Interview:

The urge to do creative writing has been an unscratched itch for most of my working life. I have done many other kinds of writing: Technical papers when I was a professor, policy studies when I was a project director at the National Academy of Sciences and at a private think tank, propaganda for Wall Street when I was a freelance financial writer. Along the way, I worked for an industrial film company, writing sales and training films for corporations. The job was a crash course on the nuts and bolts of filmmaking, and a primer on the process of creating synergy between words and images on screen. I got an introduction to dramatic structure and conflict when my boss and I co-wrote a play, a mystery/comedy called "Program for Murder," which was produced off Broadway. I have spent the last few years learning to put the pieces together, a process that I suspect never ends.

Is “IDENTITY THEFT” your first script? If not, what else have you completed?

"Identity Theft" is my second completed script. The first was "Blowback," a political thriller.

Why did you write "INDENTITY THEFT? And how long did it take you to write it?

"Identity Theft" began as an exercise in a screenwriting workshop, designed to help students develop an idea into a partial first draft. I pulled a one-paragraph summary out of my file of miscellaneous plot concepts, not really intending to complete the script. It turned out to be fun, so I kept going. As I got serious, it turned into work. I was still revising my earlier script, along with making a living. It took two years to complete.

Describe your process; do you have a set routine, method for writing?

I spend about 3-4 hours per day on my current main project. I have to work in blocks of at least that length, because each time I sit down, I need to re-enter my fictional world and re-read big chunks to get into the flow. I prefer to work mornings, other commitments permitting.

What inspires you to write?

A friend once said to me, "You don't choose writing. It chooses you." Certainly true for me. Aside from this inexplicable compulsion, my motives vary from script to script. I started "Identity Theft" because I thought the idea would be fun to play with. I started "Blowback," to dramatize a political situation. As the examples suggest, I'm concept-driven. The hard work for me coaxing my characters to turn into real people who take over the story.

Apart from writing, what else are you passionate about?

I care a lot about kids and education. I volunteer three mornings per week, helping teach math to middle schoolers. I have also been a gym rat all my life.

What influenced you to enter the Movie Script Contest?

It's tough for an industry outsider to figure out which of the zillions of screenwriting contests matter. I read a couple of screenwriting newsletters, in which the Movie Script contest and Golden Brad awards got favorable coverage.

Do you feel that screenwriting contests are worthwhile for writers and why?

As a novice with no contacts in the business, I hope that doing well in contests will help me build a resumé that can get me in an agent's or producer's door. Only time and experience will tell whether that's true. Also, my performance in contests gives me at least some sense of where I stand, and whether I'm making progress, in comparison to others who are trying to break into this brutally competitive business.

Who is your favorite screenwriter or writer and why?

I'm a big fan of Charlie Kaufman. I may love or hate any particular movie of his, but his imagination and originality deserve the overworked accolade "awesome."

Any advice or tips you’d like to pass on to other writers?

Keep at it.

What’s next for you?

I'm working on a drama that's been percolating since my days as a psychology professor. In it, the solution to a 20-year-old murder case depends on the accuracy of a buried memory recovered in psychotherapy by a seriously troubled young woman.