I’ve been a member of the Association of Christian Writers twice, first back in the nineties until I left the UK to work abroad, then for the last couple of years, but have never attended any of their events… until this weekend.
I had the opportunity to travel down to Newcastle for their writers day with David Robinson
who was speaking on performance writing for the stage, film, television and radio. David has extensive experience as an actor and was Artistic Director of the Saltmine Theatre Company. He is co-founder of Searchlight Theatre Company and has written many stage plays including Mr Laurel and Mr Hardy, Woodbine Willie and An Angel’s Delight.
His theme for the day was developing character led scripts, something I found really useful as I’m still working on the plot for my Fallen Warriors sequels.
I’m going to split my write up of the day into several posts. To start with, David gave us a friendly ice-breaker – what books, plays or films would we, as writers, take to a desert island…
I found myself jotting down titles suggested as people explained how the selections had impacted them and as I’ve never read most of them!
The Frogs by Aristophanes – Struck by how relevant this was to modern society.
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte – A strong female character who took control of her life.
Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller – Such a powerful story.
The Machine Stops by E. M. Forster – Despite being published initially in 1909, this short story/novella could almost have been written yesterday, so prescient about the impact technology has on our lives today, the way people have changed communication with each other.
Goodbye Mr Chips by James Hilton – Describing the process of change.
The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery
And in case you’re wondering, I decided on Robinson Crusoe as a book and The Martian as movie… For me it would be all about survival and getting off that island!
More tomorrow!
