Creative Principles

Latest Episodes:

Ep262 - Director Taylor Morden & Screenwriter Zeke Kamm on ‘The Last Blockbuster’ Apr 05, 2021

Show notes

A few years ago, when there were 12 Blockbusters still open, Director Taylor Morden (Here’s to Life: The Story of The Refreshments, Pick It Up! - Ska in the ‘90s) approached his friend Zeke Kamm (Dexter’s Laboratory, The Weird Al Show) about making a documentary on the dying Blockbuster franchise. Coincidentally, the true last Blockbuster was in Morden and Kamm’s town of Bend, Oregon. In this interview, the duo talk about their four year journey to make the film, how their documentary outline accidentally predicted the future, the magnetism of Sandi Harding, how to cold call celebrities, and we get into the weeds a little on copyright law and the realities of making a documentary feature. If it’s your first time listening, make sure to subscribe and visit my new website for information on the YouTube channel, the blog, this podcast, and my new book ‘Ink by the Barrel’ which takes advice from these 200+ interviews at the link below… Join the email list here: www.brockswinson.com Follow us on Instagram for updates: @brockswinson If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts? It only takes about 60-seconds and it really helps convince some of the hard-to-get guests to sit down and have a chat (simply scroll to the bottom on your iTunes Podcast app and click “Write Review"). Enjoy the show!

Ep261 - Tananarive Due & Steven Barnes, Writers ‘Black Panther - Sins of the King’ Mar 30, 2021

Show notes

“I was very lucky to enter publishing in the 90s when there was a black books boom,” said novelist Tananarive Due (My Soul to Keep, The Good House). “Genre had an easier road for me than if I had tried to enter publishing as a horror writer, as a black woman, previously.” “Comparatively, I was a Johnny-come-lately because I didn’t know I wanted to be a writer until I was about eight,” joked author Steven Barnes (Tennyson Hardwick mystery series). “I started publishing in the 1980s—published 30 novels—and worked in television and film.” “What drove me to writing was a love of storytelling and making connection with people. Reading my stories aloud to groups and watching the groups respond emotionally convinced me this was the path that I wanted to walk,” added Barnes. Due and Barnes, along with Ira Madison III, Geoffrey Thorne, and Mohale Mashigo, make up the writing team behind the new audiobook and e-book series Marvel’s Black Panther: Sins of the King, the latest extension of the Marvelverse. In Black Panther: Sins of the King, the story follows as an army of undead threatens Wakanda, and the Black Panther turns to his long-lost father in the fight against his most lethal opponent yet—the demons of his past. Look for the print interview of this conversation on the website for Creative Screenwriting Magazine. If it’s your first time listening, make sure to subscribe and visit my new website for information on the YouTube channel, the blog, this podcast, and my new book ‘Ink by the Barrel’ which takes advice from these 200+ interviews at the link below… Join the email list here: www.brockswinson.com You can also now find us on Instagram: @CreativePrinciples  —  Also, if you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts? It only takes about 60-seconds and it really helps convince some of the hard-to-get guests to sit down and have a chat (simply scroll to the bottom on your iTunes Podcast app and click “Write Review"). Enjoy the show!

Ep260 - Tiller Russell, Director ‘Silk Road’ & ‘Night Stalker - The Hunt for a Serial Killer’ Mar 15, 2021

Show notes

Tiller Russell grew up spending time in courthouses, at the request from his lawyer father, which led him to a career in crime-related journalism. Thanks to a few chance encounters with Errol Morris (The Fog of War, The Thin Blue Line), Russell decided to quit his job at the newspaper and get into filmmaking. In this interview, we hop back and fourth between Russell’s most recent projects, the mini-series documentary Night Stalker, for Netflix, and the fictional retelling of Silk Road, which stars Nick Robinson, Jennifer Yun, and Jason Clarke. Russell discusses how he chose to make Night Stalker as a documentary versus Silk Road as a film, what it means to have a nose for stories, how he ended up working on The Deadliest Catch, what it’s like to write for Dick Wolf, and how to present a story to an audience with no preconceived judgements. If it’s your first time listening, make sure to subscribe and visit my new website for information on the YouTube channel, the blog, this podcast, and my new book ‘Ink by the Barrel’ which takes advice from these 200+ interviews at the link below… Join the email list here: www.brockswinson.com You can also now find us on Instagram: @CreativePrinciples —  Also, if you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts? It only takes about 60-seconds and it really helps convince some of the hard-to-get guests to sit down and have a chat (simply scroll to the bottom on your iTunes Podcast app and click “Write Review"). Enjoy the show!

