Friday 7 August 2020

WULFIE is coming!

On Sept 5th, 2020, the first book of my Wulfie series comes out with Little Island!

Trust me, you want Wulfie in your life. 

He's a purple wulfen, exrremely talkative, mischievous and noisy, and he can gropw as large as a house - or shrink to the size of a mouse. Especially when he's sad or scared. 

He's also the most loyal friend youc ould ever have and when he tumbles into Libby's life, he is exactly the sort of best friend she needs. Truly...  You can pre-order  with Little Island here or find it in all good bookshops from Sept 5th. 

Illustrations are by the amazing Jsoephine Wolff. A few samples below.

There's also more info elsewhere in this blog and on my website, www.lindsayjsedgwick.com




Friday 6 December 2019

Writing Muscles Love Diversity...


I love writing books, deeply deeply with a visceral sort of humm, but when I get my teeth into a script, it’s a buzz of a different kind. Far from what agents told me in my early days, most writers do like to cross mediums and genres and I think it's good for us. Writing muscles like diversity and each medium feeds something into the other.

Write That Script exists because of all the writing students I’ve had the past 20 odd years; an awful lot of very good writers. Some were experimenting with screenwriting, some had dreamt of screenwriting or were pursuing a goal they hadn’t had time to explore before, others were trying the different medium because they were curious while yet more were film buffs who could put me to shame or wanted to do the whole hog from writing to acting to directing.This book is dedicated to all of them.

So if you know any writers who might like to try screenwriting as a Christmas present...
1. You can get signed copies from my online store - just tell me who to dedicate it to (books@lindsayjsedgwick.com);
2. You can get it worldwide from Amazon;
3. From select bookshops: Alan Hanna's in Rathmines, Dublin 6, Books Upstairs, Dublin 2, the Irish Film Institute's bookshop, Dublin 2, The Winding Stairs Bookshop, Dublin 1 and Charlie's in Galway city and
4. If you want to have a look before you buy, it's in libraries throughout Ireland and the US. 




Chuffed when Kate O'Toole bought a copy!


#writethatscript #screenwriting #lovewriting #writingforthescreen Irish Writers Centre writing.ie Film Network Ireland #filmbase @hannasbooks Books Upstairs The Winding Stair Bookshop, 40 Lower Ormond Quay, Dublin, Ireland Charlie Byrne's Bookshop IFTN - Irish Film & Television Network Irish Film Institute (IFI) Irish Farmers Journal The Rick O'Shea Book Club #writersgroups Binders Full of Women Writers in Ireland Irish Writers, Editors and Publishing Professionals The Indie Writers' Cooperative Writers Guild of IrelandScript Advice Writers Room


Wednesday 10 July 2019

Galway Film Fleadh... Here I Come!

The Galway Film Fleadh, renowned as one of the best film festivals around, has just kicked off and runs until Sunday. It's the 31st GFF. I'm heading down tomorrow and, as ever, can't wait. Two meetings lined up regarding feature projects... who knows what may happen? There are always interesting conversations to be had quite apart from the riches to find on screen - I usually find myself pretty torn between the two. #filmfleadh31
Is it really a year ago since I did my Galway launch of Write That Script?! It's now available in libraries across Ireland, with select bookshops - Fred Hanna's in Rathmines, Dublin 6, Charlie Byrne's in Galway, Books Upstairs, Dublin 2 and the Winding Stairs Bookshop, Dublin 1 and with online suppliers: Irish Library Suppliers and Kenny's Bookshop, also with Amazon.In case you're wondering what Write That Script is like, I just came across this review on Goodreads last week, made my little heart skip! 
The wonderful Kate O'Toole with her new purchase!
"Write That Script is a gem of practical advice, complete with a conversational approach that reminded me a lot of Stephen King's On Writing (my go-to source for writing wisdom). This is not a typical "do this, do that" outline with anemic examples. Sedgwick guides you through the entire process from structural breakdowns to character motivations, all while providing thoughtful exercises in order to apply what you learn. She also peppers the book with relevant quotes from famed authors and industry professionals, which I found to be compelling and insightful. It really does feel like you are sitting down with Lindsay for a one-on-one.

"I highly recommend this book to anyone looking to get a firm grasp on screenwriting, not only from a structural standpoint, but also from a motivational one."











Tuesday 2 July 2019

Dublin Comic Arts Festival - table 42!

Excited to be exhibiting at my first Dublin Comic Arts Festival this coming Saturday, July 6th. It's in the Chocolate Factory at 26 Kings Inn Street (right behind the cinema complex on Parnell Street) , first floor - above the lovely Blás Cafe - from 11-4.

I've been to a handful over the past year and they are always hives of activity - so much talent, so many different styles, so many interesting artists, animators, illustrators and writers to talk to, plus a live model to draw.

I took up art again a couple of years ago now.  Originally, I wanted to learn how to draw the characters I create with words.

