Class is in Session...

I signed up for an online screenwriting class with Gotham Writers' Workshop. I'm hoping this is going to keep me more focused than I am on my script. And I'm very afraid right now that I'm going to be way behind on my deadline.

But that's life, right? So all I can do now is remain focused. I am working on a 500 word synopsis for the class right now and I have my first 5 pages ready to submit along with that for the next class.

One of the twists that I'm adding is making me believe I need to change my point of view on the story. Right now I'm telling it from the male point of view and his life after release from prison. But now I'm starting to believe I need to be telling it from the female leads point of view and her struggles about his release.

I'm just entirely confused and that's what is making me very scared about completing this project on time. I know it's a self imposed deadline... but one day, in the real world of movie making I'm going to have actual deadlines where I'm going to have to rise to the occasion. So I need to get that practice in now.

I'm going to finish up the synopsis and see if I really do need to completely change the pov. I hope not. Because then I'd only really be able to salvage about 10 % of the script. And the writing for that will be a huge undertaking.

It's Decided...

I have to start fresh. Brand new beat sheet. Brand new story line. Some of the stuff from the previous draft will still be used. Probably about 40 % of it. But there's just no way around the fact that this is definitely going to be a major over haul. Hopefully for the best.

I'm off today and my room mates are at work probably until 7. I have a store meeting at 6. So that gives me plenty of time to get the beat sheet done and crack into the script.

I'm excited about the ideas I've had for the script in the last two days. I'm going to soften one of the characters up tremendously. She never had much of an arc and was just too cold for some readers to connect to her on any kind of level. And that's not good. Even if she isn't the main character. People have to find a way to connect with the characters in some way. And I think the new direction I'll be bringing her in will definitely improve on that.

I'm excited about the plot twist that I'm going to use. I've been going back and forth and actually doing it. But I think it will offer up a lot more conflict with the main character and the forces in his life that he's currently up against.

I'm just excited that finally the gears are turning and hopefully that will mean a very productive day today.

I'll post again this evening after the meeting with an update on anything I might have accomplished.

I think it's going to be a good day!

I've Had an Ephiphany...

Just five minutes ago I had an epiphany. I was blow drying my hair and I was thinking about my story and what is it about it that has caused me to go blank at this point.

I have too many story lines going on. Too many spinning plates on the sticks and I can't keep them all going.

And just like that I realized what I must do. I'm going to have to take some of those stories (and the mother's story line is a good one) and file it away and build a script around that.

And I realized I was trying to put too much drama into it. I need to scale back a bit.

All though it's been raining non-stop here for three days... I think the sun is shining brightly inside my little creative world.

Frozen...

I can't believe it. I sat down to write today and I'm completely frozen! I don't like anything that's in the script right now. And I don't know how to get back on track with it. I'm absolutely paralyzed at the keyboard.

I think it could be that I need to face the fact that I'm just going to have do a page one re-write to really fix the things that need to be fixed. I am, after all, completely changing a plot point which in turn changes situations before it happens and certainly changes the outcome of things in the end.

I may need a whole new set of note cards. And I think I'm going to sit down and make up a brand new "beat sheet."

I just can't believe it. I open up the screenplay and I just stare at it, my words staring me down and telling me how horrible it is. (And it is horrible... some of the dialog I just read is beyond bad!).

So, my decision today is that from 5pm to 7pm or so I'm going to completely re-map the script so that I can come up with a better game plan because this just is not working. I have to have this re-write completed by December 1st and it's already November 12th!

Whoa Whoa Whoa...

I'm SUCH a slacker. I haven't really done any writing until today. I set my alarm for 630. I woke up, took a shower, and sat down to write until just now. So points for me for getting back on track.

I'm going to try and continue this early morning routine for as long as I can. Hopefully it'll become a habit and it'll be easier to wake up so early.

I have to do it. I have my training supervisor at work asking why have I not become a manager. I have my manager asking when am I going to take over a store. I have my district manager asking the same. They all know I do not want to do it. I don't want the long thankless hours (which I've already been doing).

I know that if I took that next step into management that that would be it for me. And that's not what I want for myself.

Getting Ahead of Myself...

Wow... I have got to slow down. Or just stick to the schedule of things that I want to happen in order for this to succeed.

What I have done is found myself perusing various websites to find out how much a camera, lighting, etc. is going to cost me. And I find myself dreaming of these cameras that are way out of my budget.

But I don't even have the script finished! So what the hell am I doing? I need to get back on track and figure out the camera stuff later. It's not something that's going to help me now.

I even found myself justifying the Canon XL2 and it's hefty price because I could use it to film my sister's wedding in June. HOW RIDICULOUS IS THAT?! Then I realized it was probably a bit more than I would need and found myself falling in love with the Panasonic AG-DVX100B. Which I think is used to shoot the excellent FX tv show: It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

But I have to stop the madness!

So I'm determined to put those camera ideas away so that I may stay on the projected course of completing the second draft by November 1st.