Ep259 - Mike P. Nelson, Director ‘Wrong Turn’ & ‘The Domestics’ Mar 08, 2021

Show notes

Mike P. Nelson has always loved old horror movies. As a kid, he spent his summers making horror movies and the winters practicing stop motion. But, at the time, he was only allowed to see pre-70s horror movies, so when he reached the R-rating age of 18, his world opened up dramatically. In Nelson’s latest film, he tackles the latest installment of Wrong Turn (2021), which comes from the original writer Alan B. McElroy. In this film, “Friends hiking the Appalachian Trail are confronted by 'The Foundation', a community of people who have lived in the mountains for hundreds of years.” In this interview, Nelson discusses the different decades of the horror genre, what it means to make a “violent movie with heart,” how to carefully shift a franchise film, and how many of the best directors begin in the horror genre. If it’s your first time listening, make sure to subscribe and visit my new website for information on the YouTube channel, the blog, this podcast, and my new book ‘Ink by the Barrel’ which takes advice from these 200+ interviews at the link below… Join the email list here: www.brockswinson.com You can also now find us on Instagram: @CreativePrinciples  — This episode is brought to you by Author Builder. Whether you are an experienced author with an established base of fans, or a new author looking to cultivate a following, Author Builder provides you an easy way to build a website, showcase and sell your book, and engage with your community. This all-in-one approach saves authors a ton of time and money, because you don’t have to worry about purchasing separate monthly plans for a website host, a storefront, an email list, and everything in between. Author Builder does all that for you, plus you can get multiple layout and theme options specifically designed with authors in mind. Visit www.AuthorBuilder.com to sign up for FREE today. —  Also, if you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts? It only takes about 60-seconds and it really helps convince some of the hard-to-get guests to sit down and have a chat (simply scroll to the bottom on your iTunes Podcast app and click “Write Review"). Enjoy the show!

Ep258 - Daniel Willcocks, Podcaster & Author 40+ Books in 4 Years Feb 26, 2021

Show notes

Daniel Willcocks is an international bestselling author and award-nominated podcaster of dark fiction. He is one fifth of digital story studio, Hawk & Cleaver; co-founder of iTunes-busting fiction podcast, 'The Other Stories';’ CEO of horror imprint, Devil’s Rock Publishing; as well as the lead host of the 'Great Writers Share' podcast, and the co-host of the ‘Next Level Authors’ podcast Willcocks is furiously passionate about all things story. He has written 40+ books in four years for himself and on behalf of ghostwriting clients. Dan now also provides book coaching services designed to help authors take the stories that they are dying to tell, and getting them out onto the page. In this interview, we discuss why Daniel never published his first novel, how he created an accountability group of horror writers, what made him take the plunge into writing as a business, how he schedules creative writing, and why the process is more important than the results. If it’s your first time listening, make sure to subscribe and visit my new website for information on the YouTube channel, the blog, this podcast, and my new book ‘Ink by the Barrel’ which takes advice from these 200+ interviews at the link below… Join the email list here: www.brockswinson.com You can also now find us on Instagram: @CreativePrinciples  — This episode is brought to you by Author Builder. Whether you are an experienced author with an established base of fans, or a new author looking to cultivate a following, Author Builder provides you an easy way to build a website, showcase and sell your book, and engage with your community. This all-in-one approach saves authors a ton of time and money, because you don’t have to worry about purchasing separate monthly plans for a website host, a storefront, an email list, and everything in between. Author Builder does all that for you, plus you can get multiple layout and theme options specifically designed with authors in mind. Visit www.AuthorBuilder.com to sign up for FREE today. —  Also, if you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts? It only takes about 60-seconds and it really helps convince some of the hard-to-get guests to sit down and have a chat (simply scroll to the bottom on your iTunes Podcast app and click “Write Review"). Enjoy the show!

