Street Writers

Education and inspiration. You need both to keep the words flowing and your writing projects moving forward. Yet finding the balance between how-to-write content and and great writing that inspires you can be tough—should you be reading Stephen King on Writing or Stephen King? Mark and Dan discuss how the balance differs for everyone, and they warn against going down the wormhole of spending too much time learning about writing and not enough time actually writing. Dan raves about the concept and writing behind the text game, Lifeline. And Mark talks about getting his 1-minute film (starring Dan) in a fun Toronto micro-film festival, Just A Minute, Toronto.

Want an incentive to get through what you’re writing now? Have your next writing project lined up right behind it. Want to shrug off a rejection letter on your current project? Get entrenched in your next one. That’s what filling the pipeline is all about, and that’s how writers stay in it for the long run. Dan is jealous of, and inspired by, a wonderful excerpt on writing by philosopher and Zen master, Alan Watts. Writer/director Mark and actor Dan recap a fun and eye-opening shoot of their latest film, Classmates.

We’re still slugging it out (in the best of ways) with writer David Quinn — scribe of comics, film, kid's books and industry. In Part 2 of our episode/interview with him… David’s view on “They Beat Us To The Punch” is thoughtful and scary as he introduces us to The Creepy School Bus — https://youtu.be/bLaAWSKuKTw. Prepare to be weirded out and jealous! And in “Hit Us With Your Best Shot” he reveals the genesis of his children’s book, “Go To Sleep, Little Creep” (https://www.amazon.com/dp/1101939443/) a lullaby for kids and monsters everywhere that is eerie and sweet and continues to find fans in every venue he takes it to. Find more of David at his blog: https://inwalkedquinn.com Liking what you hear? Bring in some new listeners by sharing out this link: https://anchor.fm/streetwriters Let's not travel the Street alone. Tell us your ideas for “Take A Swing At This” — and let's feature your WIP on “Hit Us With Your Best Shot”! Let's connect and get you on the mic: streetwriters.podcast@gmail.com And send us an

Another writer gets down to the street level of writing with us, as we invite David Quinn to get on the mic. David’s known for his prolific career in comics (Faust, Ghost Rider, Dr. Strange, Vampirella and many more). His professional credits extend onto the stage, film and blue chip corporate communications as well. In Pt. 1 of our time together, he “Takes A Swing At This” with a unique spin on Write Now, Fix Later. (Trust us, you will be chanting “Jargon, jargon, jargon!” after this one.) Check out David at his blog at https://inwalkedquinn.com And check out his new children’s book, Go To Sleep, Little Creep at https://www.amazon.com/dp/1101939443/ Dig what you hear? Help boost our audience by sharing out this link: https://anchor.fm/streetwriters Let's not travel the Street alone. Tell us your ideas for “Take A Swing At This” — and let's feature your WIP on “Hit Us With Your Best Shot”! Let's connect and get you on the mic: streetwriters.podcast@gmail.com And send us an audio message so we can include your

We all know where the devil is ... in the details. Dan explains how adding detail to your writing brings it to life. The details are how you paint a picture with your words, how you fight past tropes, and how you bring your own style to your writing. Dan then quotes a writer with his own powerful style (as well as a flawless hook shot), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. And Mark reads from a beautiful rejection letter (yep, a contradiction in terms).

Like a finely tuned Tesla, your writing speed should vary based on your project. Sometimes you want to zoom through a segment, and sometimes you want to slow down and enjoy the view of your words. Mark discusses varying your writing speeds. Dan is jealous of an interactive role-playing, decision-making game that showcases well developed characters. And Dan discusses ramping up his writing speed for a video scripting assignment.

You’ve pondered, produced and polished—now it’s time to publish. Dan discusses the many ways to get your work out into the world: social media, blogs, and content sites like Medium. Mark praises author Colin Harrison, and also discusses shooting his new film.

What gets your writer engine revving? Is it raw, emotional passion, a la Captain James T. Kirk of the Starship Enterprise? Or is it the methodical, practical logic of Mr. Spock? Mark discusses analyzing your emotional or rational writing drive, and playing to your strengths on either side. And Dan goes a little “Bruuuuce” on us, with a glowing review of Springsteen’s autobiography, Born to Run. Dan also updates us on his comic book adventures with his artist partner, @Carl Waller.

