#The Terrance Dicks Award For Writers

[whoreviewswho]

What phantasmagoria is this? - The Unquiet Dead, 2005

There is an element of fun to be derived for anoraks such as ourselves in exercises of comparison and contrast. One such game I have been musing upon lately relates specifically to Doctor Who writers of the original and revived series. For example, Steven Moffat is the modern Robert Holmes, Russell T Davies something more like a Terrance Dicks and Mark Gatiss, the subject of today's discussion, is perhaps more akin to a Bob Baker and Dave Martin. To a certain kind of fan, this might sound incredibly derisive and, to an extent, it is but it is worth noting that the original series' Bristol Boys were hardly hacks or even especially poor writers. Between the two of them, as a partnership or otherwise, no less than nine stories were broadcast in their names over eight years and every single one of them is bristling with creativity and energy. If anything, the downfall of Baker and Martin was that they brought too many ideas to a Doctor Who script. But despite really nobody pointing to any one of their serials and crying "Yes, that one's my favourite", it would be ludicrous to suggest their work left little impact with iconography of Axons, the Mutts, K-9 and Sarah Jane's Andy Pandy costume being etched into the minds of audiences for years to come.

And Gatiss is much the same. Contributing just as many stories over a twelve year period as well as appearing in front of the camera and helming one of the show's finest spin-off ventures, his legacy is arguably even harder to ignore. True as it is that he was never awarded tasks as monumental as The Three Doctors or The Hand of Fear nor creating something as iconic as K-9, Gatiss' unwavering position as the Moff's reliable partner ensured his mark on the series would be left no matter what he was writing and, even then, what he was writing did offer up its fair share of iconic moments. Like the kids who grew up with the Bristol Boys, you'd be hard pressed to find a fan my age who was not unnerved by the peg dolls, introduced to the Ice Warriors or able to recreate the exact cadence of Maureen Lipman's "HUNNNGRYYYYYYYY" at a moment's notice. Hell, they probably even learnt who Winston Churchill was thanks to him. Yet, the comparison still is not flattering. At the end of the day, I am celebrating Mark Gatiss for being a competent writer during two eras of Doctor Who where the overall production was some of the best it has ever been at every level. 

With this in mind, perhaps the most fascinating aspect of Gatiss' legacy is the one he was never allowed to have – the showrunner. Gatiss pitched a complete reboot of the series with G*reth R*berts and Cl*yton H*ckman but obviously lost out to Davies and, it has to be said, the prospect of even one full season of stories that are about as strong as Empress of Mars and The Shakespeare Code is hard to get excited about. There were some potentially interesting aspects such as the Doctor being introduced as an antique shop owner, the continuation of the serial format and Derek Jacobi as the Doctor. All of these things could have made for something entertaining to watch.

But reflecting on this pitch gets us to the biggest problems with Mark Gatiss as a Doctor Who writer and, arguably, the same things that made him the perfect co-writer for Sherlock; he is an old-fashioned, conservative writer and a dreadful romantic for all things nostalgia. His scripts are like the TV equivalent of an interactive museum exhibit that passionately recreates bygone eras. Sometimes this comes good, sometimes it does not but they are qualities that make it hardly surprising that Russell T Davies found him the perfect person to pen the very first historical revived Doctor Who.

Like practically all of Davies' initial run on the programme, My Name's Dickens... Charles Dickens (as it was originally titled) came about from a brief he hired Gatiss to fill. Davies insisted that the story take place in Cardiff, be set during the Victorian era and feature Charles Dickens in an adventure with charlatan medians. Gatiss' original pitch was entitled The Crippingwell Horror and took place in a hotel for fake medians with the character that would becomes Sneed being an employee who suddenly realises his powers are not a mere act. Interestingly, the original script would have drawn some similarities with The Empty Child two-parter with the character that became Gwyneth being haunted by the ghost of her recently deceased brother. Across the various drafts and at the production team's behest, the script became a less and less grim affair with a healthy injection of humour and self-awareness. The concept of the Gelth, however, was present across all versions with Gatiss taking inspiration from a childhood nightmare for the image of the possessed Mrs. Pearce.

