I didn’t really get to write much today.  Nothing, actually.

I did print out the comments from the guy in my writing group, but didn’t have time to look it over.  It worked out for the best because the woman said she only had a few pages of her script ready and could we meet again in two weeks, rather than tonight?

Since she also mentioned having comments on my outline, I’m going to her office tomorrow to pick them up and analyze both sets.

K and V go away in two weeks.  I think a lot of my time during their absence will be focused on assembling a solid outline.  That’s the hope, anyway.  That and watching lots of movies – at least two IN the theatre.  Whoo!

The more I think about it, the more I wish I could get new blood into our group.  It’s not bad the way it is, but when I joined up, there were at least 5 or 6 of us, and many people have come and gone, including the founder.  I made a go of organizing it and actually recruited some new people, but each one eventually dropped out for one reason or another.

I remember one guy who had some really good ideas stopped writing altogether to focus on photography.  I’ve always considered myself a writer, so that’s what I focus on.  But I also have this driving force inside me that wants to make it my career, so I keep striving to succeed.  My wonderful and supportive K is there to prop me up when I feel discouraged or hopeless.

Somedays it may seem that way, but a man with experience in the industry read my very first script and said although it was pretty rough, I was a good writer.  I liked that.  Now I need someone to say “you’re a great writer and I’m going to give you a shitload of cash for your script.  And you can have a STORY BY credit too.”

That would be really cool.

I didn’t get to post on Friday.  We were at some friends’ place for dinner and didn’t get home until too late.

I sent my outline to members of my writing group (because they asked to see it).  I just reviewed the one guy’s comments.  As per usual, his feedback/suggestions ran hot and cold.  Sometimes I think he’s got the right idea; sometimes I don’t get where he’s coming from.

He’s a nice guy, but he’s been working on the same script for about 2 years now, with lots and lots of rewrites.  This happened with his previous script, which kept undergoing changes for almost the same length of time.  As far as I know, he never got a complete draft written.

To be honest, I skimmed what he said and will probably be a bit more thorough about it tomorrow, which is when the female member of our group comes over.  For the time being, he can’t take part, since he’s performing in a show.  I’m intrigued as to what she has to say.  She has also not completed a draft of anything for as long as I’ve known her, which is a little less than 8 years.

This has happened before, but after I wrote about not hearing from Manager Guy, I heard from him!  Unfortunately, he had no news, which is better than “they said no”.  He remains “enthusiastically optimistic” he will hear back from several people he contacted.  I don’t mind if he hears back, just as long as it’s good news.

And by good news, I mean they want to buy.  Or at least have some meetings.

That would be really nice.

I made even more progress on the outline today.  It felt really good.  There was character development and everything!  But the exact wording of the theme continues to elude me.  I know I can’t keep up this kind of pace, but I’ll keep it going as long as I can.  At this rate, I may even have a first draft done by the end of the summer.  That would be really cool.

Still no word from Manager Guy, which is weird.  He’s usually pretty good about responding.  If I don’t hear back from him by tomorrow, I’ll try again Monday.

I also got an email from a manager who originally asked to see the script back in February.  I sent them a follow-up email about 2-3 weeks ago to see what they thought of it (I did the same for a few other places as well).  Honestly, I’d given up on all of them.  But this guy sent an email today, saying he loved the premise (nice) and thinks it is definitely a movie (very nice).  But he also said I missed some of the “important elements” and could I send him the script again as well as some contact info?

I like getting those kind of emails.

I also got the standard “thanks but no thanks” email from a management/production company.  The script “does not fit our current needs at this time.”  I checked them out on imdb and they haven’t done squat in two years!  I would think they’d be really hungry for something good, but I’m not in the industry, so what do I know?

I read on an ESTABLISHED SCREENWRITER’S blog where he answered a reader’s question of “I haven’t heard from the agency/manager/prodco in 2 months.  Do I move on?”  He said they did, so you should.  It’s hard to tell what to do for each place.  Some don’t mind you reconnecting, others ignore you and so on.

It really does seem to boil down to having a killer script, which includes being well-written.  I like to think I’m getting closer to that kind of skill.

Which makes me think that JUNO was really, really overrated.

There I was, laptop sitting exactly there.  That ominous screen staring back at me.

Somewhere in my mind is the answer I’ve been trying to force out, which is never a good idea.  It has to be coaxed, gently, like a riled bear.  Never mind that I’ve never actually coaxed a riled bear, but you get the idea.

I needed something to wrap up the story, bring it closure, if you will. The past few weeks had shown a remarakable inability to do that.

But the past few says had been somewhat productive, so maybe I could keep the streak alive.  I started today’s writing with the intent of trying to get something done.  I looked over a few scenes.  Somwhere in there was what I was looking for.

I went to that second-to-last line in the whole outline – HOW DOES IT END?  I needed something.  Anything.

So I type.  Nothing big, but I write in my usual way of how I want it to work.  It may not make sense to somebody else, but I know what I’m trying to say.

And more words come.  Then more.

Then an idea.  Something I hadn’t thought of before.  That leads to another idea.  What if I tried this?  Hey, that could work.  I scan some of the relevant scenes.  The idea could be plugged in, AND it helps develop the character.

Hey.  Another idea, which could REALLY wrap it all up.  I type out a rough draft of the scene.  Maybe a montage before it?  Well, maybe, but that last one is a keeper.

I look it over.  This is the complete opposite of what I was looking for, at least what I thought I wanted, but it’s simple, effective and wraps up a good number of storylines.

I read it again.  It’ll probably need some developing, but at first glance, it works.  It really works.

I’m also reminded once again of how something I wrote weeks or months ago can provide the answer I need, even though I’m not even thinking about it in those particular terms.

I really like when that happens.  It’s cool.

And the rewrite begins once again…

I typed up the changes from yesterday to the outline and it’s really coming together, but an idea struck me as part of the ongoing battle with the final scene, and implementing that could change a lot of the storylines, or at least several.

I don’t like having to go back and rewrite to that extent, but if I don’t, it will keep nagging at me.  I also have to remind myself that this happens a lot with actual screenwriters.  I’ll tinker around with it and see what happens.  If it goes that way, so be it.

I worry that when this thing is finally done and written, nobody will be interested in it.  It’s not exactly a romcom, but it’s not a drama either.  Maybe more dramedy than anything.

I’m also concerned people will be expecting certain things because it has elements of a certain genre, but I hate when things are predictable that you can see coming a mile away.  But when you try to present something different, you get a look of “huh?” or “it’s not what we’re looking for” or some drivel like that.

During my mental stopgap earlier today, I was thinking about films like MADE OF HONOR and GHOSTS OF GIRLFRIENDS PAST.  I remember reading about these scripts when they sold, and thinking the concepts were clever.  But without even having seen them, and also taking into account the box office, it’s not hard to see the fingerprints of studio execs and other assorted busybodies all over them.

These scripts were probably really great to begin with, and then dumbed down to appease the masses, which destroys the originality and uniqueness, and then the studios lose interest in scripts like them, or at least others with similar originality.

It’s very frustrating, but like every other schmuck with a headful of ideas, I will keep at it until something happens.  Which I really hope is soon.  It would make my heart soar and my head swell to see my name onscreen.  And then I can rub it in the faces of those I severely dislike.

Oh, like you wouldn’t do the same thing.