20Q with Lindsay Devlin

Feb 21, 2014 by Kevin

20 QUESTIONS with LINDSAY DEVLIN

Lindsay Devlin 2

Twenty things you (probably) didn’t know about Devil’s Due screenwriter, Lindsay Devlin.

1. My first job was… Assistant to an agent at CAA.

2. If I wasn’t a screenwriter, I would likely be…A children’s book author.

3. I collect… Christmas ornaments, pocketwatches and old books.

4. My favorite word is…Actually two words: FADE OUT.

5. I’m a big fan of…People who give a damn about the world.

6. The single best piece of (screenwriting) advice I have ever gotten…Is actually a quote from Jack London: “You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.”

7. I have always wanted to…Be fluent in French.

8. The best thing I have ever read, (but did not write) is…Ron Harwood’s script for The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. I remember being blown away by how beautiful, emotional and visual it was.

9. People often tell me that I…Am the last person they could imagine writing a horror movie.

10. I really think that my best work (produced or not) is…yet to come.

11. I find inspiration in…The shower, usually. Also, getting out of Los Angeles.

12. The best thing about being a screenwriter is…Being able to do your job from anywhere. I’ve written scripts in Hawaii, Europe, Big Bear, a remote Canadian island, my parents’ home in Michigan; in coffee shops, b&b’s, on planes and trains. You can write from anywhere! It’s glorious.

13. I spend way too much time…On my iPhone. Don’t we all?

14. The smartest person in my cell phone is…My husband. (I hope that earns me a back rub)

15. It really bothers me when…I have a great idea…and then read about it in the trades. Nothing worse than being beat to the punch, but it happens to all of us. So I just try to be encouraged that I was on the right track. But it sure sucks.

16. The worst thing about being a screenwriter is…Staring at a blank page.

17. One mistake that most aspiring screenwriters make is…Staring at a blank page and not pushing it through it. Gotta finish that script. And then write another. And another…

18. If I knew the apocalypse were coming in 24 hours, I’d…Gather all my favorite people and have a big party with good food and drink on the beach, and say sayonara together as the sun sets.

19. The three websites I visit most often are…Other than Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest? Deadline, CNN and Wikipedia.

20. You’d be surprised to know that I…Don’t really like going to Halloween haunted house attractions. I get too scared. Odd for someone who writes horror, yes?