In the context of its home season, The Unquiet Dead is perfectly slotted. The third story (and episode) of the season, it follows The End of the World with something completely different. It shows the full breadth of the programmes basic possibilities across three weeks and sets the template for the three modes Doctor Who will continue to alternate between and subvert until the present day. This was probably disappointing for some longterm fans as it does lay down a fundamentally different foundation to the 1963 season. In Verity Lambert's first three stories, Doctor Who was a survivalist drama that oscillated between educational historical settings, futuristic political allegories and surrealist horror flavours. Davies' Doctor Who was a soap opera that shifted between satires of contemporary England, futuristic camp absurdities and pastiches of revered literature. Neither of these is more valid but the distinction is essential to understanding how British television had changed over forty years and, indeed, the kind of fans that each version of the programme has continued to garner.

It is also important in understanding what The Unquiet Dead is actually accomplishing as it is essentially intending to fulfil a dual function. The first, as we have established, is to introduce a new audience to the historical Doctor Who but the second, and arguably harder, is to reintroduce fans to the historical Doctor Who. The way it goes about these things is the same; it turns to pastiche. For new audiences, the cultural context of Charles Dickens' writing and his literary depiction of the Victorian era is heavily leaned upon as a shorthand for establishing the world and characters of Gatiss' story. Leaning on tropes and cultural signifiers is an essential aspect of streamlining for the forty-five minute format and really the only choice for a show as fast paced as Doctor Who set out to be. It's a very savvy choice and, to be fair, not an entirely new one since it is essentially something David Whittaker was employing as far back as The Crusade. However, Whitaker never had to contend with the second aspect of this that works which is making the story equal parts a pastiche of the Doctor Who historical arguably a literary style in its own right in 2005. Henceforth, The Unquiet Dead would be just as the general audiences remembered and expected it to be; famous figures from history, gothic horror tones and colourful and exaggerated period stereotypes. 

The latter of these two examples, of course, pertain almost exclusively to the mid-'70s period which, fair enough, was when Doctor Who was at its peak of general audience popularity (and even then it's pretty much exclusively Talons of Weng-Chiang we are referring to). As for the first, that practice was pretty much abandoned after The Crusades. No, this is not a genuine Doctor Who historical anymore than this is a genuine recreation of Victorian Cardiff. Rather, it is a streamlined and romanticised version and the one that Gatiss is most fond of recreating (and he would several times after this, even in Sherlock). Authentic to real history and Doctor Who or not, The Unquiet Dead set the precedent for practically every historical episode moving forward with every season (save for exclusively series seven) uniting its main cast with a celebrity historical figure for a heightened romp around some bygone literary tropes.

The more attentive reader would likely have noticed by now that I have been avoiding actually talking about The Unquiet Dead itself for some time now. There is a good reason for this which is simply that, besides the context surrounding it, there is very little to actually say. Even what I have is mostly just production background and reiterating points El Sandifer made years ago now (and more eloquently than me at that). I promised an analysis of the episode so let's just bite the bullet and get on with it. As I have already suggested, there is plenty to like about The Unquiet Dead that makes it hard to write off as some wholly disposable runaround. Being so obviously in the mould of the original show, more so than its predecessors and really any other episode of the first season, there is a simplicity to the affair that I find works to its advantage. There are some mature but simply laid out themes of spirituality versus science that come together rather deftly in a climax that hinges on children realising that an open-mind and attentive nature can allow for new discoveries and broader horizons. The constant reoccurrence of gas as a thematic symbol is effective and easy for children to spot. It provides a coherent, visual link between the Victorian era and the modern day, the old world hurtling into a new age.

Dickens himself is key to conveying these themes as well which is impressive considering that Gatiss was reluctant to include him in his story in the first place. Dickens is portrayed marvellously by Simon Callow, an expert on the author with prior experience playing the character and recreating his public readings. Callow was adamant that for him to sign on, the script would have to be of a sufficiently high quality. Allegedly, his initial reaction to the news that the author would be part of a Doctor Who was disappointment, feeling that fiction often did an injustice to the man. Thankfully, he was very much won over by the material and brought, not only the best performance of anybody in the episode but, some serious credibility to a programme that needed it. Simon Callow does not just sign on for any old slop and why should he when he brings such gravitas and grandeur in his characterisation of Dickens? Callow single-handedly elevates the already solid material to make the part simply superb. Like all the great character actors, and like this episode's approach to history, he may not be one-to-one accurate to Dickens as he was in real history but he embodies his spirit and essence of the author as he is remembered by us today.

