5AM StoryTalk | Cole Haddon | Substack

How to Be an Artist (According to Me) - Part 2

This newsletter spent 2024 asking novelists, filmmakers, and comic book creators from around the globe to weigh in about how they create and navigate…

Jan 27 •

Inside the Master's Imagination: Hayao Miyazaki's 50 Favorite Children's Books

There's no chance any of us will approach the filmmaker's genius, but understanding the creative DNA of his work might provide you some new and…

12 hrs ago •

💬 Weekly Question: What TV writers' room do you wish you could've been part of?

Most of my weekly questions here at 5AM StoryTalk try to tackle bigger questions about art that both the casual art lover and most devoted artist might…

Jan 24 •

Q&A: Filmmaker Brian Duffield Needs More Weird in His Life

The 'No One Will Save You' writer-director lets me interrogate him about his journey from missionaries' son to Hollywood, screenwriting craft, and…

Jan 22 •

How to Be an Artist (According to Me) - Part 1

This newsletter spent 2024 asking novelists, filmmakers, and comic book creators from around the globe to weigh in about how they create and navigate…

Jan 20 •

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Recent posts

Songs to Live By: 'Don't Dream It's Over' by Crowded House

Every month, 5AM StoryTalk explores a different song about our struggle to lead good and meaningful lives in a confusing, increasingly grim modern…

Jan 18 •

💬 Weekly Question: Has our cultural obsession with superheroes contributed to the return of fascism in the West?

Weekly questions’ comment sections are left open for one week.

Jan 17 •

2024 Award Season Screenplays to Download and Study

As the Oscars approach, 5AM StoryTalk has collected links to dozens of the most celebrated films of the past year for you to read for free

Jan 15 •

Los Angeles Is the American Dream Made Manifest

As the city that made all my dreams come true continues to burn, a few thoughts on what has always made it so great (and the ghouls with pig shit in…

Jan 13 •

💬 Weekly Question: Which fictional character would you most like to have dinner with?

Weekly questions’ comment sections are left open for one week.

Jan 10 •

Q&A: Screenwriter Zak Penn on the Appeal of Great Ideas

The 'Free Guy' scribe walks us through the highs and many lows of his 30-year career, his hard-earned lessons for surviving Hollywood, and what really…

Jan 8 •

How to Write a Killer Opening to Your Screenplay: 'Scream'

Kevin Williamson's horror script is a master class in how to keep your readers turning the page (while also scaring the sh*t out of them)

Jan 6 •

In Search of Beautiful Things (and Creative Inspiration): January 2025

31 moments of everyday beauty - photographed by 5AM StoryTalk's readers and curated by me - to help inspire you on your personal and creative journeys

Jan 4 •

💬 Weekly Question: What is cancel culture and does it even exist in the arts?

Weekly questions’ comment sections are left open for one week.

Jan 3 •

Welcome to the New Year (and a New 5AM StoryTalk)!

A reintroduction to this arts newsletter and a preview of the exciting cha-cha-cha-changes coming its way in 2025

Jan 1 •

Open Mic Night at 5AM StoryTalk

Here's a chance to promote your own projects - jump into the comments and tell us all about them!

Dec 28, 2024 •

5AM StoryTalk Reflections: My Favorite Stories of 2024

The twelve essays, articles, and artist-on-artist interviews that meant the most to me to write this past year...

Dec 27, 2024 •

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