Nonfiction

Authors are constantly asked where they get their ideas. The truth is, the best ideas are those we aren’t looking for at the time. They’re the kind which sneak up on us out of left field when we are reading or researching something else. When we have a specific task, then, we often look in unusual places for inspiration. Nonetheless, if I were given the task of coming up with material to adapt into a socially-relevant but still successful Broadway musical, I’m not sure I would start by researching obscure late-19th century German plays. Then again, I’m not Steven Sater or Duncan Sheik, creators of the Tony-winning rock musical Spring Awakening.