This July, I had the great pleasure of sharing the stage with Sam Robards (so great in The 39 Steps on Broadway, among other projects) for the finale of the fantastic 2017 Writing the Rockies conference at Western State Colorado University in Gunnison, CO. Such a smart, sweet, and funny man. And the pleasure was increased by the fact that the two of us were giving the premiere reading of my Harvard classmate (and Simpsons writer) Mike Reiss’s darkly funny new one act play about terrorism, It’s All in the Execution. His wife (and another Harvard classmate) Denise Reiss told me she hadn’t read this one beforehand as she was concerned it might be too dark. But Mike’s signature ability to find big laughs even in the bleakest scenarios was on full display, and the audience–including Denise–simply ate it up.
Pictured here with me (L to R): Sam, Mike, Denise, and our mutual Harvard classmate David Rothman, who runs the Graduate Creative Writing Program at WSCU, and who keeps Writing the Rockies spinning along vibrantly.
If you are a novelist, poet, or screenwriter, and you haven’t attended Writing the Rockies–you are missing out big time! David and his team bring in terrific, working talent from L.A., New York, and elsewhere, across all disciplines, to give small classes and fascinating keynote talks. And there’s even an opera workshop thrown in for good measure. Plus, the program includes time to enjoy some of the stunning local mountain scenery and great food. If you’re serious about your writing, and about improving your craft, you owe it to yourself to attend the 2018 Writing the Rockies Conference. I’ve attended two years in a row, and it’s simply terrific.
See you there next year!