But the Canon is just so pretty!

Deadlines!!!!

I'm going to change the game plan. Hopefully it'll benefit me.

The BlueCat Screenplay Competition has and early deadline of December 1st. And if you submit by then you'll receive analysis of your script by January 5th. The Nicholl Fellowship submission time is from January 1st through May 1st of every year.

Which means... I can finish up the re-write and get my submission into BlueCat early to get some excellent feedback. (I received great feedback on a script I submitted for the last competition.) I then can use that early feedback, as needed, on yet another re-write as I wait for feedback from members of the triggerstreet community when I submit the script for peer review. And then, hopefully, I'll have another re-written script that is getting close to being a well rounded script ready for the Nicholl Fellowship.

All of this hopefully propelling me forward to getting the script completed and ready to be filmed by fall of '09 or spring of '10.

I'm feeling quite energized knowing I have some actual deadlines in front of me... taunting me... daring me not to do it.

I will succeed!

One more thing....

Before I go to read and review a script.

I was just over at The Movie Quill (a fun site about "You know you're a screenwriter when...") and #10 is about the thought we all have as screenwriters after seeing a movie: I can write a better movie that that.

And it's true... more often than not, that idea has entered my brain while watching a movie.

But what about those movies that blow you away? What movies out there left you leaving the theatre saying: I wish I could write a movie like that!

There's nothing better than leaving a movie theatre with that feeling of: Wow! That's the kind of movie I want to write.

I can probably count on one hand recent movies that have left me feeling like that:

1. Babel
2. There Will Be Blood
3. The Believer
4. Atonement
5. Penelope

I'm sure there are others that I've forgotten, but these 5 are the ones that come to mind as I sit here. Babel is definitely in it's right place as #1. Never before, and not since, have I seen a movie have I gone through the emotions I went through while watching that film. I've never FELT emotions as strong as I did in that movie. And that's something I will forever strive to achieve as I write today.

Three Down - 110 to go...

After a silly conference call for my job this morning, and a quick surf on the internet I opened up MovieMagic Screenwriter and started on some more re-writing.

I worked on about three pages. Trimming in spots, adding more to others and just trying to even out the flow of things. I can see it shaping up a bit better than it was. So I'm still heading in the right direction.

I'm going to be taking one of my three main characters on a totally different path in the story. And I think I may have figured it out somewhat and have already begun her thread anew. I'm still on the fence about changing one important element to this characters story as I've received mixed feedback about it. We'll see what happens. Perhaps my character will reveal to me the path she should take as her story unfolds?

I don't have to be at work until 2 today, so I may head over to Triggerstreet to read and review a script. I need to start collecting credits over there so that they'll be ready to place on the revised script when it's time to post it.

Over at the blog Ways With Words there's a discussion about how do writers do it alone? How do we do it alone? We all know that it's definitely easier with other fellow writers. But what do you do if you're cut off from that? How do you make it work? How do you learn and grow as a writer on your own? More importantly... how does your work improve if you write alone?

Head over to Ways With Words to post about how you do it. And if you aren't alone, or work through the internet with fellow writers... what are some useful resources that you use that could be beneficial to others out there?

The Board: Part Two...

So, maybe I shouldn't have done the board the way that I did it. You see, I took the note cards and opened up the three ring binder that contains The Script. And I placed the cards where the beats were. Or so I thought. The more I look at the board the more I realize that I didn't really hit all the beats... I just hit some scenes.

That's why The Script is a little under weight. I have murmur in the heart beat of my script.

So now I just stare at the wall with all the pretty colors trying to figure out the major beats for the script.

I may just have to start from scratch on this one. Literally. Start fresh from page one. I've changed some major plot points and character in the re-write of my mind.

Yesterday I had all day off and I didn't do a damn thing. My precious Patriots were playing at one so I couldn't miss that... even though they weren't on TV... at least I have sprint on my cell phone and I can listen to Patriot radio on that.

They won!

Let's hope on Wednesday, my next day off, I can chalk up a win for a new beginning on my script.

The Board...

I actually did cobble together a board filled with brightly colored note cards. Green to represent Act I. Yellow to rep Act II and Blue to rep Act III. The orange cards rep a couple of turning points and the ending.



The Board definitely needs fine tuning in order to serve The Script. But I'm glad I got it up there like I told myself I would. Now I just need to fill it in some more to really give the story some meet on the bones.

My Comment Cherry Has Been Popped...

That's right, day two of blogging and I received my first comment. Pretty exciting stuff. Especially since I truly believe that this blog was really just for myself to get my thoughts out on my specific journey as a writer.

The comment came from Isaac Sweeney. Which was in response to a comment I had made on his blog. But Mr. Sweeney did take a moment to write a brief blog about my blog and I shall return the favor: fellow writers - from any background or genre - must unite!

His blog: Ways With Words caught my eye with a post about concise writing and he listed examples of brief quotes that drive home the fact that brevity is key. (The actual post is here).