So Dickens becomes the heart of the narrative, somewhat inevitably given the mythic status he holds in British literary canon. While Rose is still serving as an audience surrogate in the sense that hers are the eyes with which we view the past (more on that later), it is Dickens who serves a more traditional protagonist role to no small extent. If we consider the Doctor and Rose as analogous for Doctor Who as a series and the Gwyneth/Sneed double-act as our vessels for historical pastiche, Dickens falls in between as the baffled and wry viewer of events who understands the rules of period costume dramas and is being introduced to the weirdness of a Doctor Who story. All of the characters are awarded strong moments but only Dickens receives a full-blown opportunity for change and it is he who actually saves the day (with a healthy dose of real-world science for the kiddos at that). Dickens is the narrow-minded know-it-all whose beliefs are challenged by exposure to a new facet of his world and this, on the surface, is an extremely obvious direction to go. In the absence of a full-blown special, The Unquiet Dead is honorarily regarded by some fans to be the Ninth Doctor's Christmas episode and the allusions to Dickens' most renowned work in that arena are anything but subtle. The door-knocker is a cute touch and offering Dickens his own Scrooge arc, of a sort, works well enough however on-the-nose it is but going so far as to quote the book, not only several times but, as his final line is a level of overtness that I could have done without.

What is more interesting to talk about is Dickens' role in a metafictional sense. Like every story of the first series, The Unquiet Dead is drenched in metatextuality, in this case responding directly to its prior television version. Dickens is the original series of Doctor Who; a beloved icon that still has many fans that has grown stale, burnt its bridges yet continues to go on and on "the same old show... [p]erhaps I've thought everything I'll ever think". Yet, Dickens' worldview is challenged and his morale reinvigorated as the new show, the Doctor and Rose, enter the scene and disrupt his entire understanding. Doctor Who is more than capable of continuing in a new form for a modern world but its older form, the one Dickens embodies, cannot continue alongside it. Zooming out to a broader lens, we can see an even cheekier read where Dickens is symbolic of an entire storytelling approach for science-fantasy and drama that is reinvigorated by the potential of what Doctor Who could be.

Despite Dickens taking over the narrative, the medium aspect was obviously not abandoned and the bridge between the two worlds in this story is not Dickens but literally and figuratively embodied through Gwyneth, played very charmingly by Eve Myles. Gwyneth is the core character embodying the spirituality aspect of the story, essentially serving as the opposite for Dickens. The latter refuses to accept the Gelth exist because they do not fit the facts of his worldview while Gwyneth accepts them more readily than anyone because the facts presented align with her spiritual beliefs. Gwyneth is a medium, communicating with her “angels”, the Gelth, and ultimately understands both conflicting parties’, the Doctor and Rose's, ideologies but refuses both and makes her own choice to help the Gelth, regardless of what others think and makes her own choice to destroy them be sure it is what she believes to be right.

Besides it being a good choice formally to air this episode in the third slots, The Unquiet Dead also lees back an appropriately further layer to the Doctor's character, challenging the audience's morality without ever making him non-empathetic. Plagued by guilt over the consequences of the Time War, still something that we know nothing about beyond the fact that it wiped out there Time Lords, the Doctor offers the Gelth the opportunity to roam freely amongst the bodies of the dead, much to Rose’s disdain. The Doctor's role has little precedent in the televised show, clearly suggesting that his mistake comes from an overwhelming and misplaced emotional response. The Doctor projects his guilt onto a situation that takes advantage of that but his moral position is never seriously challenged. Rose takes a more conservative position which stems naturally from the best scene in the episode where she and Gwen are conversing about their respective upbringings. The scene overtly positions Rose as the educated, condescending lady of privilege which is a delightfully intelligent role to cast her in given her introduction in Rose explicitly establishing the opposite. Rose thinks she knows better than Gwyneth because she thinks she is smarter than her. It could have been a disastrous move and it is impressive that it never paints her in an entirely unlikable light. Importantly too, this scene is written by Russell as a late addition to extend the runtime. 

