Me Me Me

The Business Traveler

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In the last six months, I think I’ve traveled more than I have in the last six years. Tomorrow I am off to Germany again…this time, with my friend Matt Witten (LAW AND ORDER, HOUSE, etc) to teach writer-producers there how we develop, write  and produce TV series here. Then it’s off to Sweden with William Rabkin to conduct the same course for their writer/producers. While all that is going on, I will be spending every free moment writing the next MONK novel and awaiting word on my two pilots…

I’ll try to check in here, too.

Shelf Life

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In 1983, I wrote a "My Turn" essay that was published in Newsweek Magazine. Today, almost 25 years later, I got a nice royalty check for a reprint of the essay in the textbook MAKING READING RELEVANT: THE ART OF CONNECTING. This is not the first time the essay has been reprinted. It has actually shown up in scores of textbooks over the years, from MARRAIGE AND THE FAMILY EXPERIENCE to DESIGNING IDEAS: AN ANTHOLOGY FOR WRITERS. And each time it happens, I am stunned. I can’t believe something I wrote in a half hour so long ago has had such a long shelf life.

Mr. Monk and The Ransom Notes

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MR. MONK AND THE BLUE FLU received a rave review from Barnes & Noble’s Ransom Notes newsletter.

While the obvious audience for the Monk novels are fans of the multiple Emmy Award-winning television series, Mr. Monk and the Blue Flu
will appeal to anyone who enjoys lighthearted, comedic whodunits,
regardless of whether they’ve even seen the show. Goldberg’s succinct
writing style — with an emphasis on witty dialogue, laugh-out-loud
hijinks, and nonstop action — will make a devoted Monk fan of anyone
who picks up this surprisingly entertaining read. Rubber gloves and
moist towelettes not included. Paul Goat Allen

My publisher swears they didn’t pay for this. But even if they did, I figure it’s a win-win. Either B&N loved it, which is great… or my publisher is putting some real marketing money into the book, which is also great. So I’m smiling.

You’ve Heard It All Before

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You can find a new Q&A interview with me, filled with information avid readers of this blog already know, online at Storylink, which is an off-shoot of the Writers’ Store and Writers University. Here’s a tantalizing excerpt:

1) What were you doing before you "made it"?

I was a freelance journalist, putting myself through school by writing for publications like American Film, Starlog, Newsweek, The Los Angeles Times Syndicate, The Washington Post and The San Francisco Chronicle, among many, many others. I also had a girlfriend who as an editor at Playgirl,
who got me a gig writing sexually explicit letters to the editor for
$25-a-letter, but let’s just keep that between you and me.

A Clear Head

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On Christmas Day, I emailed my pilot script to the studio… even though I knew nobody was there to read it. The script is due at the network next week, so I wanted to make sure it was delivered in time for me to get notes on Monday, do a quick revision, and still make our deadline.

Over the last three days, I did something I haven’t done in months: I didn’t write a thing. I didn’t even think about writing (ie plotting the next book or script).   I didn’t even write anything for this blog.  I couldn’t even summon the interest to read a book or watch a movie or catch up on all the TV shows cluttering my Tivo.

I wanted nothing to do with story.

It felt good.  I think I could probably use two more weeks like that, but it’s not going to happen. I have a very busy couple of months ahead of me of writing and business-related travel (to New York, Germany, Seattle and Sweden).

And yet, I also felt strangely guilty… as if I was playing hooky or being irresponsible. Afterall, it’s not like I don’t have more work to do and looming deadlines to meet. But there was nothing pressing on me, not like the deadline for my last MONK novel or for this pilot script. I had the wiggle-room to give myself a couple of free days. 

So I cleaned my office, did some errands, and took my family on a spur-of-the-moment trip up the coast to Morro Bay and a first-time visit to the Hearst Castle.  I didn’t bring my laptop. I didn’t even bring a paperback book (then again, it was only a day or so, hardly a big sacrifice).

And now I’m back, procrastinating here on my blog, before starting to write again tonight. It’s only been three days and yet, I’m feeling rusty, as if I’ve lost my momentum. 

Silly, isn’t it? I have got to learn how to relax a little bit.

Double Takes

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DIAGNOSIS MURDER: THE DOUBLE LIFE has been getting some very nice reviews from some very kind bloggers. Bill Peschel notes:

Fans of the “DM” series will know exactly what to expect: fast-paced
storytelling, some humor, and a nicely observed interaction between
Mark and his son, a homicide detective struggling to establish himself
away from his father’s accomplishments. It’s to Lee’s credit that, in a
genre that demands neat and tidy solutions, the personal conflicts
never get truly resolved, just as in real life.

Dm7a_1While the ScifiChick observes:

Goldberg weaves a complex mystery full of murders and puzzles. As
always, he gives Dr. Sloan so much depth, emotion, and humor that you
can imagine Dick Van Dyke playing the part on TV. Goldberg has proved
once again that he is a master of writing whodunits.

Chris Well says you don’t have to be a DIAGNOSIS MURDER fan to enjoy the book:

Goldberg does an excellent job of building on the
characters we know and love. He also displays a knack of creating
mysteries within mysteries, much like a puzzle box: no sooner do you
have one thing figured out than you discover it’s actually hiding
something even more sinister. As such, The Double Life is not just an excellent continuation of the series — but an excellent mystery novel.

And apparently Chadwick Saxelid didn’t take it personally that I killed him off in this book:
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Lee Goldberg has concocted a mystery concept so unnerving, it would even give veteran medical thriller writer Robin Cook the willies.

I want to thank all four bloggers for saying such nice things about the  THE DOUBLE LIFE, which leads directly in to THE LAST WORD, the final book in the series, which comes out in May. The cover for the book just showed up on Amazon (Click on the picture for a larger image).

Momentum

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I haven’t conquered my jet-lag yet, but I’m not letting it bother me. Now that I am back in L.A.,  and it’s a "holiday" week of sorts, I don’t have to go into any office besides the one in my home so it doesn’t really make any difference what time I get up or go to bed. With that new attitude, and nothing to do but write, things are going much better with my script.

It’s amazing to me that, no matter how much experience I have at this, I still have the same insecurities and have to keep re-learning the same lessons… one of which is that writing goes better when you can generate some momentum.

I have been doing nothing but writing the last few days, rather than in  fits-and-starts like last week, so it’s no surprise than I am much happier and doing better work. The importance of momentum isn’t a new discovery for me…but it seems like I have to keep reminding myself  every time I start a writing project.

Am I Awake?

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On my last two days in Germany, I managed to overcome my jetlag and sleep like a normal person.  Alas, now I’m back in L.A. and my internal clock is completely screwed up. I fought to stay awake until 10 pm last night (though I had could easily have gone to bed at 8) and awoke at 3:30 this morning. I spent in hour in bed trying to get back to sleep before I gave up and decided to catch up on 10 days of mail. Now I’m feeling as if I’m on sinus medication…kind of zoned out. This is going to be a long day.

Man of Action III

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Cologne
Greetings from Cologne,  Germany, where I am holed up in my hotel room this morning, writing a pilot. I’m suffering from the worst jet-lag I’ve ever had…I think it has something to do with the fact it stays dark here until 8:30 in the morning and gets dark again around 5 pm…and in between, there’s not much sunlight. My internal clock just doesn’t seem to be adjusting, even after being here nearly 10 days. 

I haven’t been writing as much as I would like while I’ve been here. I’ve been having pre-production meetings at the studio in Cologne and with the network in Munich…and when I get back to my hotel room in the evenings, I’m crippled with fatigue and fighting to stay awake past 8 pm. I’m hoping when I get home I’ll rebound quickly from the jet-lag and have a nice, uninterrupted stretch to write so I can work up some momentum (the script is due Jan. 1). That’s also why you haven’t seen me posting here…I’m using the energy I have on the script. I like what I’ve written, it’s just harder to come by.

I still  have  Christmas shopping to do…I hope to  do a little  of it here before I return on Saturday.