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STEPHEN FLOYD
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Where do you live (City, State, or Country)?
I’ve lived in Arizona for many years & in four other states. I like to travel a lot.
 
Your script stood out among hundreds of others. What was the inspiration for your story and why did you write a script instead of a short story or a novel?
 My family background was in a rural setting like my screenplay «NOT IN THIS TOWN» and felt that the visual medium was the best way for others to experience denial in small-town life. A short story from me might sound like Flannery O’Connor or William Faulkner, so I strove for something original.
Living around a small, local environment can be eccentric, yet for me it was a wholesome life with organic food, livestock and lots of free time in Nature. When you move away to a city, you grow to love (or some folks hate) the differences. I’ve written several stage plays & screenplays about my hometown, focusing on events in the past that were fun or interesting – for example, my comedy «HOGSQUATCH» is based on feral hogs & Bigfoot sightings there.
 
How long did it take you to write your script...and what is your writing process? Do you outline...use index cards...white board...or just start with FADE IN?
A year in the works. I start with memorable scenes on index cards, then an outline. Not all the cards made it into other screenplays, so the ones about opioids & sex comprised a pattern of denial and «NOT IN THIS TOWN» grew into a narrative. Other festivals tick boxes on a checklist, but I felt that Santa Barbara judges would read for content & recognize that the town itself was the main character here.
 
What is your ultimate ambition as a writer?
To write a unique story like «ODE TO BILLIE JOE» which was a mystery song for many years before the movie explained it.
Or one like Hans Traxler’s fictional story «THE TRUTH ABOUT HÄNSEL AND GRETEL» which was a very convincing pseudo-historical work of art.
If my stories are worthy as movies, that would be even more wonderful! I want an audience engaged by the story, laughing sometimes at irony, and remembering a moral or theme that lifts them up.
 
Which film or television writers inspire you? Why?
Akira Kurosawa, Tarantino, Eric Roth, Tobias Lindholm, Ethan & Joel Coen, John Hughes, James Cameron – to name a few! Each has told a story that I connected with for a reason. Kurosawa’s are about justice & honor. Hughes reminds me of fun & drama in younger days. «NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN» could happen to anybody & «FARGO» is small-town stuff. «BORGEN» is fun for imagining multi-party politics here. They captured me with their created worlds.
 
What’s your all-time favorite movie or television show?
«BECKET» (1964) with Richard Burton & Peter O’Toole. «KUNG FU» and «TWILIGHT ZONE» and «THE X-FILES».
 
What advice do you have for writers hoping to win a contest or place as a finalist as you have?
Keep writing. Keep improving your craft. Seek out new content & play with it!
 
What else are you working on that the world needs to know about?
In 2015 my school Northern Arizona University’s Global Languages Dept. graced me with a scholarship for graduate study in Bilbao. «ELENO» is a stage play I wrote from that research in Spain’s National Historical Archives (Madrid), using notarial records from the Inquisition (1587-1589). Translations are mine.

