It’s finally transcribed. Last month I interviewed Mr. Monteleone for the Maryland Writers’ Association’s 20th Anniversary Conference (which is this Saturday. There’s still time to register, and walk-ins are fine too). Tom is the Keynote Speaker for the conference, and he took some time out of his schedule to do this interview to promote the event. There’s a lot of great info, and I hope you find the interview as informative and fun as I do.
Borderlands Press
INTERVIEW WITH THOMAS F. MONTELEONE
1â€) ‬What was it like when you published your first book and how has the industry changed since then in terms of how authors are getting their books sold,†‬both to publishers and to audiencesâ€?
TFM:†‬You know,†‬it’s a shame because it really has changed,†‬and I think the industry has changed drastically.†‬I’ve seen the marketplace go through some unbelievable changes.†‬I started out writing short storiesâ€; ‬I think I published 20 to 25 stories in science fiction magazines in the early†‘‬70s.†‬One year I was at this convention,†‬and I met this young agent who was looking for new writers,†‬young writers,†‬and he said,†“‬Have you written any novels yetâ€?” ‬and I told him no.†‬I couldn’t even imagine writing something that long.†‬At that point 40 pages was†“‬wowâ€!” ‬So he told me that he could get me some contracts with publishers that were looking for new writers.†‬He said,†“‬If you can put in a proposal and learn how to write a novel while you go along,†‬I’ll pay you for it.â€â€ť
So long story short,†‬the first few novels I did were paperback originals.†‬I think I got†$‬1500,†$‬2500,†‬which back then wasn’t good money but it wasn’t terrible.†‬And back then†(‬this will show you how the industry’s changedâ€) ‬back then if you wrote mystery novels,†‬the hardcore fans would go to the bookstores, and whatever new mysteries were out the fans would buy them because the books were paperbacks and they were 35,†40‬ cents,†‬whatever they were.†‬And this hardcore audience bought paperback original novels like crazy.â€
Whatever you were writing at that time,†‬if you wrote mysteries or romance or Gothic or spy novels—whatever you wrote—the publisher knew there was a hardcore audience that,†‬say,†‬if he published a spy novel,†‬he knew he was going to sell†‬50,000†‬copies of it,†‬and that’s if it was by nobody they’d ever heard of.†‬If it was by somebody known,†‬it was going to sell a million.†‬There was an audience for all this stuff.
Do you know what the midlist is�
NG:†‬Yeah.
TFM:†‬The midlist was very good back then,†‬and you could make a living selling one paperback original novel a year,†‬for $25,000 or $30,000 and another $15,000 in royalties.†‬And you could make a living doing that.
The midlist is kind of fading away nowâ€; ‬a publisher’s thinking today is to either buy blockbusters where they try to knock it out of the park and do a movie and a DVD and a video game and a whole business,†‬or they buy first novels from people for practically nothing.†‬But people aren’t reading the midlist authors like they used to.†‬And then the genres,†‬science fiction and horror and thrillers and mysteries and all of those,†‬half of that readership plays video games.†‬Instead of reading about a pilot of a spaceship hunting a monster,†‬or a spy thriller,†‬they just get into the game and be the character.†‬And that’s really hurt book sales.â€
So I’ve seen a really vibrant paperback original industry almost disappear.†‬And one of the problems is—what I didn’t know getting into this—is that if you wrote paperback originals,†‬you didn’t get reviewed in the newspapers,†‬or the trade publications,†‬or the library journals,†‬none of them.†‬So it was much harder to build an audience.†‬So it took me a whileâ€; ‬I started selling in hardback in the†‘‬80s and that really helped.â€
But then Stephen King came along and started selling horror novels for a hundred million dollars,†‬and that cranked up the paperback original market again.†‬So in the mid ’80s if you were writing a horror novel you could get $30,000,†$40,000‬ for it and it would go to the news-stands and sell like crazy if it looked like a Stephen King novel.â€
So I stopped writing hardcovers for about five or six years and went back to writing paperback originals again,†‬and,†‬you know,†‬you lose your audience that way.†‬You lose your reviewers,†‬you lose everything.â€
It’s a very strange industry, and I’ve seen it go through all sorts or permutations in the†‬30†‬years I’ve been writing,†‬and I don’t know if I want my kids getting into itâ€!
