, say, Bruce Jenner’s, but still:
I know how weird this is going to sound. Nevertheless, here it is:
Some of us don’t care about football – at all. Like, not at all. We aren’t excited to hear your drinking stories. We don’t see any point in watching the Grammys. And we’re not heading out to see Fifty Shades of Grey this weekend, or any weekend (nor did we read the book).
It can get lonely, being so outside the norm. The mainstream is just …so… main stream. There are times when it seems as though nobody understands, and that people are just a bunch of bastards, with bad taste in everything.
The classic TV series M*A*S*H, which gave the world Alan Alda and a band of brilliant actors (and which was based on the 1970 Korean War medical-military feature film dramedy of the same name), originally aired on CBS from 1972 to 1983.
But it was never really the same after its second season. In other words, it wasn’t funny anymore; and in some sectors, it wasn’t considered even likable. It was a good show beyond its sophomore year, but it wasn’t the same show. It was like some kind of bizarro version of original self (which see Superman mythology); kind of like the less-than-worthy spin-off series (AfterM*A*S*H) it spawned after it ended.
So, what happened? Why did the series change? When did the show change? What were the changes?
You’re a writer, right? And I’m assuming since you’re reading this on TV Writer you’re leaning a bit more toward script writing than novel writing – or you may be doing both.
And you probably love the web for all the great resources you can find (remember what I told you in a fairly recent post about turning off your browser when you’re actually writing/working).
Regardless, presuming you’re that sensible, I’ve rounded up a few resources you can make use of. Some you may have found on your own, others, well, read on and see what I’ve dug up.
Solitude
Yes, that’s the subject for today. A writer can’t worry about being alone. A reader must welcome alone time to be able to read.
Solitude is the sunshine that allows creativity to flourish. In the quiet time your thoughts can take shape and you can focus. You can unwind, face inner demons, reach deep and find out who you really are. I focus more on the writer, but the same applies to the reader. There are times when we simply need to do nothing, to just sit and be, in order to feel the creativity rise up from the depths of cool solitude. Even while you do nothing, you’re doing something. In the stillness lies the kernel of creativity.