One of my Neighbors (film review: A Writer Named Phil Hall")

"Being a writer is being in touch with humanity"

"A Writer Named Phil Hall"
By Bryan Correa-Berger

Being a writer is being in touch with humanity. The film is a short but refreshing interview with Phil Hall on being a writer. I've talked with Walter Myers, Madeline L' Engle, and a couple of other great writers of our generation, and Phil has the qualities they have to really understand and connect with the humanity in others. He is very proud of his writing achievements, but his astute insights and passion are very understated. The qualities for good writing (and hopefully great writing) he suggests are to keep your quality high, court attention wherever you can, be persistent and as a writer, talk to your reader.

From a technical standpoint, the video is actually better as a radio broadcast. The film needs changes in viewpoints, camera angles, or something to make it visually more interesting. I played it without looking at it and I actually picked up on more of the content without watching it. I also had to smirk when Phil admitted that being a writer is an ego trip. He made at least 2 plugs for each of his books and listed many of his extensive writing accomplishments (with a hint of so many that it would exceed the length of the video). You can almost hear the horns tooting. To his good credit and story-telling style, he humbly and generously acknowledges the responsibility of being published and backing up your reputation with continuing quality. You can't talk the talk without walking the walk.

You can find the film Here. It is 24 minutes long and the website is a good resource for students and teachers to learn from other experts.

Phil Hall is also an editor for a trade magazine for the Alternative Energy Industry in CT. I keep track of him because he's doing his part to be a good neighbor.