NG:†‬You want a secure future for your children.
TFM:†‬Yeah,†‬exactly.†‬I’ve been in it all my life,†‬it’s all I know.†‬I’ve never really had a†“‬grown-upâ€â€ť ‬job—writing is what I do,†‬it’s who I am,†‬and I can’t do anything else at this point.â€
2â€) ‬You discovered a horror comic when you were a kid,†‬and it sparked your interest in the macabreâ€; ‬your father also shared the interest in speculative fiction.†‬How did that help to develop your talent as a young writerâ€? ‬What advice do you have for young writers that encounter opposition to their interest in speculative fiction,†‬especially dark fictionâ€?
TFM:†‬Can I ask,†‬where did you get that stuff from�
NG:†‬I just read up on some interviews and stuff on the Internet.†‬I wanted to make sure I wasn’t repeating too many questions.
TFM:†‬These are good questions,†‬good job,†‬I’m very impressed.
NG:†‬Thank you.
TFM:†‬One of the things my father did for me was buy comics for me as a kid.†‬This was back when I was 10 and there were only three channels on the TVâ€; ‬you couldn’t throw in a DVD anytime you felt like it.†‬Reading was a much bigger avenue,†‬like comic books for younger kids.†‬There was a lot of strange,†‬interesting stuff out there.â€
My father was into that stuff too,†‬and he had read pulp in the earlier generation,†‬pulp magazines in the†‘‬30s and†‘‬40s,†‬and he liked watching strange movies and he used to take me to horror films all the time.†‬That really helped build my sense of wonder,†‬sense of curiosity about the world.â€
I think if you want to write fiction,†‬whatever it is—romance,†‬mysteries,†‬fantasies,†‬spy thrillers,†‬family sagas,†‬whatever—you have to have this imaginative view of the world.†‬You have to look at everything you see and ask questions about things,†‬wonder where they came from.†‬Ask questions about what it would be like if it was different.†‬All the things writers learn to do unconsciously,†‬we did when we were kids,†‬looking at the world like,†“‬Gosh,†‬gee,†‬wow,†‬what the heck is thatâ€?” ‬And I think we should keep that.†‬The secret to being creative,†‬and not just writing—music,†‬dance,†‬theater,†‬painting too—is that you wonder about the world,†‬what’s going on,†‬how things tick,†‬and what would happen if things changed a little bit or if they changed a lot.†‬Always ask yourself questions.
I went to Jesuit high school at Baltimore Loyola,†‬and I had some really good teachers that really challenged the way you think and the way you look at the world philosophically.†‬One teacher told me that one thing you can always do is ask the next questionâ€; ‬don’t ever take any particular answer for your final answer.†‬And that was a really amazing thing for me.†‬I never forgot it.†‬It allows the writer to trust his instincts when he’s telling a story.
I hope that makes sense.
NG:†‬It does.†‬I remember in high school some of the teachers that encouraged me,†‬and it really does make a difference at that age.â€
TFM:Yeah,†‬it makes the difference between somebody telling you†“‬are you crazyâ€; ‬you’re just a dreamer,†‬get your head out of the clouds,†‬go get a real job.â€â€ť ‬And I had people tell me that as I was moving along.†‬It’s really funny.†‬It’s like when you quit smoking and all of your friends are still smoking.†‬They’re glad you quit,†‬but they’re pissed off because they’re still smoking.†‬It’s like,†‬yeah,†‬they’re glad you sold a short story to Playboy for†‬$3000,†‬but they’re pissed off because you’re accomplishing things that they’re not.