Everything in the story up until here is working but the climax is ultimately where it kind of breaks down and never recovers. The story needs the Doctor to be right for the arc and theme of enlightenment and indulging other perspectives to broaden your own to actually work but it also needs to have an exciting third act with monsters and life or dearth stakes. So, the Gelth are just irredeemably bad beings. As Sandifer exposes in her own essay, this story is infamously criticised for xenophobic undertones regarding the Gelth and she breaks the entire argument down incredibly well. My only addition to that critique is that I think it is barely a matter of conjecture to say that this reading was unintended given Russell's insistence upon recreating the 1980 moment from Pyramids of Mars. The scene was, mercifully, cut but the intention was to explicitly depict a present-day Earth that has been invaded by the Gelth which would have more than doubled-down on their position as irredeemable monsters. 

This is not a story about immigration, it is not Flip-Flop, and Rose is never painted as morally correct for insisting that their cohabiting the Earth is wrong. The focus of the conflict is on the whys of their choices, not the what. The Doctor is perhaps the most enlightened, for lack of a better word, of the cast but his emotions override his judgement and he allows the Gelth a way to invade while Gwyneth has an unwavering belief in her angels and the blind faith gets her killed. Dickens is only able to save the day once he accepts that his life has been fundamentally changed which leaves Rose as the one character whose development is somewhat confused. Rose thinks herself superior to Gwyneth due to her relative education and life experience but is shamed by her for assuming she can make decisions on her behalf. The result of this is... nothing really. Rose just sympathises with Gwyneth and is as moved by her death as her two surviving companions and that is about all here is to it. The sombre tragedy of the scene following Gwyneth's death ("She saved the world. A servant girl. No one will ever know.") is staged like a story that is fundamentally about class but The Unquiet Dead just is not. It's not that it doesn't come up from scene to scene but the theme is not a driving force of the story until it very suddenly and awkwardly is.

The Unquiet Dead is a good episode of Doctor Who with a great sense of atmosphere and tonal consistency but is more than a little shy of greatness. The production quality is excellent, the corpses and wonderfully creepy, there are great performances from the whole cast and the only real holes in the production are the lack of ambition in direction and editing (it is cut very slowly) and the surprising lack of score from Murray Gold that is something I would never criticise a story with his name attached for otherwise. The final script here is something much messier than the rest of the production and favours individual moments over a cohesive bigger picture. It is entertaining, clever and the right story to be airing three weeks into the show's run but becomes, nonetheless, somewhat more and more insubstantial on repeat viewings. It is a solid episode of a promising programme that likely needed at least one more draft to tease out its most interesting ideas. And maybe tackle that inadvertently problematic bit. In other words, the consummate Gatiss. Start as you mean to go on, I suppose. 

[diddlydumpodcast]

Paul Cornell receiving his Terrance Dicks Writers Award at the DWAS Capitol 2024 convention.

[doctorwhonews]

Steven Moffat wins Terrance Dicks Award For Writers

http://dlvr.it/SmX4rn

[downthetubes]

Gary Russell wins The Terrance Dicks Award For Writers

Gary Russell wins The Terrance Dicks Award For Writers

Doctor Who author, comics editor and writer and audio and TV producer Gary Russell was announced as the inaugural recipient of The Terrance Dicks Award For Writers last weekend, at a ceremony at the Doctor Who Appreciation Society‘s convention The Capitol Five, in front of a packed house at the Crowne Plaza, London-Gatwick. Gary received the award, a statue of The Master crafted by Gary Glover…

[isagrimorie]

I’m so glad I got the 2021 Doctor Who Yearbook because it has the Jodie Whittaker interview and features on series 12 episodes but most importantly, has an interview with Maxine Alderton!

I knew that Maxine Alderton was a writer for Emmerdale, I think one of Britain’s long running soaps (which is apparently based in Yorkshire?). I didn’t know she actually is a beloved Emmerdale writer and even earned the nickname ‘Queen Maxine’ from Emmerdale fans, and you know what? She earned it.