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  • Home
  • Feature Screenplay Contest
  • TV Script Contest
  • Short Script Contest
  • Diverse Writers Outreach
    • Diverse Writers Contest Results
  • Live WGA Consultations
  • Contest Results
  • PROFESSIONAL SHOWCASE
    • PREMA ROSE
    • A.P. GONZALEZ
    • DIANE THOMASSIN >
      • DIANE THOMASSIN PROJECTS
    • CATHERINE SCHANDL >
      • CATHERINE SCHANDL PROJECTS
  • WRITERS SHOWCASE
    • MAXWELL THOMAS
    • MELISSA BRIDES
    • LINDSAY MAXOUTOPOULIS
    • ALBERTO DIAMANTE
    • ERIN DONOVAN
    • NICHOLAS STATHOPOULOS
    • ANDREI CHAHINE
    • DOUGLAS SPALTRO
    • KATHY FRITZ
    • CANDEE KRAMER
    • BEN PARSONS
    • ANDREW MACQUARRIE
    • JEFF BARKER
    • WILL TURNER BRETT
    • BRYAN MARVIS
    • ELIZABETH APPELL
    • BARRY JAY
    • DAN JOLLEY
    • ELLEN PUFF
    • JONATHAN CANE
    • JOHNNY RUSSELL
    • JOEY MEDINA
    • SUSAN KELEJIAN
    • LAETITIA NGUYEN
    • LYDELLE JACKSON
    • MARK ZASLOVE
    • JUDAH BOSCO
    • LINDA FEDERICO OMURCHU
    • MARK WAKELY
    • STAN RUBAKHIN
    • AE GUAAKER
    • ANTHONY MCBRIDE
    • SUSAN SWEENEY
    • ANDREW CHIARAMONTE
    • BRENDON RICHARDS
    • THOMAS PACE
    • BILL MURPHY
    • STEPH KOWAL
    • PETER DE NORVILLE
    • KEVEN WICKHAM
    • JULIA SONG
    • JOHN ARNAU
    • FELICIA BAXER
    • DAVID RODERICK
    • MATT GALLAGHER
    • LEW OSTEEN
    • ROBBIE ROBERTSON
    • ROBIN CHAMBERS
    • ANDREW SCHERER
    • TIMOTHY KOHN
    • CELINE FOSTER
    • KARLA BRYANT
    • BARRY PUTT
    • CHAD HUTSON
    • DANIEL PERO
    • d.b. RODERICK
    • PAUL HUENEMANN
    • BERL KAUFMAN
    • TAMMY OLSEN
    • SOPHIE NEVILLE
    • NATHAN POST
    • DANIEL PERO
    • STAN LEWIS
    • LYNDA REISS & TARA TREMAINE
    • JAMES MULCAHY
    • ATTILA KOROSI
    • DAVID SANDERS
    • FRANCES MCCOY
    • GILBERT MOORE
  • WRITERS SHOWCASE 2022-23
    • DANIEL S. LEVY
    • SEAN LAWRENCE
    • TIMOTHY MICHAELS
    • JOHN BROWN
    • CHAD HUTSON
    • SCOTT THOMPSON
    • MICHAEL D. KENNEY
    • DANIEL PRESSEY
    • CHRISTOPHER BOYCE
    • STEVE SHEAR
    • ANGEL L. MARTINEZ
    • SARAH CALDWELL
    • SEAN McLAUGHLIN
    • ROBERT BORREGO
    • RANDY WOODLEY
    • DAVID SANDERS
    • ERNESTINA JUAREZ
    • CATHERINE EATON-DEBORAH RAYNE
    • PETER DE NORVILLE
    • ALYSHA HARAN
    • REENITA HORA
    • MIKE MORERO
    • SARAH KENNEDY
    • TOM FRANEY
    • DORENE LORENZ
    • RICHARD ROSSNER/RAHLA KAHN
    • SAM IWATA
    • Steven R. Berry
    • TONY SCHWEIKLE
    • Virginia Youngren
    • JASON NG
    • NIKKI COLE
    • LYNN ELLIOTT
    • JANE COX
    • JOHN PRATHER
    • TENNESSEE MARTIN INTERVIEW
    • VU MAI
    • Donald McKinney
    • MICHAEL ELLIOTT
    • MICHAEL ELLIOTT
    • GRETCHEN RATCLIFF SAWYER
    • ATTILA KOROSI INTERVIEW
    • AINHOA FERNANDEZ-MARTINEZ INTERVIEW
    • DAN PERO
    • NANCI GAGLIO
    • TERRY PODNAR SCREENWRITER
    • KIMBERLY CHAMPION
    • SANDRA MOONIAS
    • JODIE ANDERS
    • JONATHAN HIGGINS
    • DON WALLACE
    • LOVINDER GILL
    • STEPHEN FLOYD
    • Jeffery Evans
  • JOIN THE SHOWCASE
  • Free Webinars
    • - Logline Secrets & Pitching to Sell
    • Free Webinar: How to WIN Your Next Screenplay Contest
    • Free webinar: Choosing Career Path-Writing for Movies & TV
  • Feedback Analysis Samples
  • Contest Judges
  • FAQ