So there’s always that.†‬You’re always going to have people that are going to tell you to forget about your dreams.†‬But you have to know what you want to do and do it.†‬If you want to be a writer,†‬ask questions.
I was the first one in my family to go to college.†‬My grandfather came over here from Sicily when he was 15,†‬and he had a bakery in New York,†‬but he didn’t go to college,†‬none of his kids went to collegeâ€; ‬I was one of the first kids born after WWII to go to college.†‬So that was a big deal.†‬I came from one of those families.
NG:†‬You worked hard and found what it was you wanted to do.
TFM:†‬Yeah,†my father‬ worked Bethlehem Steel in a shipyard for 30 years.
NG:†‬Wow.†‬Very cool.
3â€) ‬Borderlands has a boot camp for writers of dark fiction.†‬You and your wife,†‬Elizabeth,†‬decided to start it after getting many submissions that needed some work.†‬How was the camp received when it first started,†‬and how has it evolved over the yearsâ€? ‬Also,†‬you just had one this past winterâ€; ‬how did that go.
TFM:†‬We just had our most recent boot camp,†‬which was one of our most successful,†‬I think.†‬The way we do it is we have people send in samples,†‬and we advertise the boot camp.â€
We try to bring out all the things that go into life,†‬that separate good writing from bad writing.†‬And one of the things Elizabeth and I try to do is find 20 writers of all about the same level and skill of accomplishment.†‬You’re never going to see already hugely successful writers thereâ€; ‬if someone sends me something that’s so brilliantly done,†‬what’s the pointâ€? ‬Or if someone sends me something that’s so†‬.†‬.†‬.
NG:†‬Bad�
TFM:†‬Not bad,†‬necessarily,†‬but something that’s at a very,†‬very beginning novice level,†‬where they’re at the point where they barely understand subtext or dialog or what it is or how you even format it,†‬then they’re going to get overwhelmed in the boot camp.†‬So we don’t want someone that’s so behind the curve that they’re going to get pulverized by the level of criticism.†‬We try to find writers that are in that mid-level,†‬where the have skill but maybe haven’t polished their ability yet or they have gaps in their understanding.
And what happens is they come in on Friday†‬and we do a panel discussion and pre-planned exercises.†‬The heavy day is Saturday, where we workshop from about†‬8am to†‬2am.†‬We really beat them up.†‬The re-worked pieces submitted on Sunday are so vastly improved from what they originally submitted,†‬it’s like sorcery.†‬It’s like,†“‬How the hell did that happenâ€?” ‬They really do learn,†‬and they really are fun to watch because they want to absorb that information.†‬They’ve never had feedback or interacted with other writers like that before.
Every boot camp we’ve done—it’s been going on for four years now,†‬about twice a year—we’ll do a short fiction and novel workshop.†‬And people get together and trade e-mails back and forth,†‬critique back and forth,†‬and a little support group forms.†‬Isn’t that coolâ€?
NG:†‬Yeah,†‬it is.
TFM: It really works.†‬Out of†‬140†‬or so writers that have come through our program,†‬I’d say we’ve had†‬15%†‬or†‬20%†‬or so that have gone on to become professional writers.
We didn’t always have this process all figured outâ€; ‬we just kind of stumbled along and through trial and error figured out what works and what doesn’t.†‬And we get great writers to come in as instructors.†‬We’ve had David Morrell several times,†‬the guy that did First Blood.†‬We’ve had Peter Straub,†‬F.†‬Paul Wilson,†‬Jack Ketchumâ€; ‬we’ve had really good writers come in.†‬And the participants really want to say,†“‬Hey,†‬I hung out with Jack Ketchum this weekend.â€â€ť
We have to have people send in writing samples so that we can get a gauge as to where they are.†‬And it’s not cheap†[‬the boot campâ€] ‬because we have to†‬pay a premium for insurance,†‬and we have to pay our instructors.†‬But it’s a good program.
