ADVERTISEMENT

    GCAC Presents: Got Writer’s Block?

    Have you ever been going about your normal business one day and suddenly had the urge to research short stories adapted to film? Lucky for us, Stephanie Harrison took that whim and ran with it. Harrison, a Columbus native and emerging author, is the editor of Adaptations: From Short Story to Big Screen, for which she was a 2009 Columbus Literary Award Winner.

    ADVERTISEMENT

    According to Harrison she caught the writing bug after taking a writing class at the Cultural Arts Center in Columbus. She only took the course because the pottery class was full but after that she was hooked. From there she took a few writing classes at OSU and got her MFA in creative writing from the University of Florida. Harrison then decided to spend some time trying to write movies. While searching for an anthology of short stories converted to film to use as a tool, she discovered that such a thing didn’t exist, and so Adaptations was born.

    Much like the origins of Adaptations, Harrison’s next writing endeavors were not exactly planned. One day, she realized that Columbus as she knew it had changed. There was a rapidly growing immigrant population, and Harrison soon found herself writing a memoir describing her experiences teaching English to Somalis in the local community.

    After spending 20 years working in the technical field of systems analysis Harrison’s life has taken a 180, with much of the inspiration and support coming from the Columbus community. She is currently enjoying a summer residency in Provincetown, Massachusetts courtesy of an Ohio Arts Council grant.

    Curious how it all gets done behind the scenes? Even for an experienced writer the process can be challenging. In her online bio Harrison describes a phone call she made to her mother because of her struggles to write “yet another” personal statement.

    “‘I’d tried everything, I told her, to drill a hole through my writer’s block: long walks, bubble baths, wine. Even the chocolate trick was a bust. (Sometimes a pound of chocolate—as long as it’s consumed in one sitting—will get the juices flowing.) The thought of writing about myself had me paralyzed. I’d rather stick my thumbs in a blender than do this, I told her.’

    ‘Remember when your sister did that?’ she asked. ‘Someone left the puree button pressed and Jenny set the blades…’

    ‘Mom, I’m speaking metaphorically here.'”

    Whether her conversation with her mother actually helped is a matter of opinion. You can form your own judgment by visiting stephanieharrison.com and reading the complete and amusing exchange.

    GCAC supports the literary arts through its grants to organizations and projects such as the Thurber House and the Thurber Prize for Humor. For more information about all GCAC’s individual artist programs, CLICK HERE.

    GCAC presents is a bi-weekly column brought to you by the Greater Columbus Arts Council – supporting art and advancing culture in Columbus – in partnership with the Columbus Arts Marketing Association, a professional development and networking association of arts marketers. Each column will be written by a different local arts organization to give you an insiders look at the arts in Columbus.

    ADVERTISEMENT

    Subscribe

    More to Explore:

    ADVERTISEMENT