The forge is glowing hot

And tonight it began. My workshop on scriptwriting. And - wow - it's good to be doing this again. It is for me the perfect combo of teaching, telling anecdotes, sharing stories (both fictional and personal) and a solid basis of hands on problem solving. Basically I'm trying to put all the elements inside that has been most beneficial in my own development as a writer - both in form and in material.
Teaching: For me teaching and learning should come in high intensity. It should be highly distilled insights into what make things work, how and why. I'm not a fan of lengthy discourse with a lot of theory and reference and so on. Let me get to core of things - both when I'm a student and a teacher. So I'm trying to get to the point and not talk about it for hours.
Anecdotes: because they can tell you so much about the real world. They are small condensed stories that convey moments of experience. And as a form they are great to digress into from the more abstract kind of teaching. They tell you not only about how to do things, but how to do things in the real world. Or: "what can happen to you in the industry and how to deal or how you shouldn't deal with it". Some of my best anecdotes are about times I have fucked up.
Sharing stories: Because this the fundamental passion if you are a writer. In the workshop you have a immediate outlet for that passion. Tell your stories and hear some stories. And I like to throw in the occasional personal story because I believe we have to remain anchored in the personal. To draw upon it - and being honest and direct about it, not hiding it - even for those script that are not evidently personal.
Hands-on: Yes, I'm a great believer in learning by doing. So much time in school was wasted on just listening, being a good student, while all the real lessons were picked up by actually doing things, writing stuff that had to be produced - and often failing but taking your lesson. So in the workshop the core activity is getting the stories on the table and regard them as projects destined for production. What are the problems, how to go about solving them and then back home and come with solutions for the next session of the workshop.
So right now I can't wait until next wednesday night and another session of the workshop. I always get curious about the participants and their stories. How will things develop. Lets see. I'm tuned in.