Go Into The Story Interview: James Acker

My interview with the 2020 Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting winner.

James Acker wrote the original screenplay “SADBOI” which won a 2020 Nicholl Fellowship in Screenwriting. Recently, I had the opportunity to chat with James about his creative background, his award-winning script, the craft of screenwriting, and what winning the Nicholl Award has meant to him.

Here are links to the entire 6-part which has run this week.

Part 1: “I write a lot of monologues. I write a lot of rants. I write a lot of unloading. A lot of call‑outs, a lot of verbal fights.”

Part 2: “I’d always gotten the general advice that a fellowship or a contest win is a very good foothold to have when breaking in.”

Part 3: “The Manic Pixie Dream Girl trope is very present in gay YA, just with a different haircut.”

Part 4: “Once I landed on that engine, the story flowed so much easier. Engines. They truly have changed how I start developing projects.”

Part 5: “The first half of that monologue was truly the first words I wrote down for this story.”

Part 6: “I usually do a scribble draft and take it scene by scene. A description what happens. One line of dialogue I think will be emblematic of this scene.”

James is repped by The Gotham Group and Fuse Literary.

Twitter: @JamesUmAcker

For my interviews with every Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting winner since 2012, go here.

For my interviews with Black List writers, go here.