Arrowhead
Volume 17, Number 6 March 2000
The Talented Mr. Lotowycz
by Hana Kim
You may have passed him by in the halls without giving a second glance, but turn around baby ‘cause that’s Randy Lotowycz, the up-and-coming…Who knows what. ‘Who’ only knows that this kid is destined for success.
At age eighteen, Randy has already formed two production companies, built a publishing enterprise from the ground up, written numerous screenplays and short stories, and published his own book, entitled In the Meanwhile. The buck doesn’t stop there.
Last year, the Star Ledger wrote an article on this WH student, specifying his many accomplishments. The article caused a let’s-get-to-know-Randy frenzy and Randy reports that five hundred people visited his first website, where he posted some of his early work. Teenagers from Australia to America got a chance to explore his website. His writings reached high acclaim, for the messages they expressed called out like sirens to lonely pirates.
Lotowycz first started writing for pleasure in the eighth grade; he wanted to impress a girl. Later he wrote his first story, a two-page rough draft that later evolved into ‘J.R.’s Pictures: The Painting’. "For him, writing is like breathing," said one friend. "Sometimes I rip off an experience and try to capture all the emotions surrounding it. Basically, I’ve been cataloguing my emotions for a long time and using that in my writing," explains Lotowycz.
Other inspirations, besides friends and experience, include idols such as Kevin Smith (an independent filmmaker who recently directed Dogma with Matt Damon and Ben Affleck). Fortunately, Lotowycz has had numerous meetings with his idol, who is located in Redbank, NJ. Lotowycz has even presented the filmmaker with In the Meanwhile.
"Sean Mullican is already beginning the sketches for the next book, and I have some writings already done, so it should be out in the near future," declares Lotowycz. For a copy of In the Meanwhile, it’s not too late; with eight dollars you can buy an autographed copy from the man himself.
