Ep518 - Melanie Marnich, Screenwriter ‘Apples Never Fall,’ ’The Big C,’ ‘Big Love,' & 'The Affair'’

Creative Principles

‘I didn’t grow up in a place where I was hanging out with screenwriters,” says Melanie Marnich. “I grew up in Duluth, Minnesota. I was a voracious reader and I think that sparked something in me, but I didn’t know that that would be a career.” In college, Marnich was a journalism major with an emphasis in advertising. “I would up doing and loving TV and radio commercials.” She loved the job, but felt limited writing in spurts of 30- or 60-seconds. “Then I got the theater bug.” Feeling that she had some of the right instincts but wanting a more formal degree, she went back to graduate school to learn the ins and outs of becoming a playwright. “That was the big leap, going from advertising to being a playwright. But again, after a few years, I felt like there was something more to do.” Following her gut instinct once more, she pursued a career in filmmaking. “Out of the blue, my theater agent sent a play of mine to an agent in LA, who, unbeknownst to me, sent the play to the Showrunner of Big Love.” She went on to write 12 episodes of the hit HBO series. In addition to Big Love, Marnich has credits for My America, The Big C, Low Winter Sun, The Affair, The OA, The Son, A Murder at the End of the World, and Apples Never Fall. “I think it was an extremely necessary path and the right path for me. I think to say that advertising + theater = TV.” “I think if I had gone into TV sooner, I don’t think I would have had the tools I needed as a writer to build a career out of it. I think I learned a lot every step of the way and those various versions of storytelling that created in me someone who understood TV and had specific toolkit beneficial for TV.” Want more? Steal my first book, Ink by the Barrel - Secrets From Prolific Writers right now for free. Simply head over to www.brockswinson.com to get your free digital download and audiobook. If you find value in the book, please share it with a friend as we’re giving away 100,000 copies this year. It’s based on hundreds of interviews here at Creative Principles. If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts? It only takes about 60-seconds and it really helps convince some of the hard-to-get guests to sit down and have a chat (simply scroll to the bottom on your iTunes Podcast app and click “Write Review"). Enjoy the show!