Interview:

My name is Thomas J. Herring and I live in Portland, Oregon. I've started out as an artists and a musician but decided to tell stories, so I read books on writing screenplays. I am a member of the Willamette Writers organization and have been for over five years.

Is "Mom's New Toy" your first script? If not, what else have you completed?

“"Mom's New Toy" is not my first script. I have seven screenplay shorts, nine-feature length scripts and three TV scripts.

Why did you write "Mom's New Toy"? And how long did it take you to write it?

The first draft took about an hour. It was one of those ideas that kept feeding my brain and forced my fingers to keep up. Originally it was five pages, but then later I added more characters at the end to have a bigger conflict.

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

I don't stick to one format. Sometimes I use index cards and go that route, but then I end up making changes as I start writing. New ideas come to mind which blow up the outline. Other times I write and see where it ends which could be at the hotel or over a cliff. I never know what I end up with.

What inspires you to write?

I could be on the bus and an idea pops up or I'll see something on the web or magazine. A story is always there, even when I sleep.

Apart from writing, what else are you passionate about?

As stated before, my first and second love is art and music. I paint fantasy and wildlife scenes that are for sale.

What influenced you to enter the Movie Script Contest?

I've entered the script in other competitions before and did well in them. I wanted to see if it was an anomaly so I found out about this one on Movie Bytes dot com

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

I do think it helps. I wish more of them would give feedback but I realize that would be hard to do with larger competitions. Once you place well in one it's euphoria, at least for me that pumps me up for the next script.

Who is your favorite screenwriter or writer and why?

I really don't have a favorite writer though I love reading books and screenplays. I have talked to Mike Rich here in Portland who has given me encouragement to keep writing.

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

Write a subject that you love. Read other people's scripts that you can get online for free. Drew's Script O Rama dot com has a lot of them. Don't give up. Yes, someday you're going to write the greatest story ever told and Hollywood's an idiot if they don't buy it. But put it away for a week or two and then reread it again. You'll wonder why you didn't see the mistakes before.

What's next for you?

I 'm going to keep writing and work out some plotlines on a few of my feature length scripts. I'm hunting for a manager that will help me prepare my script before I send it out. So it's write write!