The first time I read about Maxine Alderton was in Reddit where, of course, they began to sneer at Alderton’s credentials as (an awarded and prolific) Soap writer forgetting that their beloved Terrance Dicks and Russell T Davies trace their writing roots from Soap Operas.

Alderton even pointed out how writing for soaps was a great prep for writing for Doctor Who: “You’re constantly writing in soap, so you’re constantly using that muscle. We’re used to changes, like characters not being available, having to rewrite a scene with someone else, hitting tight deadlines -- we’re very flexible and pretty much bombproof.”

This is also why Maxine was able to write for a real big cast without losing  focus on who the main cast are and the Doctor at the center.

Also, it seemed Alderton was an X-Files fan but was actually she was more, surprisingly (to me) drawn to Torchwood.

Chris Chibnall apparently gave Maxine Alderton a blank canvas to write the episode, I don’t think he even gave Ed Hime and what’s that dude’s name... Praxeus and Kerblam guy that kind of freedom.

Maxine Alderton chose Mary Shelley and Frankenstein because: ‘it was the birth of science fiction. I feel so cmfortable with that era; it’s intense and romantic. I thought that if anything would be my one shot to get into the show, it was the most natural choice.”

I love how Maxine described her younger self as a ‘dramatic English lit student’, she did a whole module on the Romantics and it’s during her research when she hit on Byron’s Darkness and immediately thought ‘She was the Universe‘ has to be the Doctor.

I’m also really glad that Maxine was fond of Claire, I could feel it whenever I watch Haunting of Villa Diodati.

“In preparation for writing her script, Maxine did a complete rewatch of the revived show-- “I wept when the Tenth Doctor left” -- and saw every Cybermen episode, including 2017′s World Enough and Time. “I was trying to connect with the emotional angle because that was going to be Thirteen’s freshest battle with them. What happened to Bill in that episode was particularly difficult to watch with the body horror. The Doctor would be thinking of that.”

I know it’s already been said, even by Jodie herself but having the writer herself mention that was the intent of “I won’t lose anyone else to that!” was because of Bill, was because at that moment Bill Potts was alive in the Doctor’s head.

“I think what really interested me was the burden the Doctor carries,” says Maxine thoughtfully, “of having been alive for so long, to have faced battles and witnessed so much. I wanted to see how that worked alongside the lightness Jodie brings to Thirteen.”

God, I love this. I love the way Maxine talks about the Doctor. I need her to be a major part of series 13 now that Vinay Patel (as far as I remember) is moving on to produce his own show.

And! And, people who said that Mary Shelley wrote the Monster/Creature in Frankenstein as what she hoped Ashad was? It’s what Maxine intended!

[oliverphisher]

George Ivanoff

George Ivanoff is an author. He lives in the suburbs of Melbourne, Australia.

He has written over 100 books for children and teenagers, including fiction and non-fiction. He has written school readers, library reference books, chapter books, novelettes, novels and even a short story collection. He has books on both the Victorian Premier’s and the NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge booklists.

George’s latest series of books is OTHER WORDS. With this series George has ventured into the realms of science fiction and fantasy, two of his favourite genres, in order to tell stories about ordinary kids facing extraordinary circumstances. There are 4 books so far.

The Treasure of Dead Man’s Cove (You Choose) By George Ivanoff

George’s has written 13 books in his interactive You Choose series. You Choose: The Treasure of Dead Man’s Cove won the 2015 YABBA in the “Fiction for Younger Readers” category; and You Choose: Alien Invasion From Beyond the Stars got an Honour Award in the KOALAs in 2016 and 2017.

His teen science fiction novel, Gamers’ Quest (2009), won a Chronos Award for speculative fiction. The sequel, Gamers’ Challenge (2011), was shortlisted for the same award. And the final book in the Gamers trilogy, Gamers’ Rebellion (2013), also won a Chronos Award.

George has also written a series of adventure books for kids — RFDS Adventures. The four books in this series were published in 2016.

