Nicholl Fellowship

You can trust me

Maximum Z feedback, generosity, ideas, networking, Nicholl Fellowship, rewrite, screenwriting, script, writing
Because "Honest Paul" just doesn't have the same ring to it
Because “Honest Paul” isn’t as catchy

Thanks to the wonder of living in the digital age, I’ve connected with an incredible number of even more incredible writers. Not being the pushy sort, I always wait until we have a bit of a rapport to ask if they’d be willing to read my script and maybe give a little feedback. And a lot of the time, they ask for the same thing, of which I’m more than happy to oblige.

But there are those who respond along the lines of “I’m not comfortable with letting somebody I don’t know that well see my work.”

A perfectly legitimate response, but also raises a few questions:

-Do you think I’m going to steal your work? No disrespect, but I don’t want it. At all. Just like you, I’ve put in an immense amount of time and effort so I can take a certain pride in claiming “Yes, I wrote this.” Why would I want to risk everything for your script? There may be some unsavory characters out there, but I’m not one of them. I’ve made no effort to hide who I am from you or anybody else and stand by my reputation.

-Is it because I can’t advance your career? Just because I’m not in the industry now doesn’t mean I won’t be in the future. I try to help my friends out when I can. Act like a jerk to me now and that’s how I’ll remember you.

-Am I not professional enough for you? I may be unsold and unproduced, but I’ve got a manager, have had some moderate success in contests and what I would call a pretty solid grasp of what good writing is. Maybe my notes could even make your script better, and most importantly, they’re free.

-Do you think your script is already perfect, doesn’t need any more work and any criticism on my part is just me being jealous of your superior writing skills and trying to sabotage it? Good luck and I wish you all the best.

We all need whatever help we can get, and most people are pretty accommodating.

Don’t be afraid to make connections and get your work out there. It’s been my experience that everybody’s already wrapped up enough in their own work to make becoming more than involved with yours not much of a possibility.

*Rewrite update: about 1-2 details away from having the first act done. Really like how it’s shaping up, but still a long way to go.

**A big congratulations to the Nicholl finalists. Won’t deny being jealous. Now back to work for the rest of us already focusing on next year.

An extraordinarily jam-packed couple of days

Maximum Z Black List, confidence, Dreamship, half-marathons, Nicholl Fellowship, rewrite, running, screenwriting, script, SF Giants, Spider-Man, Stan Lee, writing
The mind reels at what could possibly happen next
Who knows what could possibly happen next? (but it’s fun to guess)

It’s been quite an exciting time ’round these parts, my friends.

-Wednesday. As has been previously chronicled, my script was in the top 15 percent for the Nicholl. Not enough to be a quarterfinalist, but that’s okay. There are so many other avenues to explore, and I’m already mentally rewriting the script I’d enter next year.

-Friday. I won a pair of tickets to a Giants game, which includes a pre-game VIP party where Stan Lee will be in attendance. With any luck, I’ll be able to get my ESSENTIAL SPIDER-MAN VOL 1 signed, and maybe a picture with him.

-Sunday. Ran the Giant Race half-marathon. Perfect conditions – cold, foggy, windy and a mostly flat course. Steady pace, positive attitude. Finally achieved the until-now impossible and broke the 1:55 barrier – 1:53:07 (a pace of 8:38, which I’ve never done before either). Next race is another half-marathon in October. Highly doubtful I can duplicate this kind of time, but still looking forward to it.

-Sunday, part 2. While I was recovering from the race, DREAMSHIP got its second Black List review. 8/10 overall (yay!), including 9/10 for character and setting (double yay!). That was enough to place the script on some of the top lists, including uploaded for action/adventure, family and sci-fi/fantasy.

-Monday. Because of my scores on the Black List, DREAMSHIP will be included in this week’s ‘industry member highlight email,’ which goes out on Friday to around 1900 industry pros.

You couldn’t wipe the smile off my face if you tried.

It’s probably safe to say there may not be a week like this ever again, so I’m definitely enjoying the positive vibes while I can.

Mountain today, speedbump tomorrow

Maximum Z ice cream, motivation, Nicholl Fellowship, screenwriting, script, self-confidence, writing , ,
Yeah, it kind of felt like that
Yeah, it kind of felt like that

Well, the first round of Nicholl emails went out yesterday to inform everybody as to whether or not they were among the 372 (out of 7,251) who made it to the quarterfinals.

Regrettably, I wasn’t one of them. But there was a bit of a silver lining, too.

