Tallfellow Press Blog

Author Quote of the Week

This week's quote is by Saul Turteltaub, and comes from our book The Grandfather Thing.

What exactly IS "the grandfather thing"?:

""The Grandfather Thing," by common definition, is believing that the newborn grandchild is the most beautiful creation in the world, although any souvenir cushion is more attractive. It's wanting to see the baby any hour of the day and wanting to hold it and kiss it and believing it likes you doing that. It's taking dozens of pictures of it and showing them to strangers in the next car at a traffic light.

Sound familiar to anyone?

Author Quote of the Week

This week's quote is courtesy of actress and acting coach Janice Lynde, author of Ten Minutes to the Audition, and comes straight from the book.

Here's Janice's advice about making adjustments during an audition (and she should know; she landed a recurring role in the final season of "Six Feet Under"!):

"One of my first acting gurus, David LeGrant, stressed that actors hear only the first ten percent of what is said before they stop listening. Thus, they focus on making only that ten percent adjustment. To hear the other ninety percent, I encourage you, once again, to breathe and physically relax. This will open up all of your listening channels, including the whispers of your ephemeral intuition and impulse, to whatever the director is asking you to do."

All you working actors out there -- tell us: what are your tips for giving a great performance?

Author Quote of the Week

This one comes from TV writer and producer Chris Abbott, author of our book Ten Minutes to the Pitch. Quote courtesy of a five-part interview on Alex Epsteins' TV writing blog,Complications Ensue.

On having a life outside your Hollywood writing career:

"I think you have to have a life outside the business. It's so important to have something else that's meaningful to you. You won't write as well if you don't have something. And eventually your career will end and you will still be a young person. I worked 25 years straight, then I hit the magic 50 and it started waning fast ... which is ridiculous ... but that's the way it works. One day you'll be without work. Imperatively you have another side of your life that feeds you and nourishes you."

Tell us -- as writers, what nourishes you? What keeps you sane and in the game?

Author Quote of the Week

This one -- a commentary on the Dodgers' recent bad luck -- comes from humorist Steve Young, author of our book Great Failures of the Extremely Successful. Quote courtesy of Steve's regular Guest Column in the L.A. Daily News:

"...Gagne, Kent, Izturis, Drew, etc., etc., etc. With one Dodger after another going down to injuries, it should be no surprise to anyone when in a recent game with Houston, every player on the team simultaneously burst into flames and exploded."

Enjoy! And don't forget to read Steve's satire blog, The Unfiltered Truth.

Author Quote of the Week

New blog feature! We'll be quoting one of our authors every Tuesday. Tune in for words of wisdom from a variety of primary sources: books, interviews, articles, gossip blogs... If there's wisdom (or a stunning lack thereof) from a Tallfellow author, you're sure to find it here.

Now, on to the quote:

"For you who are paralyzed by perfectionism. Flush or get off the pot. The delay is not about the script, it's about your relationship to rejection. Accept that someone whose opinion you value will think this piece sucks. Then die or go on living and see what happens next."

-- Hal Ackerman, author of Write Screenplays That Sell, on the role of perfectionism in screenwriting. Excerpted from an interview on WritersBreak.com.