NG:†‬It sounds very rewarding.
TFM:†‬It is,†‬it’s a challenge.†‬It’s a good programâ€; ‬we like to spread the word about it and make sure people get what they pay for.†‬People can apply at www.borderlandspress.com
4â€) ‬You’re the keynote speaker for the Maryland Writers‒ ‬Association†‬20th Anniversary Conference.†‬How do you prepare for such eventsâ€?
TFM:†‬I’ve done a lot of public speaking and public readings,†‬and I know this is going to sound ridiculous,†‬but I do very little preparation beforehand.†‬I basically write a few points on a card,†‬then go up there and try to keep it like we’re on the front porch kicking stuff around.†‬I can’t stand these canned speeches where these people read off of note cards and sound like someone stuck a broomstick up their butt.†‬Or,†‬worse,†‬that they just read their speech.†‬I can’t stand that.†‬And I’ve found over time that I know so much crap about what I do,†‬I can just turn it on and off.†‬My wife has heard all this stuff a thousand times,†‬and she says,†“‬Don’t bore them,â€â€ť ‬or†“‬Don’t forget you’re not funny.â€â€ť ‬And I’m okay with that,†‬she’s heard it a bunch of times.†‬I like to keep it informal,†‬and open it up with questions.†‬The worst thing you can do is come up there with this prepackaged thing that just lays an egg.â€
I don’t like to prepare.†‬I have a lot of confidence in my ability to just get up there and wing it,†‬so that’s pretty much what†‘‬m going to be doing.†‬Are you goingâ€?
NG:†‬I’m thinking about volunteering so that I can go.
TFM: Have you written a lot yourself�
NG:†‬Yeah,†‬but I still feel I have a lot to learn.
TFM: Well,†‬you know what,†‬so do I.†‬Don’t kid yourself.†‬I’m not sitting here like I’m rolling knowledge down the slopes of Mount Olympus here.†‬Every day I’m learning new stuff.
One of the things I tell new writers is that once you become a writer,†‬once you learn what good writing is,†‬you’ll never just read for pleasure again.†‬Anytime you read something that really works,†‬you’re going to re-read and deconstruct and try to figure out what that writer did and why it works.
NG:†‬That’s so true.†‬I find myself wondering why a writer used a certain word,†‬or why they choose to write a sentence a certain way.
TFM:†‬It’s an amazing process,†‬the learning never stops.†‬Once you get your own style,†‬you don’t worry about the mechanics like you used to,†‬but you have to continue learning.†‬You have to always be willing to learn a new trick.
5â€) ‬This also goes with the previous question.†‬What was it like the first time you were asked to speak at an eventâ€?
TFM:†‬Oh,†‬God,†‬I’ll never forget it.†‬When I was going to grad school at the University of Maryland, I was living in a little town called Greenbelt,†‬which is just outside of Maryland.†‬I was at the library—they had a little library—and I was in there one afternoon doing research for a story.†‬You know,†‬I wasn’t one of those guys that went around telling everyone that I was an author or any of that crap.†‬I was selling short stories to little digests and science fiction magazines.†‬But the librarian asked me if I was a writer and then asked me to come in for the monthly talk,†‬the book group they had.â€
Anyway,†‬there was one older guy in the audience,†‬this really cranky characterâ€; ‬he was apparently there to take issue with whatever I said.†‬He really tried to make it difficult.†‬And I’m an Italian guyâ€; ‬when I was younger,†‬I had a chip on my shoulder all the time—don’t mess with me.†‬That was my attitude.†‬I was always the skinny kid,†‬the small kid,†‬people always wrote me off.â€
So I’m trying to give this nice talk in this small town library,†‬and this guy’s messing with me.†‬So I had it out with him,†‬right there.†‬Not physically,†‬but I called him out and said,†“‬Hey,†‬what the hell is your problemâ€? ‬You want to mess around with meâ€? ‬You want to get up here and do thisâ€? ‬I’ll sit in the audience while you get up here and talk.â€â€ť
So the whole thing was a disaster.†‬I was 25-years-old at the time,†‬and people were like,†“‬Who is this crazy kidâ€?” ‬So my first speaking engagement was not great.†‬It wasn’t like I went in and I was nervous and all that.†‬I just figured I’d go in and tell them how I got started,†‬here’s what I did—I beat my brains in for three years.†‬I sent out stories to like 35,†40‬ different magazines.†‬I got 231 rejections before I sold my first story—and,†‬yes,†‬I did count them—I sold my first story for†‬$30†‬at a penny a word.†‬Back then there was no e-mail.†‬You put stamps on an envelope and mailed out your manuscript.†‬And you kept doing it until someone noticed.†‬And that was the message I tried to tell to 11 people at the library that day.†‬The 12th didn’t give a shit.â€
NG:†‬Well,†‬I guess the heckler did learn something that day.
