Unveiling Secrets Behind the Scenes: Kristen Gray-Rockmaker’s Untold Story

Kristen Gray-Rockmaker wrote the original screenplay “Last Days of Winter” which won a 2017 Nicholl Fellowship in Screenwriting. I had the opportunity to chat with Kristen about about her background, her award-winning script, the craft of screenwriting, and what winning the Nicholl has meant to her.

Scott Myers: You live in New Jersey, is that right?

Kristen Rockmaker: Yes.

Scott: Is that where you grew up?

Kristen: No. I actually grew up in Rhode Island, but I was living and working in New York City for many years. I just recently moved out to Jersey about three years ago because I had kids.

Scott: Three kids, right?

Kristen: Yeah, I have three kids. Once I had the third, there was no way I could stay in the city any longer. [laughs] We moved out to New Jersey.

Scott: How old are your kids?

Kristen: I have twins who are six, and I have a four‑year‑old.

Scott: Wow! I look forward to asking you later on how you find time to write, but we’ll get to that in a little bit. How did you wind your way into an interest as a writer?

Kristen: I’ve always been interested in writing. I’ve known I wanted to write since I was a kid, since I was, literally, 9 or 10 years old. I won a short‑story contest when I was in fourth grade, and I got published in the newspaper. I think I won $10 and I knew right then, I was like, “Oh, this is for me,” because I love making up stories.

That was the first time I think I realized, “Oh, you can get paid for doing this. That’s pretty wild.” I started writing right out of college. I actually had an agent. The first thing I wrote I co‑wrote with a friend of mine when I got out of school. It got shopped around a bit but, ultimately, did not get produced.

Scott: Was that a script or a novel?

Kristen: It was a script. It was a screenplay. It was being shopped around as a TV movie, actually. It didn’t wind up going anywhere. My agent was in Los Angeles and I was in New York. Then I started working in television just to pay the bills, unscripted television. The more that my career grew in unscripted television, the less I…