Labor Day here in sunny Santa Barbara.  Barbecues, wine, Dodgers and UCLA football on TV.  Almost finished my original biker screenplay, back to my epic children's novel soon.  Have a safe and sane holiday. 

On the political front, I was flabbergasted by McCain's choice for vice president, or maybe it's just plain vice.  Is there anyone out there less qualified to step in as president of the United States, considering McCain is old as dirt and aging at warp speed?  I guess Dick Cheney wasn't available for a third term

It's towards the end of May, and I'm getting back in harness on my work, which I had suspended for a bit to travel.  Going to BookExpo in Los Angeles this weekend to see old friends and touch base with the industry, so maybe I'll see some of you there.  

Just returned from 3 weeks in the Middle East -- Israel, Jordan, Egypt.  Went with my son, Matthew.  Had an incredible time.  Three wonderful countries, with great people, and extraordinary archeological and cultural sites.  We had our own guides everywhere we went, so we got to do lots of insider things you can't do on your own or in a large group.  I was able to get some great research down for one of my upcoming books, which was an unexpected bonus.  I would heartily recommend traveling to all or any of these countries.

Last weekend, in San Francisco to see my daughter Susannah, who is now living there, I had dinner with Michael Braverman, my old friend who was a TV producer and now teaches film and television writing and producing.  He's working on his first novel, which could be the next Da Vinci Code, if he keeps his nose to the grindstone and finishes it.  You heard it here first!

Working on my road screenplay, kids book, and new novel ideas.  In ten days my son and I are going to the Middle East -- Israel, Jordan, Egypt.  A once in a lifetime vacation.  Next year I'll do the same with my daughters, one on one, wherever they choose. 

The 2007 cabernet my wine group, the Pagan Brothers, put into barrel this past November will be fantastic.  We'll bottle it in the fall of next year.  Later this year we'll bottle our 2006 Syrah and Sangiovese.  Wine-making is not only a great hobby, it's nutritious!

Saw Midori in concert the other night.  What a great artist, it's like being transported back to 18th century Vienna and listening to Mozart. 

My web page, JFFreedman.com, has been revised.  Looks pretty much like the old one, but it's easier to navigate.  You can buy my novel In My Dark Dreams directly from it, so please do so.

The talent level of crime/thriller writers nowadays is incredibly high, which is good news for readers.  April Smith, Richard Price, Laura Lippman, and T. Jefferson Parker all have new books out, and they’re all good.  Check them out, and by my latest, IN MY DARK DREAMS, which you can order from Zooba.com 

First day of Spring.  Out here in Santa Barbara the weather has been good for a long time, since the torrential rains of early winter, so we don’t get the huge change you have in other parts of the country.  Still, it’s like opening a window to let fresh air in.  Invigorates you, makes you want to accomplish something important.  For me, that’s getting good writing done, and paying attention to important relationships, like with my kids and good friends. 

This is a slow time of year for good new movies, so I’ve been watching old ones on DVD and movie channels. Last night we ran across The Caine Mutiny.  Broad and hokey, but emotionally strong, because it had a great cast.  Bogart, Jose Ferrer, E.G. Marshall.  A very young Lee Marvin in a tiny role. 

Today is the beginning of March Madness, as you all know.  Out here, we’re usually UCLA fans, although USC is good this year as well.  Lots of TV time to watch, then go out and exercise.  The tide table is good for late afternoon beach jogging, which I’ll do today or tomorrow.

I write fiction, mostly novels, and screenplays (television, too).  I’m often asked which is harder, which is more enjoyable, more artistically fulfilling, and related questions.  My usual answer is, it depends (which can seem vague, but it isn’t really, because it’s a complicated subject).  On your own talents and abilities, whether you want to bring forth a visual or emotional feeling, and which form suits what you have to say.  Most writers, no matter how talented, are better at one form than the other.  Over the past decade I’ve had more success as a novelist than a screenwriter, but there are certain themes and subjects that I feel will work better in screenplay form, so I try to make that work.  At the moment, I’m finishing a screenplay I’ve been nurturing for some time.  It’s a very visual story, involving travel across America ala Easyrider, so to want to write it as a film makes sense to me.  One thing I do feel strongly about is that the screenplay form is more rigorous than that of the novel.  Novels can meander and sidetrack and succeed without too much of a plot, but a screenplay has to be tightly structured. And there is no such thing as interior monologue in a screenplay.  The main drawback to screenwriting, of course, is that a novel or short story is a finished product, while a screenplay is the first step in a long, complicated process involving many other creative people, all of whom will change and mutate your original conception.  So there are tradeoffs to both. Ultimately, you gravitate towards the form in which you are the most successful, which means I’ll most be writing books and not movies, but I have a compulsion every so often to try to make a movie script work.  I’ll know if I did with this one in about six weeks. 

It would be interesting for me to get feedback from other writers, readers, and movie-goers on this topic.

I'm getting good feedback from my book, In My Dark Dreams, which is always good news.  And I'm reading books by friends of mine, particularly April Smith's new novel, Judas Horse. Good character, good premise.  Check it out.

In other news, I'm anticipating the Academy Awards more this year than normally, because there are so many good pictures in the mix.  My personal favorites are There Will Be Blood, and The Diving Bell and The Butterfly, but I also like No Country For Old Men, Away From Her, and The Savages.  A good year for serious films. 

Excellent meal the other night at the Harbor Restaurant in Santa Barbara.  If you are in the neighborhood, check it out.