TFM: Yeah,†‬don’t mess with Tom.
6â€) ‬Having been in the business for so long,†‬what are some common mistakes that you see new authors makingâ€?
TFM:†‬I think it depends on the stage in the careerâ€; ‬we make mistakes all the way through,†‬just different mistakes.†‬When writers are first getting started,†‬the initial assumption is that’s it’s pretty easy.†‬And this has happened more recently with online places like blogs.
Every once in a while,†‬Elizabeth and I will get stories with cover letters that will say something like,†“‬Hello,†‬my name is Mickey.†‬I’ve sold†‬183†‬stories,†‬and I hope you like this one.â€â€ť ‬And I think,†‬183†‬storiesâ€? ‬Where the hell has he published†‬183†‬storiesâ€? ‬First of all,†‬I’ve never heard of this guy.†‬I’ve been writing short fiction for 30 years and I’ve published maybe a hundred.†‬But they’re all realâ€! ‬They’re in magazines and anthologies.†‬So I’ll look these people up and see that they’re publishing on blogs or in online magazines that three people click on.†‬And it’s sad.†‬It’s a big mistake that writers are still making.†‬They’re taking any phantom acceptance for validation of their professional status.†‬They’re not learning anything when they do that.â€
I can’t tell you how many times people come into the workshop and get surprised by the criticism.†‬And they can’t believe it.†‬They’ll say,†“‬But this was accepted by†‬Dark Intestines Magazine on the web and the editor said it was great.â€â€ť
The other error that writers make,†‬as they get more into it,†‬is that they get discouraged because they don’t realize that rejection and criticism are part of the process of becoming a writer.†‬And they get to a point where they just can’t take it anymore.â€
Or they think they’ve paid their dues and are beyond criticism.†‬Once you start believing your own press clippings,†‬that’s dangerous,†‬because then you start to alienate other writers,†‬editors,†‬and publishers you work with,†‬and that’s bad.†‬I’ve gotten submissions where they’ll say they won’t accept anything less than 12 cents a word.†‬Well,†‬good for you.
NG:†‬Byeâ€!
TFM:†‬Yeah,†‬let me deal with that.†‬That’s my decision,†‬not yours.†‬Let me read it,†‬tell you what I’m paying.†‬Then you decide if that’s something you want to accept or not.†‬Don’t come in the door telling me what I have to pay you.†‬That’s ridiculous.
NG:†‬I think the publishing industry tends to be more forgiving to writers if they can learn from their mistakes.
TFM:†‬Absolutely.†‬One thing writers have to remember is that the more persistent they are,†‬the more editors and publishers remember them.†‬If a writer keeps sending stories in,†‬after a while you start to remember their name.†‬What happens—and I’ve talked to plenty of editors that say the same thing—you start to pull for these people.†‬You want them do well,†‬because you want to see that kind of persistence rewarded.
