Reckless Creatives Podcast: Emmy-Winning Screenwriter and Author Charles Kipps on Making a Plan

It's not everyday we get a writer with the life and work experience of Charles Kipps to join our crazy podcast, let alone have a therapy session with Sadie and Jeanne.

Yes, we talked about everything from Charles producing Aretha Franklin, to our struggles as writers, to Charles' decades of writing experiences ... and he's still selling screenplays to this day! 

You're not going to want to miss this one ... so much great advice from the legend that is Charles Kipps. (See below for Charles' full bio.)

One note of correction: Charles inadvertently stated that Bill Cosby's agent helped him get his first book published, but it was actually Cosby's editor who did. Just wanted to correct that for the record.

Resources from this episode:
Charles Kipps website—be sure to sign up for his newsletter! 

Pipeline Podcasts:
All OG Pipeline Artists podcasts can be found on pipelineartists.com/listen.

YouTube:
Watch full (read that as "most ... maybe not any" because Jeanne is tired) episodes on YouTube.

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*****

Writer/producer Charles Kipps has won an Emmy, Peabody, Humanitas Prize, and Mystery Writers Edgar Award. 

Among his credits are Exiled: A Law & Order Movie and the 25th Anniversary Columbo special, A Trace of Murder. His film credits include Fat Albert: The Movie as well as independent films Frame of Mind, Zarra’s Law, and Anatomy of the Tide. He is currently in preproduction with Someday Sometime, a music driven romantic comedy which he will also direct.

Kipps is the author of the Conor Bard Mysteries. The first three titles are Hell’s Kitchen Homicide, Crystal Death and Times Square Trouble. The novels chronicle the days and nights of Conor Bard, an NYPD Detective who, while a dedicated cop, considers himself a musician with a day job.  Kipps also wrote two nonfiction books: Cop Without A Badge, which details the exploits of a confidential informant who worked with both local and federal law enforcement; and Out of Focus, which goes behind the scenes of a turbulent year at Columbia Pictures. His new novel is Absolute Threshold, an espionage thriller. It is the first in a series about CIA psychiatrist Harvey Chatham as he combines psychology with spy craft. 

Kipps received numerous gold records and Broadcast Music awards while writing and producing songs for artists such as Aretha Franklin, Gladys Knight, Melba Moore, and Temptations lead singer David Ruffin for whom he wrote the hit Walk Away From Love. He was a partner in McCoy/Kipps Productions with Van McCoy, whose recording of The Hustle topped the Billboard charts.