George also writes short stories and articles for adults as well as kids. Of all these, he is most proud to have had the opportunity to write a Doctor Who story for the Short Trips: Defining Patterns anthology (Big Finish, UK, 2008).

Occasionally, George has been known to moonlight as an actor. He has had small roles in numerous productions including the television series Neighbours and the feature films Frozen Butterflies and William Kelly’s War. He recently guest starred in an episode of the audio series Night Terrace.

George eats too much chocolate, drinks too much coffee and watches too much Doctor Who. He will sometimes indulge in a nice bottle of wine or a single malt Scotch.

He has one wife, two children, two cats and several chickens. And he is very content!

What are one to three books that have greatly influenced your life? 

The Wonderful Flight to the Mushroom Planet By Eleanor Cameron

The Wonderful Flight to the Mushroom Planet by Eleanor Cameron  —  This is the book that turned me into a reader.

Doctor Who and the Dalek Invasion of Earth By Terrance Dicks

Doctor Who and the Dalek Invasion of Earth by Terrance Dicks — I have lost count of the number of times I have read this book. Dicks is one of my writing heroes and one of the reasons I wanted to become a writer.

Illuminae (The Illuminae Files) By Amie Kaufman, Jay Kristoff

Illuminae, by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff — This book takes such a different and innovative approach to narrative. It made me want to be a better writer and take more creative risks.

What purchase of $100 or less has most positively impacted your life in the last six months (or in recent memory)?

That $99 bottle of Japanese whiskey had a pretty good impact.

How has a failure, or apparent failure, set you up for later success? 

It taught me to never give up and to never take success for granted.

Are there any quotes you think of often or live your life by?

“Always try to be nice but never fail to be kind. ”

It’s from an episode of Doctor Who – “Twice Upon a Time”, written by Steven Moffat.

What is one of the best investments in a writing resource you’ve ever made? 

Pen and paper.

What is an unusual habit or an absurd thing that you love? 

I collect sonic screwdriver toys. (It’s a Doctor Who thing, for those of you who are wondering.)

In the last five years, what new belief, behaviour, or habit has most improved your life? 

I’ve realised that what other people think of me really isn’t all that important.

What advice would you give to a smart, driven aspiring author? What advice should they ignore? 

Read as much as you can. Write as much as you can. And never give up.

Ignore advice insisting that you write every day. Write whenever you get the chance, be that every day, every second-day, or once a week. The important thing is to write.

What are bad recommendations you hear in your profession often? 

That you need to work on raising your social media profile before approaching publishers with your writing. I think it’s far more important to work on your writing.

In the last five years, what have you become better at saying no to (distractions, invitations, etc.)? 

I’ve become better at saying no to people wanting me to read and comment on their work. I’m really not very good at assessing a piece of writing. I can tell you if I liked it or not, but I’m not great at explaining why or how it could be made better. I guess that’s why I’m an author and not an editor.

What marketing tactics should authors avoid?

Avoid constantly filling your social media with self-promotion. It’s a great way to lose followers.

When you feel overwhelmed or have lost your focus temporarily, what do you do? 

I go jogging. It clears my head and makes me feel better. Great for writer’s block.

Any other tips?

Write what you want to write, rather than what you think other people want you to write.

________

Enjoyed this Q&A? Want to discuss in more depth? Join Community Writers. You'll get access to 100+ exclusive writing tips. Q&As with successful authors, an exclusive ebook on building an audience and much more. Sign-up for free as a community writer here

source https://www.thecommunitywriter.com/blog/george-ivanoff

[flauntpage]

More Buyouts and Layoffs For Philadelphia Sports Media

Philadelphia’s largest newsroom continues to get smaller.

Sources tell Crossing Broad that the most recent round of buyouts and layoffs will see Mike Kern and Dick Jerardi leave the Philadelphia Media Network before the end of the year. Kern is reportedly taking a buyout. It’s not clear if Jerardi is doing the same or simply retiring.