Mr. Sweeney brought up a question within the post that caused me to start thinking. He asks:

"So, why do we do this writing thing?"

For me it is something that is born inside of me. I don't know how to describe it. It's just in me. There are times I want to give up. But the movie projector inside of mind does not ever shut off. It's always on.

There literally is not a day that goes by that some random scene doesn't pop into my head. Lucky for me I work a mundane job that I can entertain these characters in the scene to see where it goes and to see if there is a story there.

(I just read what I typed in that paragraph up there. I sound crazy. I promise you I am not.)

I can get these scenes from something a customer says to me. A song on a radio may stir the story inside of me. I get them everywhere. From everything. What I'm working on right now, The Script, that idea came to me from a cross stuck in the ground on the highway marking the end of one's life.

So for me: I write because it's like breathing. Maybe what I write isn't great... but it's an involuntary muscle that keeps me alive.

I Put the "Pro" in Procrastination...

I actually have the day off today! So I figure I'll be able to nail down a few more pages than expected. But then I remembered I did go and buy some index cards to re-map The Script. And they're colored so I can color code the three acts on the cork board that is just behind this laptop on the wall, that way all I have to do is look up, see where I should be at, and continue on the journey.

But does that count as writing? I'm not actually putting pen to paper (or punching keys to screen). In the end it'll serve me better if I do map it out. Right now it's mapped out for a romantic comedy. That idea came from a song I heard on the radio while driving to The Job. I think it's relatively "high concept."

But, I'm going to have to put those cards into the file drawer for later. Because, you know, I have this mission I'm on to have this script re-written in time for Nicholl's. And maybe I'm making my own noose with this thing... because I know damn well that a second draft of a script does not a contest winner make.

I do have a double movie date with my sister today. We've got to start trying to get out to see possible Oscar contenders. So that our plates are not full just before the Oscars and we are running around trying to see three or four on any given weekend.

The things we can come up with as "writers" to not actually work on our craft. Actually, I think writing is the only thing out there where you can go to the movies and claim that you are actually "studying" for your craft.

The Opening...

From notes on the first draft I realize I need a more smooth introduction to my main characters. I'm still trying to strike the balance between a tight description and the excessive description. And it appears that in the first draft I've very little description.

I still want to treat this as a spec script. So while I bend the rules somewhat to my own style, I still want to have the proper structure to use as my calling card for a script to sell me as a writer. Even though I have plans to film this myself and I could put in as much, or as little description, I want to do this the right way.

I've re-written the first couple of pages and I think it's already a thousand times better. I introduce my main character through the actions he takes in his cell as he prepares for his release. So goal one is accomplished today. And I'm proud of the fact that I did, indeed, do it through actions and not through dialog.

The script, as it is now, is just barely 90 pages. My goal is to add some more substance and get within 110. I think that by adding in scenes to help flesh out the story/characters and get rid of a few loose ends that I left in the first draft.

I should let you know that I wrote all but 19 of the 90 pages during the 1st Avalanche that ran July 15, 2008 - July 21, 2008. And all that Avalanche was was a group of fellow writers from www.triggerstreet.com that took part in a project on the boards to complete as many pages in a week.

I'm off to a great start. I hope I can continue down this path and hopefully discover and learn more about what goes into getting a script ready to go to the screen.

The Plan...

Whilst at work today I came up with a weekly plan for The Script. I probably should have tried to spend my break figuring out how to boost the sales, but hey, I clocked out... it's MY time and I worked out this plan:

From October 22nd through December 23rd I'll have a goal of working on 2-3 pages a day with a weekly minimum goal of 13 pages. This does prove daunting if only because I work in retail and the holidays are fast approaching meaning: I'll be at work probably 45-50+ hours a week. I'll just have to be thrifty with my time.

Lucky for me I have the first draft of The Script finished. There's just a few things from the first round of writing that need tweaking. The usual changing, omitting, adding or switching around of scenes through out to create a, hopefully, much better second draft.

I'm pretty sure I can do it.

I don't really have a choice. I HAVE to do it.

I can't sell shoes the rest of my life.

A Quick Hello...

I just wanted to start this blog to chronicle my journey as an aspiring screenwriter who has only recently decided to go ahead a film the damn thing myself.

It's my third script. You can find it here:

http://posting.triggerstreet.com/gyrobase/Submission?oid=oid%3A1765998

I'm going to blog about the re-write that I plan on completing by January first in order for me to gather a few more reviews so that I may enter it into The Nicholl Fellowship in Screenwriting program.

If I win that, then that's just grand. But either way, my main focus is to have a tight script ready to go by fall of 2009. I'm going to jump right on in and film this sucker myself. When I wrote it I had a tiny budget in mind. I also wrote it with my city in mind.

I'd like to believe I can have this thing ready by fall 2009. But I may end up having to do it Spring 2010.

We'll see how disciplined I am.