Interview with Richard Walter 

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

I came to California in the mid-60s for what I thought would be a short visit, but I enrolled at USC’s film school on a whim. Members of my class would eventually own Hollywood, except for George Lucas, who owns Marin County. I wrote my first screenplay in a class taught by the late and legendary Irwin R. Blacker. Though it never sold, it won me top representation and a slot on the writing staff at a major studio. I never looked back.

How did you get your book published?

I could not get even my own agents to read Deadpan. Upon learning of Heresy Press in The New York Times, I submitted it directly to them and was promptly offered a contract.

Where did you get the information or ideas for your book?

If I were still a professor at a university, I would say Deadpan is an homage to Kafka. I retired from the faculty several years ago; however, I will say that I stole it from Kafka. In his story, The Metamorphosis, a man wakes up one morning to discover that he has been transformed into an insect. I wondered what other identity one could awaken? I chose the world’s most popular standup comedian.

Author Bio:

Richard Walter is an author of best-selling fiction and nonfiction, celebrated storytelling educator, screenwriter, script consultant, lecturer and retired professor who led the screenwriting program in the film school at UCLA for several decades. He has written scripts for major studios and television networks, lectured on screenwriting and storytelling, and conducted master classes throughout North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia.