Good Writers, Good Movies

What makes a good writer? I think one of the most important things is to be a good story teller. Everyone likes a good story. If you can tell an interesting and creative story that keeps the readers' attention, that is maybe the most important key to good writing. Many books become movies. In most (not all) cases, it is because the author tells a good story that captures the imagination of the readers. So it is not surprising that books that are interesting to read go on to become movies. I like John Grisham's books about lawyers. Grisham is a good story teller. He has published many books, and I think that almost every one has been made into a movie. The books are usually better than the movies. Why is that? When we read, we engage our imaginations and create rich images in our minds of the characters, the situations, the places, and so on. When the book is turned into a movie, there is only one story, the one we see on the screen, and there is really not much left to the imagination. Some other well known authors whose books have become movies are Ernest Hemingway, John Steinbeck, and Pat Conroy, to name a few. Their writing styles are different, but they have one thing in common--they can tell a good story.