by Jimmy Carrane and Liz Allen.
I read Will Hines' blog, which is great, and he singled out this book in a post so I gave it a shot.
Improvising Better is awesome. It identifies some common trouble spots that many improvisors go through, like being afraid to get angry, not naming people and things, and the all to common forgetting to act. Each trouble spot is coupled with a nice little walkthrough of how these things happen, why they're not desirable and a few exercises and solutions for each one. Here's a little excerpt that I enjoy.
Some tips to avoid misguided object work:
•First of all, stop talking about what you're doing. Just do it. Don't name it; it may be named for you, or you may have to adjust according to what the scene needs
•The simpler the better!
•Latch onto someone else's object work. Start doing what he is doing! That's when the real fun begins.
•Start with a strong action, but make eye contact with your partners, and invite them emotionally into your improvising.
•If all else fails, drop the object work and go to the connection.
This book is filled with some practical tips that when put into practice really do help. As a student and an improvisor, it's good, even if you don't have these problems, to be aware that they exist. As a coach and teacher, it's perfect because it's a quick crash course on how to tackle these all too common pitfalls.
For less than $9 and only about 70 pages, this is a hard one to pass up. Get Improvising Better: A Guide for the Working Improvisor today.
Any books that you love? Know a better one? Leave me some comments, we'll chat.
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