Thanks, Misters Mac and Gangemi

You think that great writers just think up their ideas and slap them onto a page? Not so, says Joe Gangemi, novelist, screenwriter, and former student of Mr. Bill McLaughlin. Mr. Gangemi delivered an excellent lecture on narrative structure yesterday. He illustrated his ideas with examples from films like Star Wars, The Lord of the Ring, and even Wedding Crashers.

While waiting for the traffic to clear from the parking lot, I picked Mr. Gangemi's brain. He's been writing since he can remember--always knew that he'd be one. Submitted his stories to magazines all throughout high school. He recommends the trade magazine, Writers Digest, (also available online at www.writersdigest.com ) for those looking to be published.

He attended Swarthmore, majored in psychology, waited tables, reviewed books for the News Journal, edited journals for DuPont and Conoco--did anything he could to pay the bills while he wrote, all the time. He published his first novel in 2004, Inamorata, which caught the eye of Johnny Depp, who has since purchased Mr. G's screenplay. He's written two other screenplays, Wind Chill (starts shooting in January), and Eliza Graves (starts shooting in April). He is now a rich man, but his fortune results from years of reading, writing, learning the craft, and hard work.

He told me he gave Johnny Depp a good looking-over to see why so many females found him attractive. Depp surprised him with his height (just 5'10), his build ("thin as a wisp"), and his demeanor (shy, polite, and on that day nervous from the anxiety of making a public appearance placing his hands in cement at Mann's Chinese Theater). Mel Gibson was the "complete opposite." Confident, personable, and on that day, still beaming after the birth of his ninth child.

Someone asked him about "writer's block." He plans his plots, his stories, well in advance of writing, sometimes drawing sketches of his characters and scenes. I loved this answer. Every year I stress the importance of preparation before the production. Still, I envision some of you, late on a Sunday night, staring blankly at a computer screen for hours, working to complete an assignment due first period Monday. That's "blockhead writing, " not writer's block.

Thanks, Mr. G, and thanks again, Mr. Mac, for sharing your knowledge and your former student.