I want you to know that, although this site's Updates section has been woefully underfed this year, I've actually been quite busy. The main reason I'd been postponing a new entry here is that I've been waiting to announce the launch of my lynda.com Screenwriting Fundamentals course. We filmed the thing in July and originally it was set to launch in late September. But the lynda.com team and I have been experiencing what could be called a "good problem": unlike many of lynda.com's other online courses, this one isn't just me in a white room. We are actually filling the course with animations and other little special effects, and the fact is that it's taking a long time to do. (I'm not doing them; lynda.com's resources are hard at work.) I've been assured that the course will be live before the end of the year, but admittedly I am starting to get a little anxious. I must emphasize that this course is a major project for me - easily the biggest thing I've done since I finished Claustrophobia - and I think it turned out really well, so I can't wait to see it online.
Meanwhile, I've been hard at work on other things. I wrote the content for two iPad apps that are tied in to major blockbusters: Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows and The Amazing Spider-Man. Both are "second screen" apps, designed to enhance your viewing experience of those films' Blu-ray discs, but they can be enjoyed on their own too. Best of all, they're completely free, so head on over to the App Store and check out my work. I've also had a lot more Blu-ray extra content writing jobs (my usual contributions for HBO's True Blood and Treme, amongst others), and have done my share of traveling this year as well, as evidenced by this photo of me and my wife Miki in Sydney, Australia (where I have actual fans - and I know, because I met them!), taken just over a week ago. I also gave another talk at the motion conference in Albuquerque last month, and that went well. So what's on the burner for 2013? Well, I promise to finally finish editing the short film I shot almost two years ago, for one thing. Also, people are starting to tease me about how antiquated this website is, so I plan to redesign this site when I can. Otherwise, what I do next year pretty much all depends on what happens with the screenwriting course. If it's a bust, then it's back to business as usual. If it's a hit, then it could lead to any number of fantastic developments.