I am a Lecturer in Film Practice. I teach filmmaking and screenwriting. My writing is divided between creative fiction and scholarship. My focus is storytelling across a range of media. Phone: +44 20 7882 8297 Address: Queen Mary, University of London
Department of Film Studies
Mile End Road, London E14NS
A short talk setting out the key terms and use for dramatic storytelling in film. A support for s... more A short talk setting out the key terms and use for dramatic storytelling in film. A support for screenwriting.
This monograph offers a reading of the True Blood television series and The Sookie Stackhouse Nov... more This monograph offers a reading of the True Blood television series and The Sookie Stackhouse Novels, also known as The Southern Vampire Mysteries, in relation to Pierre Bourdieu’s conception of forms of capital
This monograph offers notes on crime writing that are suitable for both scriptwriting and novel w... more This monograph offers notes on crime writing that are suitable for both scriptwriting and novel writing. The notes also cover writing technique; how to tell an effective crime story and how to plot and structure a whodunit.
Twelve postgraduate essays studying the aesthetics and practice of cinematography from the era of... more Twelve postgraduate essays studying the aesthetics and practice of cinematography from the era of B&W and Technicolor through to the use of digital production in the contemporary feature film
This book offers a complete understanding of how write a novel based on developing your creative ... more This book offers a complete understanding of how write a novel based on developing your creative skills, your understanding of narrative and your writing style
Realism is not a set category, but an approach to depicting reality. Stories can be mythic, socia... more Realism is not a set category, but an approach to depicting reality. Stories can be mythic, social, or psychological. Understanding these three forms and approaches to realism can help you define your work as a writer.
These notes are intended to suggest what the elements of comedy are and in doing so clarify how t... more These notes are intended to suggest what the elements of comedy are and in doing so clarify how to approach writing comedy.
Bardic Film is a narrative filmmaking practice, that is an open form utilising modes and techniqu... more Bardic Film is a narrative filmmaking practice, that is an open form utilising modes and techniques of narration from all forms and practices of filmmaking, photography, print, literature, performance, drama, dance, puppetry, music, games, and oral traditions, in order to offer the widest scope for storytelling in the medium of the time-based moving image.
How to understand the creative process to ensure that you approach the creation of stories succes... more How to understand the creative process to ensure that you approach the creation of stories successfully. This is the starting process for all forms of storytelling: novel, screenplay, play, TV drama.
A handbook for directing drama, setting out the principles for crewing, directing, blocking, scri... more A handbook for directing drama, setting out the principles for crewing, directing, blocking, script preparation, continuity, lighting and production planning.
The monologue presents a challenge for film directors and actors. The performance style can be ba... more The monologue presents a challenge for film directors and actors. The performance style can be based on character interactions within the scene, or it can be based on the character's interaction with the audience.
In the writing of fantasy and science fiction there are different types of story worlds that can ... more In the writing of fantasy and science fiction there are different types of story worlds that can be created. A writer needs to understand the type of story world they are using or they have created and write a story that is coherent within that world. Audience and readers have got used to a range of narrative and story world conventions, so there are ‘rules’ and established forms. New forms develop and this means that story conventions change, but a writer needs to be clear what the rules are for the world they have created for their specific story because the reader/viewer needs to be clear what is credible and what is not. This is a guide for the writer.
The actuality, an event that might be understood as a crime is perceived, categorized and judged ... more The actuality, an event that might be understood as a crime is perceived, categorized and judged through a range of mediating and determining social structures; statutory legislation, policing, legal systems, penal systems, and social morals and norms, all of which are subject to and participate in media representation, factual, non-fiction and fiction. Due to these processes of reconfiguring and mediation the question the question raised is to what extent and in what ways do dramatized depictions within the crime genre misrepresent the actuality of ‘crime’ within a society and it is possible to formulate and promote a screenwriting practice that can challenge and oppose misrepresentation? What is the balance in the crime genre between a true depiction of crime and its ideological construction through the forms and conventions of the crime genre itself?
A short talk setting out the key terms and use for dramatic storytelling in film. A support for s... more A short talk setting out the key terms and use for dramatic storytelling in film. A support for screenwriting.