Ep257 - Taylor Cluster, Author ‘The #Vanlife Murders’ (& Full-Time Vanlife Traveler) Feb 24, 2021

Show notes

“We jumped into this life by watching other people on YouTube who were doing it,” Taylor Cluster told me, after her boyfriend Scott proposed they sell everything and move into a van to travel full-time. While on the road, Scott also encouraged Taylor to pursue her first love: writing. The former teacher decided to give writing another shot and actually created her first novel, ‘The #Vanlife Murders.’ In the novel, Hailey Andrews loses her job and decides to make a change in her life. She sells everything and heads out for a life on the road. But, when Hailey realizes there are young #vanlife women disappearing along her route, she decides to investigate and discovers clues of a serial killer. In this interview, Taylor talks about her decision to go full-time in #VanLife, what it’s like to publish through Amazon’s dropshipping program, how would-be writers can face their fears of publishing, and also what it’s like to write while living in an RV during quarantine. If it’s your first time listening, make sure to subscribe and visit my new website for information on the YouTube channel, the blog, this podcast, and my new book ‘Ink by the Barrel’ which takes advice from these 200+ interviews at the link below… Join the email list here: www.writerfieldnotes.com You can also now find us on Instagram: @CreativePrinciples  — This episode is brought to you by Author Builder. Whether you are an experienced author with an established base of fans, or a new author looking to cultivate a following, Author Builder provides you an easy way to build a website, showcase and sell your book, and engage with your community. This all-in-one approach saves authors a ton of time and money, because you don’t have to worry about purchasing separate monthly plans for a website host, a storefront, an email list, and everything in between. Author Builder does all that for you, plus you can get multiple layout and theme options specifically designed with authors in mind. Visit www.AuthorBuilder.com to sign up for FREE today. —  Also, if you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts? It only takes about 60-seconds and it really helps convince some of the hard-to-get guests to sit down and have a chat (simply scroll to the bottom on your iTunes Podcast app and click “Write Review"). Enjoy the show!

Ep256 - Ethan Hawke & Mark Richard on Showtime’s ‘The Good Lord Bird’ Feb 22, 2021

Show notes

In 2013, author James McBride published a remarkable book about Henry Shackleford, an enslaved person who united with John Brown and his abolitionist mission. The book was called 'The Good Lord Bird.' Producer Jeremy Gold (Sharp Objects) encouraged 'Hell on Wheels' screenwriter Mark Richard to read the book. “He put the book in my hands, and I read it in one sitting,” said Richard. Little did Richard know, Gold had also spoken to actor Ethan Hawke (Training Day, Before Sunrise) about the book, which he and his wife had also read in a single serving. Thanks to their mutual love for the book, a brunch meeting was set up and by 2020, the limited series his Showtime. In this interview, Hawke and Richard discuss their love for Sam Peckinpah, how to introduce a character like John Brown, the challenges of writing a tragicomedy, why you must be passionate about an adaptation, and what it means to play the fool. — Look for the print version of this interview on Creative Screenwriting’s website, and, if it’s your first time listening, make sure to subscribe and visit my new website for information on the YouTube channel, the blog, this podcast, and my new book ‘Ink by the Barrel’ which takes advice from these 200+ interviews at the link below… Join the email list here: www.writerfieldnotes.com You can also now find us on Instagram: @CreativePrinciples — This episode is brought to you by Author Builder. Whether you are an experienced author with an established base of fans, or a new author looking to cultivate a following, Author Builder provides you an easy way to build a website, showcase and sell your book, and engage with your community. This all-in-one approach saves authors a ton of time and money, because you don’t have to worry about purchasing separate monthly plans for a website host, a storefront, an email list, and everything in between. Author Builder does all that for you, plus you can get multiple layout and theme options specifically designed with authors in mind. Visit www.AuthorBuilder.com to sign up for FREE today. — Also, if you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts? It only takes about 60-seconds and it really helps convince some of the hard-to-get guests to sit down and have a chat (simply scroll to the bottom on your iTunes Podcast app and click “Write Review"). Enjoy the show!