“A little bit of good news: your script scored well, placing among the top 15% of all entries. Possibly read three times, your script was appreciated by two readers. Its numerical placement was within script 728 to 1106 out of 7,251 entries.”

Not too shabby. Best of luck to those continuing on!

So things didn’t work out for me this time. It stings a little right now, but it ain’t the end of the world. I’m not about to stop trying and dive into a pint of Ben & Jerry’s to drown my sorrows.

There was a great tweet from 2003 finalist Ronson Page later in the day: “Hollywood has many, many, many doors. Only one has to open.”  There are other contests, next year’s Nicholl, etc.

This script got me a manager, so I’ve got nothing to complain about.

If anything, it makes me want to work harder and write even more. Finish the first draft of the western spec. Jump into the rewrite of my mystery.

We’re writers. It’s what we do.

Don’t get me wrong. I’d love to see my work advance in the Nicholl, but it’s not the only way in.

And I definitely plan on getting in.

Still undecided about the ice cream, though.

And how did YOU do with your Nicholl script(s)?

Diverting your attention in a forward manner

Maximum Z anxiety, contest, creativeness, creativity, Julie Gray, Just Effing Entertain Me, Nicholl Fellowship, PAGE International, screenwriting, script, stress, TrackingB, Uncategorized, writing
Look closely and you'll see a lot of potential out there
Can you see all the potential out there?

I’ve been in contact with a few writers over the past couple of days, and several have mentioned their anticipation/nervousness over the pending announcement of the quarterfinalists in this year’s Nicholl competition.

I’m not going to lie. I’ve been occasionally thinking about it as well.

And it doesn’t help that the folks at the contest have been posting positive anonymous reader comments on Facebook over the past few months. If you’re anything like me, you’ve probably read them and thought, “Whoa, that HAS to be my script!” or at least “This could be interpreted in such a way that it vaguely applies to my script.”

I think the number of entries this year was somewhere in the 7200 range, or probably higher. So maybe it is about your script, or maybe not.

The point is: There’s nothing you can do about it now. It’s out of your hands, and obsessing about it won’t do you any good.

Apart from just stepping away (or even actually going outside, where the fresh air will do you good), the best way you can counteract all this hand-wringing is to redirect your focus. Channel all that nervous energy into something more constructive, writing-wise.

How about getting your script ready for upcoming competitions? (Just Effing‘s absolutely final deadline is August 15th, TrackingB‘s late entry deadline is September 28th, and PAGE International will start accepting entries for 2014 in December.)

Or maybe take a closer look at those notes on your recent draft and see what you can do with them, or dig up that killer story concept you came up with a few months ago and fleshing it out a little.

It really doesn’t matter what you do, but it’s important you do something. Your work will be further along than it is now, which always works in your favor.

No matter what your plan is, set yourself up in your ideal writing conditions and have at it.

Just call me the human perpetual motion machine

Maximum Z contest, Dreamship, half-marathons, Movie of the Moment, Nicholl Fellowship, productivity, rewrite, running, screenwriting, script, Tracking Board, westerns, writing ,
Stop working? That's crazy talk!
Stop working? That’s crazy talk!

Well, this has been an interesting week, to say the least.

-Rewrite was completed and sent it off to my manager. Hope they like it.

-Found out DREAMSHIP was one of 25 semifinalists in the Tracking Board’s Launch Pad competition. The top 10 finalists will be announced at the end of the month, followed by the winner a few days later.

Even if the script doesn’t advance, I don’t mind (although it would be nice). I’m just thrilled to have made it this far.  As K said to me after I got the email from the Tracking Board people, “See? Somebody who doesn’t know you thinks you’re a good writer.”

That’s a nice reminder.

-The Nicholl deadline came and went. DREAMSHIP was sent to that back in March, which makes it one of at least 7,200 submissions. The final count should be tallied sometime soon.

(If you have the time, do a quick search to find out what past winners are up to these days. It’s a fascinatingly diverse range of material, including film and television.)

-With a lot of this contest stuff out of the way, it’s time to return to the first draft of LUCY.  It’s been about a month since I last worked on it, so it’ll be interesting to take a look at what I’ve written so far.  Nothing like fresh eyes on your old work!

-I can also start running again. Next race is in 6 weeks, and I really want to be ready for it.

-Movie of the Moment – SKYFALL (2012) Took me three separate viewing sessions, but I finally made it through.  I enjoyed it.

Easy to see why this was so popular. It was a well-written combination of old-style Bond movies with 21st-century themes, thankfully without dipping too much into cheesy joke territory.