NG:†‬This is getting a little off of the interview,†‬but I was reading something a little while ago about people sending back rude e-mails to a standard rejection,†‬and that always surprises me.
TFM:†‬You mean they get pissed off because they get rejected�
NG:†‬Yeah,†‬like,†“‬Oh,†‬what the fâ€â€” ‬do you know,†‬fâ€â€” ‬you,†‬man.â€â€ť
TFM:†‬Wow,†‬not only is that counterproductive,†‬it cements the fact that you’ll never get published by that particular magazine.
Every once in a while we’ll have proven pros submit,†‬that have sold lots of stories and published novels,†‬and they just assume that because of who they are you’re going to buy it.†‬We’ve rejected stories from seasoned pros, and some will take it the right way,†‬say,†“‬Eh,†‬it’s all right,†‬way it goes,â€â€ť ‬and other ones will get unbelievably pissy.†‬Wow,†‬get some decorum.†‬You’re supposed to be a pro,†‬take it like a pro.
7â€) ‬You’ve mentioned before that it seems that horror is losing its fan base in the mainstream markets.†‬Besides writing good stories,†‬what do you think writers can do to turn the tideâ€? ‬What are you seeing in the speculative fiction field that gives you some hope for future generations of horror writersâ€?
TFM:†‬It’s funny that you narrowed it down that way.†‬I do think that of all of the genres,†‬the Gothic has roots,†‬and horror as well,†‬in the beginnings of American literature—Poe,†‬Hawthorn,†‬people like that.†‬I don’t think that horror will go away.†‬People are constantly concerned with fear—fear of the unknown,†‬fear of death,†‬what’s beyond the closed door—these are almost animistic parts of us.†‬That’s always going to be viable.â€
It’s†[‬horrorâ€] ‬just going to ride the roller coaster of what’s in and what’s not.†‬And I think with most writers that achieve a certain status,†‬the audience gets pissed off because they’re not doing the same thing.†‬It’s like with bands—fans go to the concerts to see their favorite songs performed and start to get peeved when the band does their new stuff.â€
But I don’t think you can predict what’s going to sell.†‬You have to write what you like,†‬write what works for you,†‬and believe you’re going to find your audience.†‬If you try to tailor it to the market,†‬you’re not going to be happy.†‬You’ll end up writing dead prose that’s not coming from inside you.
NG:†‬Right.†‬By the time you finish it and get it out there,†‬the tide will already have changed.
TFM:†‬Yeah,†‬you have to write what you like and hope you’re in a commercial literary movement.†‬That’s how it happens.†‬It’s not a scienceâ€; ‬it’s the difference between art and science.
8â€) ‬For those that are unfamiliar with your work,†‬what can they expect when they pick up one of your story collections or novelsâ€?
I think I write differently in the short form than in the long form.†‬In short form I lean more towards less controlled language,†‬more imagery and symbolism.†‬Maybe surreal and odd.†‬I’m not a literary writer,†‬I’m a storyteller.†‬I think that no matter what I’m writing.
I know that if I was born a thousand years ago, I’d be the guy running around the castle all the time,†‬in that funny little hat with a puppet on a stick.†‬That’d be my job.†‬And I’d be okay with that.†‬So that’s my first priority,†‬to entertain.
With novels,†‬I try to write a lean,†‬mean story-oriented plot.†‬I try to set up psychological characters that get mixed up in situations,†‬and see where they take the story.†‬I try to write cinematically—change point of view,†‬change scenes,†‬experiment with the narrative thread–to make the reader piece together what I leave out.†It’s like that old‬ cliche,†that‬ old trick used to keep th reader turning the page.†‬They never know what’s coming next.â€
I always know how I want a novel to end,†‬and I set up the beginning.†‬Part of the fun for me is seeing how it’s going to get to the end.†‬But with short stories,†‬I never know where it’s going to go.†‬I start with an idea,†‬or question,†‬and then I just let it go.†‬Sometimes it doesn’t work,†‬sometimes it takes me places I†‬never thought I was going to go.
