Rob Parnell's Writing Academy Blog

Dear Fellow Writer, I've updated R&R Books Film Music to better reflect where we are with our entertainment projects. Take a look if you like. This week's writing masterclass is on The Hero's Journey. Go here to get a freebie: "Writing With Confidence" Have a great weekend. Keep Writing! Rob Parnell THIS WEEK'S ARTICLE: The Walled Garden Syndrome Rob Parnell I read an article his week about an apparent new danger called The Walled Garden Syndrome . This is where people only involve themselves in what interests them and rarely venture outside of their own sphere of influences and shun experiences that they don't deliberately choose. The article suggested this was a bad thing... We all do it to a certain extent. Once we have a circle of friends that satisfy us, we tend not to interact with those we consider outsiders. Plus, technology allows us to limit our experience of movies, books, websit...

Dear Fellow Writer, Thanks to everyone who joined my masterclass on story writing this week. There's still a few spaces left here . Thanks too for your support of my latest video .  By June this year I will have completed a 90 minute documentary I plan to sell to the cable networks. More on that soon. Fear not. Whatever happens, The Easy Way to Write will always be a huge part of my life - thanks to you, my dearest subscriber. Keep Writing! Rob Parnell THIS WEEK'S ARTICLE: Love Your Writing Rob Parnell There's no getting around it. You have to love what you do. Especially if you want to be any good at it - and be successful. I would actually go further - or further back, if you like. In order to be successful, you only need to love what you do. You don't necessarily have to be any good at it - at least when you start. Over the years I've seen this play out frequently - especially in writing. Technical pr...

Dear Fellow Writer, You know I'm committed to helping writers and artists achieve their dreams. I think I do that best by teaching - and example. It's my job to inspire and empower you through writing and creativity. Two main projects on the go at the moment, actually three. 1. Editing a short story collection of mine I want to get out. 2. Mixing a new song I want to make a video for.  3. Writing a screen short I want to make soon. Busy? Nah! Just a normal week... Keep writing! Rob Parnell St Pat's Special - THREE resources in one THIS WEEK'S ARTICLE: Mark Twain Would Have Loved The Net Rob Parnell Steve Jobs predicted a day when everybody would become an artist. Steve's prediction is to do with the way he viewed people. He believed they were inherently creative - that they know what is good and bad and want to 'improve' on life and toys to increase their satisfaction level. He invested million...

Dear Fellow Writer,   Where do ideas come from? Having an agile mind? One that sees connections between disparate concepts? Or the ability to see immense mileage in the mundane? Perhaps the opposite. Being so foggy you think other people's ideas are you own? Like producers often do... Or perhaps as many artists believe, ideas are delivered by spiritual muses from some kind of creative dimension outside our own.  I prefer to think inspiration is that little spark of God inside all of us. The one that makes us want perfection.   Keep writing! Rob Parnell Rob's Birthday Special - SIX resources in one THIS WEEK'S ARTICLE:   How to Make a Book Trailer Rob Parnell An esteemed subscriber suggested I write an article on how to make a video book trailer. After all, the big publishers are jumping on this bandwagon now, so it must work... You probably saw we just did one for Robyn's new book, Maya and the Cr...

Dear Fellow Writer, Funny old world, isn't it?   Just when you think you've got it sussed, or something important suddenly seems clear, life has a way of throwing you back into the dark. Despite our best efforts, none of us can really second guess the future. Not marketers or stock analysts or even psychics can accurately predict what will happen next . There's no such animal as a sure thing. Writers and publishers know this better than most - and we are as surprised as anyone else when a bestseller emerges - against all the odds and for seemingly no special reason. But still we must persist, just in case our next work is the one. Keep writing! Rob Parnell THIS WEEK'S ARTICLE: Writing Suspense Fiction Rob Parnell There are three keys to writing suspense fiction - and a few practical considerations we will look at later in this article. Key One: The writer knows more than the reader In any kind of suspense ...

Dear Fellow Writer, I've been restless these last few weeks. Developing and pushing new ideas to the fore. Succeeding in some but ultimately feeling unfulfilled by others. The lure of writing is just too strong. I've realized I can do other things - but that writing is the only thing I love doing.  More than love, I can't remain sane and not do it. I need it - is that how you feel too? I hope you'll forgive me for coming back to the Easy Way to Write. I'm at home here. Rob Parnell THIS WEEK'S ARTICLE: Dust in the Wind Rob Parnell The secret to good writing is to stay in the moment while you're doing it. Doesn't matter which draft you're on - the first or the twentieth, you have to stay in the moment - the eternal NOW. When you think about it, the past is a figment of our imagination. We're tempted to believe our past has substance and influence over us - that it is somehow important, relevant, filled w...

Dear Friend, Been doing some filming this week for a doco I'm making. Fun - but a different discipline to pure writing obviously - but it all starts there. And as any TV exec know - just look at the front credits these days - the best people to lead any visual projects are writers, who often have the innate understanding of structure, pacing and form that writing engenders. Once a writer, it's hard to break the hold of writing. I came up with what I consider a brilliant idea for a novel this week - a sort of vampire meets alternate history adventure quest - started plotting it - but time, as always, seems to be the enemy. I have so many fiction projects to complete I literally can't see the wood for the trees - or the paper for all the potential reams I would use! I need clones of me - all working away in a back room, locked in until they finish their books. It's no wonder James Patterson co-writes - it's the only way to keep up with the ideas... ...