“Whatever my life story is, the last line cannot be, ‘And then he died in Texas.’”
In this episode, I’m joined by filmmaker and debut author Alex R Johnson to unpack the story behind his debut novel, how screenwriters are robbed of creative ownership, and what it takes to push past imposter syndrome—even at 50.
Show highlights
- His transition from screen to prose—and what finally unlocked his confidence as a novelist
- The deeply personal inspiration behind Brooklyn Motto, a mystery set in late-90s Brooklyn
- The hard truth about working in Hollywood, that screenwriters often surrender all rights to their work
- How racism, addiction, and family trauma shaped his writing process and worldview
“Anyone that does any writing in their daily life has a novel in them, you know… They’re expressing themselves with words and they’re intimidated about writing a novel. They shouldn’t be because they’re already doing it. They just need to hone it a little bit and focus.”
Alex R Johnson
Brooklyn Motto is more than a whodunnit—it’s an exploration of memory, justice, and what it means to belong to a city that’s always changing. Whether you’re a writer, filmmaker, or just trying to keep your creative flame alive, this episode offers a reminder that it’s never too late to do what you were meant to do.
Brooklyn Motto is available now, and you can order a copy here.
Got any thoughts on this episode or want to suggest authors you’d like to see on the show? Send me a note here.
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About Alex R Johnson
Filmmaker and writer Alex R. Johnson’s debut novel, Brooklyn Motto, was released on March 11. His feature film Two Step premiered to critical acclaim at SXSW in 2014 and went on to become a New York Times Critics’ Pick, as well as remaining 100% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.
His screenplay NORTHEAST KINGDOM was selected for the 2016 Black List. It was acquired by Paramount Pictures for Platinum Dunes to produce, with Johnson attached to direct. In 2016, his screenplay ANY ROUGH TIMES ARE NOW BEHIND YOU was selected by the Austin Film Society’s Artist Intensive lab. There, he spent three days working one-on-one with late director Jonathan Demme, an experience that was as inspiring as it was creatively life-changing.
Prior to writing and directing, Johnson was a seasoned NYC-based commercial and documentary producer. He started his career at the legendary Maysles Films and then branched off to work with other directors. In 2010, he produced the feature documentary I Am Secretly an Important Man for filmmaker Pete Sillen.
Johnson’s family hails from the Andes of Ecuador, and he lives and works in Brooklyn, NY.
About Brooklyn Motto
New York City, 1998. New York is changing around Nico Kelly, and he can feel more coming.
A private investigator and self-proclaimed photographer, Nico is stuck in a loop of city contracts and self loathing. What little middle class there was is disappearing—long-standing factories are moving out and taking their reliable neighborhood jobs with them, and Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s police force has the streets in a stranglehold.
Nico spends his days looking for fraudsters while taking photos of municipal employees on disability claims. He spends his nights trying to get rid of the nagging feeling that his day job makes him a professional snitch—traversing dive bars, playing pinball, and fighting through the haze of hungover mornings and blurry evenings.
Pushing thirty years old and feeling split between his American and Latin heritage, between youth and adulthood, Nico finds himself at a precipice—who is he and what should he become?
When Nico witnesses and records a murder during one of his insurance fraud investigations, bodies start to turn up all around him and he’s forced into solving a mystery he didn’t ask to solve. Humorous, gritty, and real, Nico’s search for what it means to be human takes him through the deepest and darkest parts of New York City.
Guest’s links
Follow Alex on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/haciendafilms/
Visit the book website: linktr.ee/BrooklynMotto
Host’s links
Book a one-on-one with Lola: https://wordcaps.com/coaching/
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