Daily News scoreboard editor Bob Vetrone Jr. also confirmed his departure on Twitter:

I will not be dressing up tonight but in 2018 I will be dressing as a former @PhillyDailyNews employee; Taking a buyout & moving on …

— Bob Vetrone Jr. (@BoopStats) October 31, 2017

ICYMI – I will be taking a buyout from the @PhillyDailyNews as of Jan. 1, 2018 … Some sketchy blueprints for my future … Stay tuned …

— Bob Vetrone Jr. (@BoopStats) November 1, 2017

Jerardi spent years 33 years churning out high-quality stories, mostly on college basketball and horse racing. He was known for his decades of Big 5 basketball coverage and was recently honored at the Coaches vs. Cancer lunch:

Highlight of Coaches vs Cancer lunch: The coaches honored this man. http://pic.twitter.com/zsTcbuWmhE

— Mike Jensen (@jensenoffcampus) November 8, 2017

I know this definitively … Here's the complete list of people who covered the Big Five better than Dick Jerardi over past 30 years:

— Mike Jensen (@jensenoffcampus) November 8, 2017

Jerardi has recently worked a couple of side gigs, doing Penn State basketball radio broadcasts and co-hosting a weekly horse racing show.

Kern started back in 1980 and specialized in college sports and golf, coverage that won him awards from the Golf Writers Association of America and International Network of Golf. He’s a former president of the Philadelphia Sports Writers and appeared frequently on Daily News Live, before NBC Sports Philadelphia changed their afternoon programming to more generic fare.

The departure of Kern and Jerardi will leave the company with two college sports writers in Marc Narducci and Joe Juliano. Mike Jensen also covers college sports as a columnist and feature writer, so it’s unclear if his role will change.

A lot of great college sports coverage is eclipsed by our professional teams.

Consider the coverage distribution here. PMN has four full-time Eagles writers in Zach Berman, Jeff McLane, Les Bowen, and Paul Domowitch. There are four full-time columnists in Marcus Hayes, Bob Ford, Mike Sielski, and David Murphy. Six of those eight travel to Birds games, and I’m pretty sure all eight of them go to home games. They’ll occasionally pop up at Sixers games, which are covered by Keith Pompey, Sarah Todd, and sometimes Narducci. There are three Phillies writers and two Flyers writers, while Ed Barkowitz, John Smallwood, and Jonathan Tannenwald do a bit of everything.

PMN is looking to downsize by 30 to 35 employees while also hiring ten digitally-focused journalists:

“Inquirer and Daily News print advertising has declined faster than it can be replaced with newer sources of revenue such as digital advertising, which the company says requires it to cut costs.

But PMN is also encouraged by some early investments. The company last month began charging readers who click on more than 10 stories for further access to Philly.com, and those online subscriptions are “off to a good start,” (publisher Terrance C.Z.) Egger said.

Employees who lack digital skills or are uncomfortable with the newsroom changes can “self-select” their departure, he added. Egger credited top newsroom executives for crafting a buyout offer that was considerate to employees.”

Also, as part of the restructuring at NBCSP, longtime managing editor Andy Schwartz was let go. Schwartz was credited with building the site’s written coverage from the ground up.

At PhillyVoice, Phillies writer Ryan Lawrence will be out of a job come 2018– he was laid off along with two non-sports staffers. Rich Hofmann Jr. left in September to join The Athletic and Kyle Neubeck replaced him as the site’s Sixers writer.

Longtime Phillies writer Kevin Cooney was let go by Gatehouse Media, which bought the newspapers and digital properties previously owned by Calkins Media. Tom Moore has also moved to a more generic role at the publications which include the Bucks County Courier Times, The Intelligencer, and the Burlington County Times.

More Buyouts and Layoffs For Philadelphia Sports Media published first on http://ift.tt/2pLTmlv

[downthetubes]

Doctor Who Appreciation Society launches The Terrance Dicks Award For Writers

Doctor Who Appreciation Society launches The Terrance Dicks Award For Writers

The Doctor Who Appreciation Society has announced The Terrance Dicks Award For Writers, in memory of the much-loved, and highly influential, writer who passed away in 2019. The Terrance Dicks Award For Writers, designed by Gary Glover of Mooncrest Models The award will recognise those whose writing across screen, audio, book and magazine have contributed to, and enhanced, the worlds of Doctor…

[oliverphisher]

George Ivanoff

George Ivanoff is an author. He lives in the suburbs of Melbourne, Australia.

