So last week was all about THE FRENZY! Script Frenzy that is. 100 script pages in 30 days. And I am happy to report that 102 pages later I came away A WINNER! Woo hoo! What have I won? Well…the right to brag about it. And also the angst of a long, arduous rewrite where I look over my pages and wonder, “What in the world was I thinking?!?” But, for now I’ll focus on the former and be satisfied with the fact that I’ve laid a new foundation of scriptyness.
I decided to write a play this time and it was an interesting exercise for me. I liked the fact that I didn’t have to grant painstaking attention to every last scene description. And my characters also got to blab on and on and on. But the pressure comes in what they’re blabbing about – I want the writing to be realistic without being mundane, incisive without being cloyingly clever. It’s never as easy as it looks, is it?
If you're in LA, see how it's done.
But, as I mentioned, the small victory comes in simply finishing that first draft. A writer friend and I were discussing how easy it is to fall into the “noodling” zone where you obsess about those first thirty pages so much that a year goes by and you’ve still only got a first act to show for your efforts. Better to just purge out that initial draft and then dive into the REAL work, which is the rewriting.
A BIG CONGRATS to my friend Kevin who was also a successful Frenzier! While I always appreciate the structure offered by the online contest, it’s also nice to know that someone else is going through the same pain of a looming deadline. THANKS for keeping me focused and motivated, Kev! Does this mean we don’t have to write something new until next April?
And while I’m offering up my gratitude, I’d just like to thank the universe for a beautiful royal wedding (yes, I was up all night to experience the pomp and circumstance live) and for bringing the hammer of justice down on public enemy #1. What a dramatic turn of events! (I’m looking forward to the cinematic retelling of the courageous Navy Six. I vote for Kathryn Bigelow to direct.)
Smiles, everyone, smiles!
NEXT UP: Leaving on a Jet Plane…Again!
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