Dear Friends,
Let me tell you about my current writing projects. Most of the writing will be on Substack for both the free/paid subscribers, but I am also working on two ideas for books. One will be a novel, and I can’t talk about that, but I’m also doing another book on my family that will combine music and life in the bohemian art world. Both are ambitious projects, and I will spend time writing/editing/researching in 2024.
Nick Ebeling and I have been working on a film script this past year based on my memoir TOSH: Growing Up in Wallace Berman’s World. Nick’s last film was Along For The Ride, a documentary on the making of Dennis Hopper’s The Last Movie. We haven’t shown anyone the script due to the writer’s strike, but we’re happy with it, and I expect there will be changes as the project progresses. Writing a script, especially with someone else, is an excellent and educational experience. I enjoy the process, and I’m consistently thinking of a blank screen in a movie theater and how to fill that space. We are also working on an original idea for another film script that should be finished in 2024.
Lun*na Menoh and I will be in Japan for her Les Sewing Sisters Japan Home Tour this October. Saori Mitome and Lun*na will perform in people’s homes, specifically in their closet space. I will keep a journal during this trip, commenting on the shows, people’s homes, especially in the Japanese context, and my life in my second home, which is very different from my life in Los Angeles. There will be a film about the trip, and I’m very much part of the movie as I am in life. I plan to post images and thoughts in Japan, which will be part of the Substack world.
At this point, I want to thank you for supporting me here on Substack. This site is crucial because I get funding from the subscriptions, so thank you! But beyond the payment, Substack is an experimental lab for me. It’s not a book nor a film script - It is a separate but important medium, and I think of you readers as reading my work on the laptop, phone, iPad, and so forth. So, please keep on subscribing and share my work with others. I will keep on sharing my ideas about culture, books, films, and music, but also I will use that material in an experimental and personal manner of writing. And I’m a writer who always thinks of an audience in front of me. I will never forget you.
Tosh Berman, Tuesday, September 26, 2023
The strike is over! We want that Tosh flick !
Really looking forward to all the new projects!