Sunday, August 09, 2009

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh

I stubbed my toe!

I'm lying.

Writers, eh? Professional liars.

I have done a selection of posts about the Inktip website, which is highly respected and quite successful in getting scripts to producers. I used their free offer to post Monsters just to see what would happen.

I get their free newsletter every Friday but only got around to reading the recent issue this morning. And then I screamed.

They have a company that is specifically requesting a Parkour/free running script like Banlieue 13. That is precisely what my feature Running is, but it's not ready.

What to do ... what to do?

I've been reading Blake Snyder's Save the Cat! and, much as I like his style and most of his general ideas, it has to be said I am not a fan of any technique that prescribes plot structure to the very minute (page number) which he does with his beat sheet. Verily, with a 110 minute script he specifies his beats to the minute.

Then again he sold a lot of scripts, some were even made.

I had decided, as an experiment, I would rebuild Running to fit his beat sheet - it's all very well me saying "I don't like (in principle) techniques that are that prescriptive" but I've had nothing produced. So it's worth me experimenting just to see how things come out in the wash, it's not going to do any harm.

And that's what I was going to do - but now I have no time. Especially with everything else going on.

Lacking any decisive thought: I scream instead.



What's on the turntable? "5 Years" by Bjork from "Homogenic"

1 comment:

Eleanor said...

The primal scream of the oncoming deadine. I think we've all been there.
Choices:
1) Do without sleep, socializing, or anything else except writing until script is finished. Then die from exhaustion later at your leisure.
2) Accept that you'll never get it done in time, and decide you'll wait for the next opportunity.

I prefer option 1 myself. ;)

Have fun!