Rod Serling: Would you inject your philosophy into a piece of work?

GITS reader David A sent me a link to an amazing set of videos, a sit-down conversation with TV and screenwriter Rod Serling. Most well-known for the long-running TV anthology series “The Twilight Zone” (148 episodes, 1959–1964), has over 70 writing credits including the screenplays for movies such as Seven Days in May and the original Planet of the Apes.

This week and next, we’ll feature Serling’s thoughts on writing each day with short (1–2 minute) interview excerpts. Today Serling ruminates on the question: Would you inject your philosophy into a piece of work?

“One of the major problems with strong writers who deal in dialogue above plot, which happens to be more my forte than plot, if you look at some of the pages of the stuff I’ve written, and even some of the good things, shut your eyes, you won’t know who’s talking because they all talk alike. And who do they talk like? Me. Now that’s wrong!”

Thanks again to David for discovering these videos.

[Originally posted February 12, 2010]

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