He has written over 100 books for children and teenagers, including fiction and non-fiction. He has written school readers, library reference books, chapter books, novelettes, novels and even a short story collection. He has books on both the Victorian Premier’s and the NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge booklists.

George’s latest series of books is OTHER WORDS. With this series George has ventured into the realms of science fiction and fantasy, two of his favourite genres, in order to tell stories about ordinary kids facing extraordinary circumstances. There are 4 books so far.

George’s has written 13 books in his interactive You Choose series. You Choose: The Treasure of Dead Man’s Cove won the 2015 YABBA in the “Fiction for Younger Readers” category; and You Choose: Alien Invasion From Beyond the Stars got an Honour Award in the KOALAs in 2016 and 2017.

His teen science fiction novel, Gamers’ Quest (2009), won a Chronos Award for speculative fiction. The sequel, Gamers’ Challenge (2011), was shortlisted for the same award. And the final book in the Gamers trilogy, Gamers’ Rebellion (2013), also won a Chronos Award.

George has also written a series of adventure books for kids — RFDS Adventures. The four books in this series were published in 2016.

George also writes short stories and articles for adults as well as kids. Of all these, he is most proud to have had the opportunity to write a Doctor Who story for the Short Trips: Defining Patterns anthology (Big Finish, UK, 2008).

Occasionally, George has been known to moonlight as an actor. He has had small roles in numerous productions including the television series Neighbours and the feature films Frozen Butterflies and William Kelly’s War. He recently guest starred in an episode of the audio series Night Terrace.

George eats too much chocolate, drinks too much coffee and watches too much Doctor Who. He will sometimes indulge in a nice bottle of wine or a single malt Scotch.

He has one wife, two children, two cats and several chickens. And he is very content!

What are one to three books that have greatly influenced your life? 

The Wonderful Flight to the Mushroom Planet by Eleanor Cameron  —  This is the book that turned me into a reader.

Doctor Who and the Dalek Invasion of Earth by Terrance Dicks — I have lost count of the number of times I have read this book. Dicks is one of my writing heroes and one of the reasons I wanted to become a writer.

Illuminae, by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff — This book takes such a different and innovative approach to narrative. It made me want to be a better writer and take more creative risks.

What purchase of $100 or less has most positively impacted your life in the last six months (or in recent memory)?

That $99 bottle of Japanese whiskey had a pretty good impact.

How has a failure, or apparent failure, set you up for later success? 

It taught me to never give up and to never take success for granted.

Are there any quotes you think of often or live your life by?

“Always try to be nice but never fail to be kind. ”

It’s from an episode of Doctor Who – “Twice Upon a Time”, written by Steven Moffat.

What is one of the best investments in a writing resource you’ve ever made? 

Pen and paper.

What is an unusual habit or an absurd thing that you love? 

I collect sonic screwdriver toys. (It’s a Doctor Who thing, for those of you who are wondering.)

In the last five years, what new belief, behaviour, or habit has most improved your life? 

I’ve realised that what other people think of me really isn’t all that important.

What advice would you give to a smart, driven aspiring author? What advice should they ignore? 

Read as much as you can. Write as much as you can. And never give up.

Ignore advice insisting that you write every day. Write whenever you get the chance, be that every day, every second-day, or once a week. The important thing is to write.

What are bad recommendations you hear in your profession often? 

That you need to work on raising your social media profile before approaching publishers with your writing. I think it’s far more important to work on your writing.

In the last five years, what have you become better at saying no to (distractions, invitations, etc.)? 

I’ve become better at saying no to people wanting me to read and comment on their work. I’m really not very good at assessing a piece of writing. I can tell you if I liked it or not, but I’m not great at explaining why or how it could be made better. I guess that’s why I’m an author and not an editor.

What marketing tactics should authors avoid?

Avoid constantly filling your social media with self-promotion. It’s a great way to lose followers.

When you feel overwhelmed or have lost your focus temporarily, what do you do? 

I go jogging. It clears my head and makes me feel better. Great for writer’s block.

Any other tips?

Write what you want to write, rather than what you think other people want you to write.

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