Last night my NYU class met at a new location — which was closed for Columbus Day! Three new members of the class also showed up, plus a fourth person who we discovered had come to the wrong class. We were lucky that our lovely classmate, Keri, had an office nearby and was generous enough to offer its use, which was great, until 4 of us got stuck downstairs at the break and almost didn’t make it back to class. Whew!
Against all odds, we had a fun class and covered the material. I want to thank the entire class for being so flexible, for being great participants, asking great questions and having a sense of humor.
So when you’re looking for ways to create conflict in a scene — oh, and did I mention that in the midst of class, my phone rang after I was sure I turned it off? — just look for the smallest details in your scene and have them go wrong, while having your characters remain intent on delivering their lines.
I must have sounded pretty funny expounding away in the midst of all this.