Month: December 2012

Ready. Set. Edit!

Maximum Z Aardman Films, editing, outlines, proofreading, rewrite, scenes, screenwriting, writing
And I'm off!
Although the starter’s pistol might be a bit much…

My worries may have been for naught.

Fixing those angst-inducing scenes?  Not as tough as I expected. (Maybe I actually AM getting better at this. Wouldn’t that be cool?)

Final page count – 127, but the last page has 3 lines of text on it, including FADE OUT, so paring this down seems a lot more doable now.

So off I go to toil away with my trusty red pen.

In the meantime….what’s on YOUR writing agenda this weekend?

-MOVIE OF THE MOMENT – ARTHUR CHRISTMAS (2011) I don’t usually go in for modern-day Christmas movies, but this was an Aardman production,  which meant the writing  would at least be of good quality.

The plot – Santa’s nerdy younger son must deliver an overlooked present by Christmas morning.

Overall – fun, enjoyable, but not sure I would classify it under ‘the holiday season just isn’t complete without watching this’.

My biggest problem was how they handled the ‘all is lost’ moment at the start of Act Three. It felt like Arthur’s motivation was rejuvenated because the plot required it to be, not because of what was happening. If they had made it feel more organic, I would have probably liked it more.

Still, while some scenes fell neatly into expected/almost-cliched story points, there were others that pleasantly caught me off-guard.  I also liked how there was a lot of the wonderfully dry British humor (which could partially explain why US audiences haven’t embraced Aardman films).

If you’re looking for grown-up-friendly kid films this winter break, this and THE PIRATES! BAND OF MISFITS would make for a good double feature.

A pair of potentially pressing perplexing problems in a possibly penultimate draft

Maximum Z editing, outlines, rewrite, screenwriting, script, story, subplot, writing ,
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Being done with this rewrite is almost a reality; emphasis on the word ‘almost’.

There’s this one scene that’s really bothering me. Something about it feels very…off.  It’s necessary in that it wraps up a subplot, but the way it’s written feels less ‘show’ and more ‘tell’.

I’m not exactly sure how to handle this. The scene still works, but part of me thinks it could be better and another part wonders if it should stay as is. This is definitely going to require some figuring out.

One unfortunate side effect of making changes is it will most likely drag things out and make the script longer, which really is the last thing I need right now.

Which brings me to another issue.

This is at least 7-10 pages too long, so the next step after all the writing is done is to hack, slash and rewrite this down to a more agreeable length.  I don’t want a potentially interested party to be put off by the number of pages before even starting to read it. (Although in my defense, this is a real page-turner of a script)

I don’t like setting deadlines for myself, but with the end of the year looming, the rest of the month seems like a good opportunity to really wrap this script up once and for all.  I’ve been in contact with a professional writer who gives notes, so that’s where it’ll go when all is said and done.

Which will most likely lead to more rewriting, but you and I knew that was going to happen anyway.

Working with the voices in my head

Maximum Z acting, dialogue, rewrite, screenwriting, sound, writing ,
All work, no play and all that...
I’m not crazy. I’m a writer.

When you’re writing out a scene, you probably visualize what’s happening in your mind. But how do you handle the dialogue?

Can you “hear” the characters?

There’s a big difference between reading what somebody’s saying, and actually saying it, or at least hearing it.

Which is why what the characters say is just as important as what we see them doing.

Case in point – I’m currently working on a pivotal scene in Act Three. Something the hero says must effectively convince the villain to do something, and those words really need to make an impact.

These lines have been rewritten at least maybe a dozen times, and may have to go through a dozen more until it feels right to me. Whatever it takes.

Among the many things to consider: Does it sound right? Does it sound natural (and not like “movie dialogue”?) Does it get the point across? Could a reader ‘feel’ the emotion in the text?  Is it too long?  Too short?  Too on-the-nose?  Is this something that character would say?

Give your dialogue a test run. Say the lines the way they’re meant to be said. Become the character and say it like they would.  Let your inner actor out.

But keep in mind your local Starbucks may not let you come back.