This monograph offers a reading of the True Blood television series and The Sookie Stackhouse Nov... more This monograph offers a reading of the True Blood television series and The Sookie Stackhouse Novels, also known as The Southern Vampire Mysteries, in relation to Pierre Bourdieu’s conception of forms of capital
This monograph offers notes on crime writing that are suitable for both scriptwriting and novel w... more This monograph offers notes on crime writing that are suitable for both scriptwriting and novel writing. The notes also cover writing technique; how to tell an effective crime story and how to plot and structure a whodunit.
Twelve postgraduate essays studying the aesthetics and practice of cinematography from the era of... more Twelve postgraduate essays studying the aesthetics and practice of cinematography from the era of B&W and Technicolor through to the use of digital production in the contemporary feature film
This book offers a complete understanding of how write a novel based on developing your creative ... more This book offers a complete understanding of how write a novel based on developing your creative skills, your understanding of narrative and your writing style
Realism is not a set category, but an approach to depicting reality. Stories can be mythic, socia... more Realism is not a set category, but an approach to depicting reality. Stories can be mythic, social, or psychological. Understanding these three forms and approaches to realism can help you define your work as a writer.
These notes are intended to suggest what the elements of comedy are and in doing so clarify how t... more These notes are intended to suggest what the elements of comedy are and in doing so clarify how to approach writing comedy.
Bardic Film is a narrative filmmaking practice, that is an open form utilising modes and techniqu... more Bardic Film is a narrative filmmaking practice, that is an open form utilising modes and techniques of narration from all forms and practices of filmmaking, photography, print, literature, performance, drama, dance, puppetry, music, games, and oral traditions, in order to offer the widest scope for storytelling in the medium of the time-based moving image.
How to understand the creative process to ensure that you approach the creation of stories succes... more How to understand the creative process to ensure that you approach the creation of stories successfully. This is the starting process for all forms of storytelling: novel, screenplay, play, TV drama.
A handbook for directing drama, setting out the principles for crewing, directing, blocking, scri... more A handbook for directing drama, setting out the principles for crewing, directing, blocking, script preparation, continuity, lighting and production planning.
The monologue presents a challenge for film directors and actors. The performance style can be ba... more The monologue presents a challenge for film directors and actors. The performance style can be based on character interactions within the scene, or it can be based on the character's interaction with the audience.
In the writing of fantasy and science fiction there are different types of story worlds that can ... more In the writing of fantasy and science fiction there are different types of story worlds that can be created. A writer needs to understand the type of story world they are using or they have created and write a story that is coherent within that world. Audience and readers have got used to a range of narrative and story world conventions, so there are ‘rules’ and established forms. New forms develop and this means that story conventions change, but a writer needs to be clear what the rules are for the world they have created for their specific story because the reader/viewer needs to be clear what is credible and what is not. This is a guide for the writer.
The actuality, an event that might be understood as a crime is perceived, categorized and judged ... more The actuality, an event that might be understood as a crime is perceived, categorized and judged through a range of mediating and determining social structures; statutory legislation, policing, legal systems, penal systems, and social morals and norms, all of which are subject to and participate in media representation, factual, non-fiction and fiction. Due to these processes of reconfiguring and mediation the question the question raised is to what extent and in what ways do dramatized depictions within the crime genre misrepresent the actuality of ‘crime’ within a society and it is possible to formulate and promote a screenwriting practice that can challenge and oppose misrepresentation? What is the balance in the crime genre between a true depiction of crime and its ideological construction through the forms and conventions of the crime genre itself?
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world. Audience and readers have got used to a range of narrative and story world conventions, so there are ‘rules’ and established forms. New forms develop and this means that story conventions change, but a writer needs to be clear what the rules are for the world they have created for their specific story because the reader/viewer needs to be clear what is credible and what is not. This is a guide for the writer.
world. Audience and readers have got used to a range of narrative and story world conventions, so there are ‘rules’ and established forms. New forms develop and this means that story conventions change, but a writer needs to be clear what the rules are for the world they have created for their specific story because the reader/viewer needs to be clear what is credible and what is not. This is a guide for the writer.