Two Ways You Can Deal With Bad Writing (And Make It Better)
Hey there, hero!
I think writers should be hailed as our heroes – it’s their work that gives us the raw materials for our performances.
I certainly hold the writers I’ve worked with as my heroes.
And yes, sometimes, just as with our work, their work could be better.
A comment on a recent video about audiobooks being a slog brought what to do about that to the front burner.
Hope this helps!
David
Raw YouTube Captioning
well hey there hero it’s David H
Lawrence the 17th and I wanted to share
with you a comment that I got on a video
I did about a week ago is audiobook
recording really a slog and it came from
Jeff Steitzer who says I think the
only time recording an audiobook is a
slog is when the book is bad yeah then
it’s a misery to sit down to work that’s
only been the case with one of the books
I’ve done the others were generally
pretty good books sure some were better
than others but the challenges I faced
were creative and fun and it brings two
things to mind for me number one that
writing is everything and that writers
are my heroes and hopefully your heroes
too because they make our job so much
easier
I’ve talked to on-camera actors about
how easy it is to memorize lines
sometimes and how difficult it is
sometimes and almost to a person they’ve
agreed that it’s always easier to
memorize your lines and to work through
a script when the writing is spectacular
I mean everything seems to fall into
place you know it’s not like the writer
was at a loss for words or knew didn’t
know where they were going or had to go
to the thesaurus to come up with
something creative it just fits and it’s
true with audiobooks as well the better
written the book is the easier it is to
produce it and there’s a flip side to
that coin as well it’s something that I
love taking on as a challenge and maybe
you do too and that is that when the
writing isn’t as stellar as it could be
it isn’t like the best thing ever done
then it falls on our shoulders to make
it better to be a performer that takes
material that that could be better and
make it better and if you look at it as
a challenge that way then it’s so much
easier on your psyche and on your
workflow then it would be if all of a
sudden you have to just start
complaining about something and it’s
like oh that’s the reason that and I
don’t think Jeff’s complaining at all I
think he’s just sort of noting his
you know his challenge there but I think
there’s a little hint in there of him
saying you know I was challenged to make
the book better and that’s a great
approach to take I look at that as one
of the little games that I play when I
get a book that you know isn’t the best
in the world let’s be let’s be kind and
generous about that but if you take that
moment and really apply all of the
skills that you have in making that book
better oh oh it’s so much fun in the end
because you’re not feeling like you
wasted your time you’re not feeling like
it was too big of a job you’re simply
doing your job and helping your fellow
production partner out so tell me what
you think what do you think of all that
do you think I’m just crazy why would I
you know have that challenge why would
why would I do that why would I even
take a job like that
sometimes you don’t know you know what I
mean tell me what you think in the
comments below just scroll down below
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be I’m David H Lawrence 17th I thank you
so much for watching and I will talk to
you tomorrow.
I really like the new look. The shirt, the background, the film quality all went up a notch. I also like that the video shows up before the text. Great job!
I’ve just delivered my first audiobook. And yes, the writing was awful (and in some respects just *wrong*). I wrote the author, and told him what changes I made to the actual mistakes, and he was very appreciative. Wanted me to do some more of his titles. Even suggested I start a blog about effective writing, based on my suggestions. In the end, it wasn’t a great book, but I learned a great deal, and I’m very grateful for the experience. Onward and upward!