I know I’ve been neglecting this blog lately and let me apologize right off. Real life has stuck its foot into the door of my life in the form of, in the last six months alone: the death of a family member, the loss of my day job, the death of a pet, and the totalling of the car I use. So, multiple changes, amounting to me not being in the headspace (or having the funds) to take another writing class lately or to do much in terms of actual writing. Therefore, writing about writing has gone by the wayside.

On the bright side, I’ve decided to go to film school. I’ve been accepted into my local community college’s two-year diploma program in film production. This is something I’ve long wished to do, and my job change seems to shout that the time has come.

That doesn’t mean I’ll be abandoning this blog. It does mean that the blog’s focus is probably going to change. I’ll still be writing about writing, but I’ll also be writing about things like shot lists, budgeting, cinematography (how many words do you think I can write about F-stops?), editing, and getting up at 5 in the morning on a cloudy day to catch that perfect light.

The first thing I’d like to do is recommend a book for the aspiring filmmaker. Filmmaking for Dummies, by Bryan Michael Stoller, is a great overview of what you need to know. It’s an easy read and it’s entertaining. It was last published in 2008, so it’s probably a little dated, especially where it mentions film formats and analog video, but I’d still recommend it for a beginner. I understand a new version is coming out later in 2019.

Any other suggestions for beginning books on filmmaking? Talk to me in the comments.