This week, we’ve got a simple tip from Dan: don’t equivocate or hesitate: substantiate by calling yourself a writer. Of course, that will mean you’ll actually have to write, but that’s kind of the point, right? Also, Dan shows some love to a graphic novel, RoughNeck, by Jeff LeMire. And Mark loves the fact that he wrote his two favorite words on his latest screenplay: “The End.”

Mark here. I’m flying solo this week, because on this past Labor Day Weekend, Dan was doing labor—on assignment for a crunch project. So I’m holding the fort with a “Best of Dan” episode. Three of his segments that had me taking notes and learning tricks. Not that I’d tell him. Wouldn’t want his head getting too big. But anyway, here are three segments that inspired me: Dan’s type-it-out tip, his Avengers analysis, and finding his own voice for a business article. Enjoy.

In our last episode, we talked about finding the right people to critique your work. In this episode, we discuss accepting, absorbing and acting on criticism. Knowing what to accept, what to ignore and how to interact with your reviewers is an art in itself. Also, Dan showcases the Shakespearean language of Deadwood. And Mark has entered the get-this-shit-done-no-matter-what phase for his multi-world, sci-fi ... thing.

Nobody likes to take a punch, but sometimes that’s exactly what you need to improve your work. Specifically, you may need an objective critique. Which is why it’s crucial to find a person or group you can trust to review your project. Finding the right critique team is a bit of an art, which we discuss. Mark then hails a scripted podcast series he enjoyed on a cross-country drive: Blackout, starring Rami Malek. And Dan discusses the writerly skills he needed to keep a panel discussion lively, informative and entertaining.

In the second part of our interview with Brendan Leonard of Semi-Rad, Brendan tells us what he’s been up to, which is publishing a book of his funniest, coolest, most inspirational essays, Bears Don’t Care About Your Problems. It’s available wherever books are sold.

Enough about us: in this episode, we jumped on a call with an amazing guest, Brendan Leonard of Semi-rad—he of the wildly popular semi-rad blogs, instagram charts, award-winning documentaries and newsletters. In part one of our interview, Brendan gives a great writing tip (actually, two), and shares his love for a renowned blogger, podcaster and all-around guru, Seth Godin. Next episode, we get into what Brendan’s been up to (spoiler alert: he’s got a new book, Bears Don’t Care About Your Problems.)

When writing, you want to make the journey for your characters as complex as possible—that’s what makes them compelling. But you also have to convey the story simply enough for your readers to follow. Sounds tricky? It is. Dan dives in to explain how to do it. Mark then explains how Dan Brown finds the balance of complex and simple in his book, Origin. And Dan discusses the value of time in revisiting and continuing a comic book series he worked on years ago.

Stuck in a writing rut? Dan suggests that it might be time to change your writing format—from computer to handwriting, from keyboard to crayon—anything that changes the physical feel of your writing experience. Mark raves about a morning success formula for the rest of us, hilariously laid out by Brendan Leonard of semi-rad.com. Mark also describes a video project he did for The Home Caregiver Network on Comcast, in which he uncovered the hero’s journey.

Yeah, it’s going to happen: at some point you’ll realize that something you’re writing is just plain, well, shit. Best thing you can do? Finish it. Get it out of your system, and at least have the satisfaction of saying you finished a shitty piece. Reality is, you may be able to salvage chapters, settings, descriptions—and who knows, maybe it won’t be as shitty as you think. Then Dan discusses a piece by a writer who’s as far from shit as a person can be: John Steinbeck. And Mark revels in the magic of storyboarding.

Cut the fluff. That what Dan explores with an approach to writing that has you remove the top and bottom of your writing to get to the good stuff in the middle. Mark raves about an episode of a fabulous podcast, Conan O’Brian Needs a Friend. And Mark also discusses finding the story in a client’s video production.

We all know the negatives of writing: bouts of insecurity, writer’s block, procrastination and a million other headaches. So in this episode, we hit on a positive: while writing may never get easy, it can provide a regular dose of mindfulness that can help calm and fulfill you—yeah, we’re going all metaphysical this week. Plus, Dan satisfies his appetite for great writing with an article from Bon Appetit magazine, and hones his writing voice with multimedia synopses he creates using a tool called Lumen 5.

What's your white noise? What are the sounds, if any, you need to have in the background as you write? For Mark, it's a combo of instrumental jazz, train rides and coffee shops. For Dan, it's an algorithm-based white noise he subscribes to at brain.fm. Dan raves about a creative inspiration book, Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear, by Elizabeth Gilbert. He then talks about his story maze approach to writing, and exploring the cul-de-sacs along the maze path.