microcosm
Friday, December 6th, 2002
I swear, I don’t know why I ever leave Atlas at all. This morning, a kindly tutor lecturing a budding screenwriter on craft:
“Y’see, this passage: ‘This has been the most amazing experience of my life. I would like to thank everyone involved, especially my mother, who taught me the true meaning of wisdom and compassion…’ For one thing, you’re telling, not showing. If it’s not obvious what his mother’s taught him by now, there’s no point spelling it out. For another thing, I find this a little unbelievable coming from an eleven-year-old boy…
“Then there’s the classic novice error of putting too much in the stage directions. This one, for example: ‘You can see by his face that it is his mother’s birthday…'”
