I spent sometime on reading those. Great stuff.
Curb Your Enthusiasm has absolutely nothing on the lives of Josh Olson & John Scalzi.
I can imagine a tutor doing a whole lesson on that... If it's not already on some syllabus, then it should be. Finishing off by making students write out
"I will not ask professional writers to read my work" until their hand goes numb from the repetitive stain. But then, that's where society seems to be at in general today... often with complete strangers making demands of other folks' time they have no right to. It's just the adult version of
bullying others into helping them out with their homework.
Mr. Olson certainly knows how to grab attention and keep it! Presumably the first thing you learn when writing the perfect screenplay. I really sympathised with his drafting and redrafting an email response... that tends to be my natural setting, never totally happy with any first or second pass. The best course of action is to just avoid getting into that whole hassle of letting someone down gently, and say no from the very beginning. Politely if that's an option. That applies to much more than writing.
I can honestly say I've never had any ambition beyond writing for my own enjoyment... or during the odd forum exchange, to take time out to gather some thoughts, counter an argument that's been driving me to complete and utter distraction. Finally emptying it out of my system and onto a previously blank screen instead. You'll all be relieved to hear, those word files are mostly accompanied once or twice a week by that familar crushing sound when you click 'Yes' to empty.