Ep255 - Anna Kerrigan, Writer-Director Steve Zahn Film ‘Cowboys’ Feb 20, 2021

Show notes

Screenwriter/Director Anna Kerrigan grew up in a creative home. Her dad worked in visual effects. Her mom worked as a poet. After working in the theatre for a few years, eventually, Kerrigan’s journey led her back to Los Angeles in what she would describe as a “calling.” She made a handful of shorts, including The Rub, Hot Seat, The Jury, and Fridays. In Kerrigan’s film debut, Cowboys stars Steve Zahn, Jillian Bell, and Sasha Knight. The movie follows a troubled but well-intentioned father who runs off with his trans son in the Montana wilderness after his ex-wife refuses to let their son be his authentic self. In this interview, Kerrigan discusses how the story reveled itself to her, how to write a modern outlaw, how to play with Western tropes, and why people are hungry for personal stories. Look for the print version of this interview on Creative Screenwriting’s website, and, if it’s your first time listening, make sure to subscribe and visit my new website for information on the YouTube channel, the blog, this podcast, and my new book ‘Ink by the Barrel’ which takes advice from these 200+ interviews at the link below… Join the email list here: www.writerfieldnotes.com

Ep254 - John Swab, Writer-Director ‘Body Brokers’ Feb 19, 2021

Show notes

Here’s the description for Body Brokers: Brought to Los Angeles for treatment, a recovering junkie soon learns that the rehab center is not about helping people, but a cover for a multi-billion-dollar fraud operation that enlists addicts to recruit other addicts. If you’re a listener of the show, you can probably tell I’m starting this episode a little different, because this story is so insane, especially since it’s true. Here’s a statement from writer-director John Swab: “I was a street junky for over a decade. During my early attempts at recovery, I went through countless rehabs and detoxes all over the country. In that time, I was “brokered” and then taught how to broker bodies. This is the true story of the multi-billion dollar insurance scandal within the substance abuse treatment industry…. “The FBI recently raided several of the largest treatment centers in Southern California for body brokering and insurance fraud - with more to come. With the opiate epidemic being a central topic of conversation, people need to know about the predatory nature of the proposed solution to the problem: treatment. This is a film about where capitalism fails addicts.” If it’s your first time listening, make sure to subscribe and visit my new website for information on the YouTube channel, the blog, this podcast, and my new book ‘Ink by the Barrel’ which takes advice from these 200+ interviews at the link below… Join the email list here: www.writerfieldnotes.com

Ep253 - Eve Hewson, Actress ‘Behind Her Eyes,’ ‘Bridge of Spies,’ & ‘The Knick’ Feb 17, 2021

Show notes

Eve Hewson, daughter of U2’s Bono and Ali Hewson, is an Irish actress who landed her first major role in 2011’s This Must Be the Place, opposite Sean Penn. Since this role, she’s been in an array of films and shows, like Enough Said, Bridge of Spies, The Knick, Robin Hood, Tesla, and The Luminaries. Eve’s most recent project is called Behind Her Eyes. Simona Brown plays Louise, a single mother who has an affair with her psychiatrist boss David (Tom Bateman). Her life takes a strange turn when she later befriends his wife Adele (Eve Hewson), and she finds herself caught in a web of secrets and lies where nothing is what it seems. In this interview, Eve talks about growing up in a creative world, the benefits of having an Irish accent, how characters choose you, why she didn’t like the character of Lucy in The Knick, how to play the Hollywood game, and how to look for mentors in any career. If it’s your first time listening, make sure to subscribe and visit my new website for information on the YouTube channel, the blog, this podcast, and my new book ‘Ink by the Barrel’ which takes advice from these 200+ interviews at the link below… Join the email list here: www.writerfieldnotes.com

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected