A bad script is read

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Each week for class, we are required to post to a discussion board. What we post depends on what we are studying at the moment.

For this week, we were given a “bad” script to read and evaluate. In previous classes we’ve evaluated mini-scripts written by classmates, but never before have we been given a full length script, reminded that the writer of the script has no access to our comments, and told to rip it to shreds.

It sounds easy, doesn’t it? After all, we humans are very critical beings, and we often enjoy finding the bad in things more than we like finding the good. Complaining is one of our common hobbies.

But this script was such a mess that it was difficult to know where to start. The formatting was all wrong, there were whole scenes that made no sense, and spelling and grammar errors abounded. What a horror to read!

But worst of all, it was hard to tell exactly who was supposed to be the main character! Can you imagine?

Amazingly, ladies and gentlemen, this script was made into a movie. I remember seeing it advertised in the theaters.

It did not get very good reviews.

Hmmm. I guess the old saying that the apple doesn’t fall very far from the tree works for movies too!

Would they, could they, write a script?

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The time to visit my husband’s school to talk to the students about writing is just around the corner. As a matter of fact, I bet if I blink fast a few dozen times it will be here!

So I won’t blink, not even slowly, because I’m not ready.

I want to really motivate the kids. I want them to understand why good writing is important, and how they can become better writers.

The problem is, how?

Right now I am totally fascinated with screenwriting (I wonder why?), and would like to teach a screenwriting lesson to the kids. It seems like it would be a wonderful way for them to get a grasp of the necessary parts of a story–character, plot, scene, etc.

But I don’t think time is on my side. Whatever lesson I teach needs to be able to be completed in about 45 minutes. 45 minutes to explain the parts of a script (simplified for 5th graders, of course), to stress the importance of strong plot and characters, and to get them to write?

I don’t know. I just don’t know. It might be possible….

A present of sun

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Today is a good day.

I cannot remember a single birthday when it wasn’t rainy. That’s not to say that it didn’t happen, I just don’t remember it.

I first began noticing the raininess of my birthday in my teen years, and I’ve been kinda keeping track ever since. I’ve had birthdays where the day before and the day after are sunny, but my actual birthday, well, it seems to bring the rain.

I suppose it is only to be expected, having a birthday that falls directly after Groundhog Day.

But today is a good day because this birthday is different. I look outside and I am amazed at the beauty I see there. So much sun! It could be Spring! On February 3rd!

I think I’ll take it as a good omen.  And go outside.

We ain’t equal yet, sister!

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The world is not an equal place. Especially for women.

I came across the Writers Guild of America’s list of 101 best screenplays of all time. It was done in 2005, and it is a very interesting list. (Entire list can be found at here on the WGA site.) 

According to the US Census Bureau, 50.8% of the US population is female (2010 statistic). That’s to be expected, since we all know pretty much half of the population is female, and usually has been.
Yet of the 101 screenplays deemed “best” by the WGA, only 6 of them were written, or co-written, by women.

It’s a Wonderful Life: Co-written by Frances Goodrich & Albert Hackett & Frank Capra.


Wizard of Oz: Co-written by Noel Langley and Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf.

Singin’ in the Rain: Co-written by Betty Comden & Adolph Green.


Thelma & Louise:  Written by Callie Khouri

When Harry Met Sally:  Written by Nora Ephron

E.T.:  Written by Melissa Mathison
 
§        It made me wonder. I know there are a lot of fabulous female writers, so why are they not evident in the entertainment business? And could that explain why there seemed to be a lot more good male roles available than there are female ones?
 I did further research and came across a 2011 article titled “Female Filmmakers Need Not Apply: USC Study Reveals Staggering Hollywood Gender Gap — Response by Screenwriter Cheryl McKay Price.“
You should read the article. It talks about a study done in 2008 that found that men outnumbered women 5 to 1 among the 5,000 most influential roles. It goes on to say that only “8% of directors, 13.6% of writers, and 19.1% of producers are female.”
 
Yet, women make up more than half of the population. It makes you think, doesn’t it?
 

ABNA

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I did it. I entered Gray Zone into the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest.

Wish me luck, and send Gray Zone all the good thoughts you can spare. It is a Young Adult contemporary fiction about cyberbullying, so the topic is topical.

I finished it ages ago (at least 6 months) and I’ve been just waiting for this contest.

There are 2 categories, general fiction and young adult fiction. Each category will have 5,000 entries.

On February 23rd Amazon editors will narrow it down to 1,000 entries per category, based simply on the book’s pitch.

It makes me nervous to enter my book in a contest like this, but it is also exciting!

Again, wish me luck!

Snowstorm 2012

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The news reports say that it is one of the top five biggest snowstorms our area has had in history. They’ve called it Winter Extreme, Winter Wallop, and even good old Snowstorm.

All I know is that it is cold, beautiful, it transforms my neighborhood into a winter wonderland, and that I’m glad I have a cozy house to save me from its wonderfulness.

Obfuscation

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The best writers focus on what is important–communication. They keep their writing simple, clear, and concise.

They don’t get caught up in complicated sentence structures.

They resist the urge to show off their superior vocabulary.
They lay out their argument in an easy to understand manner, one that does not require a flow chart to understand.

I recently encountered the quintessence of the bad style of writing when I was forced to peruse a book that tenaciously used obfuscating verbiage to make the substance arduous to comprehend, and therefore sleep-inducing.

Yep. That’s how I felt about it too.

 

Slipping into villainosity

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I have been studying what makes a villain, and I find it rather interesting. I am especially fascinated by the fact that a wrong step, usually into that self-centered world of me-dom, can turn a hero into a villain.

Think about it. Villains and heroes are closer than might be expected. A hero, to protect himself or his loved ones, often has to keep himself apart from others. He is different than the average person, and more powerful.

A villain is also different and more powerful, and like the hero, he also puts himself apart from the rest of the world. But where the hero uses his power to help others, the villain uses it to force others to bend to his will, so that he can have his own way. He believes it is his right, since he is better and more important than everyone else.

Wait a minute. I seem to recall a story I heard, just this morning, about someone who displayed these villainous characteristics. Now who was it? Who was it that hopped off the hero pedestal to take a stroll down the path of villainy?

Oh, yes. Now I remember, it was Beyonce!

Paying to have everyone else kicked to the curb so that an entire floor of the hospital could be turned into her own private haven is truly the mark of a person who has stepped onto that road to villainy. Talk about lack of consideration for your fellow human beings! Next we will hear that she has bought a private island, or even a small country.

Turn back, Beyonce! Quick, before the pull of the self-centered life catches you fully in its gravitational pull and you are no longer able to recognize the path you have taken, the path that takes you away from humanity.

Drop the black cape, stop being a bully, and rejoin the real world.

You won’t regret it. From what I hear, me-dom is really a very lonely place.

Writer, know thy character

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In my MFA program we are now working on…drum roll, please…CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT.

Of all the different aspects of writing, character development is the one I feel I need to work on the most. Just how do you make your characters come to life? How do you make them real? How do you get your audience to understand and sympathize with the character?

So far, it seems that you must learn everything about them, and I do mean everything! During an earlier class I wrote a character bio for my main character, which included a brief history of her family.

Then I was asked to rewrite the bio, incorporating traits based on the four humors, her astrological sign, her Chinese zodiac, and her blood type.

Now I’m reading the theories of several different famous psychologists, trying to figure out why my character acts like she does, and I need to come up with a deep, dark secret about her that even she may not know!

At every step, we share our writing with our fellow students, and give and receive comments. Which we then use as we rewrite.

And we are far from done.

I must say, I do feel I know my protagonist very well now. I hope when I finally get to put her down on paper she will seem just as alive and real to everyone else!

Well, time to get back to work.

Pitching into the new year

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In January of this coming year I’ll be entering the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest with my YA novel, Gray Zone. I’ve held off getting it published just so I could enter it. I’m nothing if not brave!

There are several things I need to do to enter, one of which is write a 300 word pitch. I just finished rewriting the pitch for the fourth time, so I thought I’d end 2011 on positive note by taking a deep breath and sharing it. (Sharing is always good, right?) I hope you like it!

 

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It has been said that the Internet changed the world. Autumn didn’t know about the rest of the world, but it certainly changed her part of it.
A cyber-prank had gone viral and now Autumn must transfer schools.  Not exactly what she wanted to do as a sophomore. But then, what choice did she have when all her personal information was posted all over the Web? The police said her only chance to avoid stalkers was to move schools and start over.
Luckily, Autumn realized that she had been given an opportunity to reinvent herself, to become the outgoing, popular, not-at-all-shy girl she’d always wanted to be. Something that was impossible while surrounded by lifelong friends who thought they knew her better than she knew herself.
But even the best plans go awry. As soon as Autumn arrived at her new school she ran into Maurice—a bully of monumental proportions—who stepped on toes, beat up kids, and generally made life miserable for everyone. And then Sophie Rose, Autumn’s best friend, transferred to the school but kept her distance. It made Autumn wonder if Sophie Rose felt Autumn was no longer good enough to be her friend.
To be honest, Autumn was her own biggest obstacle. She failed miserably at changing the old habits that had given her that shy-girl reputation in the first place. Not only could she not move from reserved to rambunctious, she couldn’t even get to normal.
Such were Autumn’s problems, until the day Sophie Rose committed suicide. From that point on all Autumn wanted was to know was why. Then, after reading Sophie Rose’s diary, the question changed from why, to who.
Gray Zone is a 50,000 word young adult novel about bullying—both physical and cyber—friendship, and coming of age.

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Wish me luck! But more importantly–
HAVE A WONDERFUL NEW YEAR!