Writer-producer LaToya Morgan on TV storytelling and creative self-discipline

“It’s better for characters if their arc isn’t a straight line. You get to see how far they will go for something. You get to test them.” – Latoya Morgan

LaToya Morgan (@MorganicInk) is screenwriter who currently serves an executive producer on AMC’s Into the Badlands. Previously, she has worked on the shows Shameless and Turn. She is currently developing a drama for AMC based on Wesley Lowery’s best-selling book They Can’t Kill Us All.

In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and LaToya talk about her early upbringing and influences (2:30); diversity on television (8:30); her decision to become a writer (15:00); the role of research versus personal experience in writing (28:00); the the experience of working in a writers' room (34:00); and managing work/life balance (48:00).

Notable Links:

Stephen King (author)
The Twilight Zone (television show)
Black Mirror (television show)
General Hospital (television show)
One Life to Live (television show)
Oprah (television personality / media executive)
Friday Night Lights (television show)
Mad Men (television show)
Game of Thrones (television show)
The X-Files (television show)
John Steinbeck (author)
American Film Institute
Charlie Chaplin (actor)
City Lights (film)
Final Draft (screenwriting software)
Melrose Place (television show)
Sunset Boulevard (film)
Warner Brothers Television Writers’ Workshop
Southland (television show)

Books mentioned:

Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck
The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck
Cannery Row, by John Steinbeck
The Art of Dramatic Writing, by Lajos Egri
Save the Cat, by Blake Snyder
The Hero’s Journey, by Joseph Campbell
Story, by Robert McKee
On Writing, by Stephen King
Outliers, by Malcolm Gladwell

The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel's 2017 album Lumber.

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