Writers Week Blog

And thus, My junior year's writer's week is over.

Callous as it may seem, I felt writers week began poorly (although it ended on a high note) with Screenwriter Bill Kelly's somewhat dry humor and basic Q&A. His relatively bleak visions of Hollywood, his reasoning for being a movie writer (as opposed to a television writer, which he wished to be), his depictions of a writer's place in Hollywood, and his general attitude seemed almost misplaced in a week made to celebrate the successes and greatness of writing, rather than it's shortcomings. His saving grace, however, came as he explained that the reason he, or any other writer, stays in Hollywood is devotion to his (or their) work, rather than money. This sentiment stood in stark contrast to the schema of his responses.

The end of the weekend, though, saw a dramatic turn for writers week, as we saw Billy Lombardo speak about a fictional bakery fire in "The Pilgrim Virgin" where a supposed "punk" saved not only his life, but his family's lives, or his "First Punch" at the hands of his own father in the midst of terrible family issues. Very moving. Scott Woldman's "Speed Dating: The musical" in turn turned the mood of writer's week upside down again with incredible, often inappropriate humor. Chorus quotes such as "Will you will you will you will you sleep with me" will be remembered for years to come, not to mention his impecible style and awesome timing in showing portions of different conversations summing up with "Thats an unusual question. I suppose I would take it in the butt." Truly Hilarious.

Daphne Willis just rocked. Not much more to say. A Fremd Graduate with a semi-successful band living independantly the way they want to. Nothing more respectable. And, of course, Marc Smith, my ~60 year old socialist slammin' poetry hero. Climbing the banister twice while yelling "bankers lend it, women spend it" introducing himself as "the guy who drops the F-Bomb" and myriad other out-of-bounds-yet-creatively-relevant poems, in addition to the more acceptable "My father's coat" poem. And, of course, talking to him after he finished showed how deep he really was, and how encouraging he tries to be to aspiring writers.

PS: He liked my hat. Take that, you nay-sayers!