I quickly discovered that I don't have that skill, but I also discovered that art can come from doodles...Doodles can even be art...and I've had work in three exhibitions since in Dublin and Cork.

I'm hoping to launch my new colouring book at the event, but I'll also have prints & cards - I've a new series of chakra-inspired trees, bookmarks (see below) and I might even have my novels nearby, in case anyone wants one!







@dublincomicarts @LindsayJSedgwick www.lindsayjsedgwick.com

Friday 22 March 2019

First Anniversary: how does a year go by so quickly!


Can't believe it's a year today since I launched my screenwriting book, Write That Script in the Berlin bar (@BerlinBarD2Dublin). I remember far too much wine, some dancing, unbelievable conversations and the night went by in a whirl. 

My mother always said time went faster as you got older. Of course, being young, I thought this was nonsense but boy was she right!



Mervynne Jacque whose music entertained us all night.



It's now in bookshops in Dublin and Galway and online; it led to a series of workshops at various writing and book festivals around Ireland: in Westport during the wonderful Rolling Sun Book Festival, in Carlow as part of Penfest and in Howth and Swords as part of the Write Time Festival, as well as a gig in Mary Immaculate College, Limerick.  I’m currently teaching up at the @IrishWritersCentre and, later this year, I'll be talking at the Dublin Book Conference. 

Write That Script is in libraries and colleges all over the country and beyond, which is amazing. It took me a year to write but a couple of decades of teaching screenwriting, as well as writing and developing material for the screen, to get the confidence to put it all on paper. So a huge thank you to all of you who supported and encouraged me, who bought my book and who turned up, regardless of weather, to hear me speak! #write that script www.lindsayjsedgwick.com


PS Write that Script is on Amazon US and UK and available in Ireland from my online store (https://janeymacbooks.ecwid.com/)

Monday 17 December 2018

New year: new course in the Irish Writer's Centre


Delighted to say I'm running my first screenwriting course in the Irish Writer's Centre! 

It starts on Weds, Jan 20th and runs for eight weeks for two hours each night. As I say in the blurb, it's suitable for anyone with a wicked and visual imagination who loves creating characters and putting them in jeopardy! 

You can find more information here: https://bit.ly/2BTRwVt

Wednesday 5 December 2018

Make diversity the new 'normal'




Last Friday, Nov 30th, I spoke to a packed King's Hall in central London during the Kinds Content Futures conference run by C21Media, about the experience of creating my series, PUNKY. About why I had created it, about my goals for the series and about the impact it has had worldwide on individuals and, hopefully, on society as a whole.

C21 Media Content London 2018
I said we were a small production, (Gernomino Productions made both series) with strong support from a small broadcaster (RTE). Not only does the central character have special needs (Down's syndrome) but we dealt with split parenting, bullying and many other issues that children of her age (she's six) deal with on a daily basis. It was a mainstream series that fits anywhere in the programme and that was the goal - that we would help children to learn (or maintain) acceptance of difference; celebration of how much more interesting it makes life.

My fellow panellists all worked for large broadcasters with the clout and the finance to do better that we did. The trick was not to let ideas get watered down - as they often tend to be when they go through many layers of bureaucracy and decision-making; as they often are when broadcasters or producers flinch at the idea of offending their 'selective' audience.

All they had to be clear about was to create characters that were unique and compelling that happened to have special needs, neuro-diverse challenges, physical or mental health-based challenges but that these 'issues' should not be the reason they are in the series. Story is king and story relies on compelling characters; use the 'issues' to tick boxes and get funding but don't make them the reason for the show. No more than they are the 'reason' any individual is interesting in real life. Yes they will affect storylines but organically, naturally, as part of daily life.



The other speakers spoke then about their individual broadcasters' attempts to add diversity to kid's television content. From Patricia Hidalgo, Chief Content Officer, Turner EMEA and International Kids Strategy, we had Stephen Universe and other series that do actually - albeit in animated form - try to push the gender and ethnic barriers. From ITV's Darren Nartey, Programme Acquisitions Exec ITV, we had what felt like a very genuine intent to be more inclusive along gender and ethnic lines.

From Disney's David Levine, VP Programming, production and strategic development, Disney Channels EMEA, we had the party line about how well they were doing and had done to include diverse ethnic and gender characters - Doc McStuffin had a scene with gay parents etc. He ended his speech talking about how there was a character with two mums in the next High School Musical (and that they were super excited about that) and that the grandmother in a new live action series was a big character.

Is it me or should that not necessarily be news now?

What was very clear was that while ethnic and gender diversity are being included a little more within stories, it's still in a small enough scope to legitimise the need for these panels. As for any of these large players including characters that happen to have special needs, are neuro-diverse or differently able-d, there was nothing I heard to suggest anyone was leaning in that direction.

As I mentioned in my speech talking about selling Punky, there's a resistance. As one major broadcaster once notably said when Punky was pitched to him, his broadcaster doesn't "'do' sickness".
How revealing is that about how broadcasters feel about a huge segment of our community?