9â€) ‬Do you write every dayâ€?
TFM:†‬Yes.†‬If you don’t do that,†‬you’re crazy.†‬It has to be part of your everyday routine,†‬like kissing your wife or eating food or whatever.†‬I tell people the secret to this is to do three pages a day.†‬Take time off on the weekend for good behavior,†‬to do your chores,†‬go to your kids‒ ‬little league games.â€
That’s†‬15†‬pages a week,†‬60†‬pages a month.†‬If you do that for six months,†‬you have about a†‬360†‬page novel.†‬It’s very simple.†‬Three freakin‒ ‬pages,†‬that’s all I ever try to do.
Sometimes I do less,†‬sometimes I do more,†‬but I always shoot for three pages.†‬If you don’t write every day you’re just playing around.
I lived up in New Hampshire for a while,†‬my wife and I lived up there with our daughter,†‬and we had a good time.†‬But it was cold and when it came time for high school,†‬we couldn’t find a good Catholic school for her,†‬so we came back here.â€
I had a bunch of buddies there that worked at one of the universities there,†‬and every once in a while I’d meet people in their English department,†‬and they were writing a novel for seven years.†“‬Oh,†‬yes,†‬I’ve been working on a novel,†‬bup-bup-bup.â€â€ť ‬What a load of crap.†‬What are you talking aboutâ€? ‬Seven yearsâ€? ‬These are the kind of guys that say,†“‬If I can write one sentence a day,†‬I feel like I’ve done a day’s work.â€â€ť ‬Whatâ€? ‬No,†‬you’ve just been crapping around.
When I was younger,†‬those were the kinds of guys I ways wanted to pop.†‬My wife has talked me down from that over the years.†‬But what a joke.†‬One sentence a day.
NG:†‬One sentenceâ€; ‬everything they touch is gold.
TFM:†‬I can’t stand that.†‬Three pages a day.†‬Grind it out,†‬do your work.†‬Even if you have a regular job.â€
Over the years I’ve known a lot of people that write for journals and newspapers but want to write novels.†‬The problem with that is that they’re writing stuff all day,†‬stuff they don’t like.†‬And when they get home,†‬they don’t want to write.†‬I tell them to go get a job doing something else,†‬get your mind off that writing so you can do the writing you want to do.
10â€) ‬You’ve also written screenplays.†‬How do you think the process is different for writing screenplays verses novels or short storiesâ€?
TFM:†‬One big difference is I get paid for my novels.†‬I’ve written like 14 screenplays,†‬and I got paid for a few of them,†‬but they weren’t produced.†However, ‬I’ve had three or four television episodes produced.
The film industry is a different creature.†‬It makes publishing look like a tea-and-crumpets party.†‬It took me years to realize that it’s just a different planet.†‬But I liked the process of learning how to write screenplays.†‬It’s very different.†‬It’s dialog oriented.†‬The three-act structure—first act you expose the problem,†‬second act you complicate the problem,†‬third act you solve the problem.†‬It’s good training.†‬It doesn’t hurt anything to buy a few books and learn how to do it.
The problem with the industry is they look at writers like a necessary evil.†‬They don’t want you around.†‬And it’s a tradition that goes back to the old studio days when writers used to be staff.†‬They had the writers come in for the day and write whatever they were told to write.†‬Write a†‬15†‬minute comedy for Buster Keaton.†‬Write me a PSA for bike safety.†‬Write me whatever.†‬And they were just looked upon as hired hands,†‬like the guy that cut the hedges.†‬And that attitude has persisted.â€
NG:†‬Yeah,†‬I went to film school.â€
TFM:†‬Oh,†‬you did� ‬East Coast or West Coast�
NG:†‬West Coast.
TFM: So you know what I’m talking about.
