Episode 17: Gary Lennon, "Power," "Euphoria," "Hightown"

<p>Caroline spoke with playwright, screenwriter, and showrunner Gary Lennon about embracing rejection; the elements of a successful writers' room; his philosophy on putting real life in your fiction; the new seasons of POWER, HIGHTOWN, and EUPHORIA, and much more.</p> <p><strong>Gary Lennon's</strong> somewhat tumultuous childhood paved the way for the start of his writing career: his first screenplay, for the 1995 film DRUNKS, was an adaptation of his stage play, BLACKOUT – a series of semi-autobiographical monologues about alcoholism.</p> <p>Since then, he has been a consistent fixture in the film and television worlds, with writing credits on shows like THE SHIELD, JUSTIFIED, and ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK. He's currently the co-showrunner of the Starz crime drama POWER, and is an executive producer on the forthcoming Starz drama HIGHTOWN and the HBO teen drama EUPHORIA.</p> <p>POWER tells the story of James St. Patrick, a ruthless drug-dealer under the nickname "Ghost", who wishes to leave the criminal world in order to support his legitimate business interests as a nightclub owner. The sixth and final season will premiere in August.</p> <p>EUPHORIA, which premiered last month, follows a group of high school students as they navigate drugs, sex, identity, trauma, social media, love and friendship.</p> <p>HIGHTOWN follows federal Fishery Service Agent Jackie Quinones, whose life of partying and less-than-enthusiastic relationship to her job are upended after she discovers a body in Cape Cod Bay, and finds herself at the center of the Cape’s gruesome heroin epidemic. It's tentatively set to premiere in early 2020.</p> <p>--<br /> <strong>Read shownotes, transcripts, and other member interviews:<br /></strong><a href= "http://www.onwriting.org/">www.onwriting.org/<br /></a><strong>--<br /> </strong> <strong>Follow us on social media:<br /></strong>Twitter: <a href= "http://twitter.com/onwritingwgae">@OnWritingWGAE</a> | <a href="http://twitter.com/wgaeast">@WGAEast</a><br /> Facebook: <a href= "http://www.facebook