Workshops
It gives me a tremendous amount of joy (and covers a fair chunk of my mortgage) to conduct workshops on writing, writing comedy, story structure, creativity and many related subjects. I offer these workshops in one- two- and five-day formats, with other formats available as the need arises.
Sometimes these workshops are general in nature, designed to appeal to a broad audience (thus "Conversation: How to Say Nothing in So Many Words"). In other circumstances, the topic can be quite narrowly defined, such as (deep intake of breath) creating message-based sitcoms for the third world countries in the context of significant budget, training and infrastructure constraints. Whatever the particular subject, however, all my workshops have the same underlying goal: To supply writers and other creative types with "rules, tools and a good, swift kick in the motivation." I minimize "war stories" (though heaven knows I have my share) and maximize hands-on application of easy-to-understand and easy-to-use creative principles. I operate on the assumption that each of us (self included) is afraid of our own creativity to some degree, and I use my workshops and seminars as a means to address and attack and crack that fear.
I have been told that my classes and courses are inspirational, and this pleases me, for inspiration is a gift that teachers can give and, in so giving, themselves receive. This gift, this "inspiration transaction" is one of the main things (mortgage considerations notwithstanding) that keep me traveling and teaching year after year.
By far my most popular workshop is The Comic Toolbox, a "user's guide" to writing comedy for television and film, based, yes, on my book of same name. However, I have taught everything from songwriting to speechmaking, and if you imagine that it's within my capability, it probably is. So check out the sample course outlines below or contact me directly to discuss your needs. To paraphrase Descartes, "I teach, therefore I am."