NG:†‬I rememberâ€; ‬it’s totally different.
TFM:†‬They drove me crazy.†‬I used to go out there—I have a TV agent—and every once in a while they would drag me out there to pitch something.†‬I actually sold a television series to Columbia Tri-Star about seven or eight years ago,†‬and CBS was partnering with it.†‬And I wanted to write the pilot.†‬Well,†‬they weren’t having anything to do with that.†‬CBS said,†“‬Oh,†‬no,†‬we have our own writers.â€â€ť ‬So they brought in these writers that trashed the pilot so terribly that Columbia Tri-Star backed out.†‬I got to keep the money.†‬But they don’t trust writers.†‬If you can write a novel,†‬they look at you like you’re a freak.
I sold screenplays that never got produced.†‬And I’ve had them buy my books and have other people write screenplays that were almost unrecognizable.†‬I said to one producer,†“‬Why did you spend all that money to buy my bookâ€? ‬It’s not even the same story.†‬You changed only everything.†‬If I saw this movie,†‬I would never say,†‘‬Hey,†‬you stole my book.‒ ‬It’s not even the same story.â€â€ť
It’s a different reality.†‬If someone asked me,†“‬Would you write a screenplay on specâ€?” ‬my first tendency is to say no.†‬And then I say,†‬well,†‬give me some gross points or something.†‬Because they all want to talk net.
NG:†‬Oh,†‬yeah,†‬yeah.†“N‬et.â€â€ť
TFM:†‬Net is just Hollywoodese for†“‬hide the money.â€â€ť
NG:†‬That money you were expecting� ‬Sorry.
TFM:†‬The only net in Hollywood is the one they throw over you as they run away.†‬But I continue to be seduced by Hollywood.
NG:†‬It does have that quality.†‬When I got into school,†‬I was majoring in English.†‬And by the end of my junior or senior year I was majoring in Cinema.
TFM:†‬Are you a West Coast person�
NG:†‬No,†‬I was raised pretty much East Coast,†‬though I’ve lived all over.
TFM:†‬Are you a Balimore girl�
NG:†‬I consider myself sort of one now,†‬I guess;†‬I’ve lived here for a while.†‬The thing with the West Coast is it never felt entirely real,†‬it felt like an office.
TFM:†‬I totally agree.†‬Especially in LA,†‬there’s this†‬über-culture of people making obscene amounts of money.†‬They kind of wade through the regular people,†‬and they look at everybody as if they’re only half there.†‬But it would be like us living in a town where you buy a car for†‬$180,†‬or you go eat for 25 cents a night.†‬They make so much money,†‬prices don’t mean anything.
I was out there with a buddy of mine,†‬an actor,†‬and he was making a lot of money.†‬So he wanted to go play golf,†‬and it was†‬$600†‬a round.†‬Are you crazyâ€? ‬I lived in New Hampshire and paid†‬$500†‬a year to play golf.†‬But they don’t even realize it.
Okay,†‬I have to stop ranting.
11â€) ‬What other projects are you working on nowâ€?
TFM:†‬I’m finishing a YA novel.†‬I have about†‬50†‬pages left.†‬Then I’ve got another novel,†‬a†‬600†‬page thriller I’m working on.†‬It alternates between the present and WWII.†‬A historical thriller.†‬It took a lot of research,†‬and I had to do a couple of books in-between,†‬so it’s taken me about two years to write—which I hate.†‬I’m about†‬40†‬pages from finishing that.
I’m also doing a ghostwriting project.†‬So,†‬yeah,†‬I’m very busy.
12â€) ‬Any other advice for writersâ€?
TFM:†‬The most important thing is that no one can stop you from becoming a professional writer besides yourself.†‬You have to keep going after your dream.†‬It takes a lot of hard work and persistence.†‬You have to believe in your ability and in your dream.
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Nancy O. Greene
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The Writers' Block 
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