The last weekend of Script Frenzy

It's here upon us. The last weekend of Script Frenzy. My last opportunity to word blitz the days away.
Current word count is 69 pages. (69, tee hee, so childish)
So, what have i learnt from Script Frenzy.
1. That i like to procrastinate. It's amazing isn't it. I'm a professional at it.
2. I write better to music. It really gets me into the emotion. Next writing project will be fuelled by a soundtrack. The soundtrack to this project, still untitled, has been mainly the new Veils album, Sun Gangs, especially the title track.
3. Not having a plan is incredibly stupid, and means i can only write in small snippets. theni have to stop to think about what happens next. With a plan i assume the writing of the first draft could flow far more freely.
4. Doing the Frenzy has made me believe i am a good writer, as on a few occasions i have really got into the moment and felt emotions for my character. Which i never thought would happen, I always scoffed when i heard writers saying they cried when they killed off a character.
5. On the flipside of point 3. Even when not having a plan, if you write and create a world or a character if you keep writing something has to happen therefore forming a plot for yourself.
Do not fear writing.

Will i finish? Will i be a winner? These are the big questions now. I feel i have to finish to call myself a writer, i need to bring this thing in for deadline.
31 pages, one weekend and whatever spare hours i have in the evening. Shopping trip tomorrow for coffee to keep me awake and maybe some celabratory booze for when i win. Positive thinking.

Halfway point of script frenzy

Who'd a thunk it?
That attempting to write a 100 page script in 30 days would be so hard. I was trundling along fine, in fact i still am i suppose, i'm up to scratch with the word count. 49 pages so far.
But... I think i've just hit the wall. Last night i didn't ge to sleep until 5am, i stayed up writing late and then had script going through my head so couldn't sleep. More worryingly i woke up at 10am. 5 hours sleep. Meaning i just sat in a slumber staring at my computer screen all day asking "What are you?"
Need to have a big blitz on sxript front over net few days as i go back to work next week and hoped to have a lot of it done by that time, as it's going to be hard to write after i'm back in work.
But there again in front of me is that wall.
I know what needs to happen in the screenplay, and roughly how it's going to end, i just don't know the scene directly in front of me. Hopefully the next ten pages will be the most difficult and after that it'll be plain sailing.
In other news secured a deal to keep me writing the film blogs over at the In/Out magazine website. Check out the Monsters VS Aliens review from this week, and some of the older posts if you haven't checked out the blog before.
The link is:
http://www.inoutmagazine.co.uk/blogs.php?blogauthor=robinbell

So now i'm off to replenish my mind and body with sweet sleep. Will cross the official halfway point tomorrow as it's the 15th of a 30 day month, and i should hit the 50 page mark. Stay tuned for next update. Thanks for reading. Goodnight.

Frenzy update

Expect all posts to be regarding Script Frenzy during April as that is where i am concentrating all my efforts this month. So far it's going ok. Had a train journey from Wrexham to Birmingham yesterday so managed to get a good few pages done. Page count- i'm on page 23 so far, nearly a quarter way through and this is only the 6th day. Think i need to sped up the story a bit but that can be remedied in the drafting. considering i had no ideas when i started there coming through thick and fast, it's justa case of tying them all up, as i already know the last scene. Maybe i should write it now, so i have to lead up to it. I've never been able to do that though, i have to write chronologically. So page 23, in two seperate scenes my character is heading on a first date to the local pub, one's a flashback. Better crack on with it. Or have a rest.

Script Frenzy

OK, which i learnt today comes from the German pronunciation of All Correct, or something like that, this sentence has lost it's thread hasn't it. Let's start a new one.
Script Frenzy has begun, the quest to write a first draft script totalling 100 pages.
My work so far, 2 tv drama hour long episodes and a half hour pilot for something else, and a short film script have all been docked at first draft stage. They will be revisited after this hectic month is over. This hectic month where i hope to add to the first drafts and have a first draft film script to my name as well.
How's it going? you many ask. The imaginary words of an imaginary reader. Well two days in and i'm 5 pages into it, this rate will only leave me with 75 pages so i must speed up, firstly i'll stop writing th.......

Finishing first drafts

Finished my third first draft of the year tonight. so that's episode 1 of a 60 minute TV drama, a 15 minute short film and a 30 minute sit com/ dark comic book type drama thingy ma bob. Feels good to finish things so just thought i'd share. Of course they are not properly finished as i will now spend months upon months drafting the living shit out of them. Lucky me.
Also got to draft my kids novel, really going to have to get a move on with that. Some more procrastination first, plus only 15 pages off finishing episode 2 of TV drama nd need to plan out a couple of film ideas, both utterly depressing. Lovely.

Stuff

Hardly an original title for a blog that is it? Send in suggestions for a better one.
So there's some stuff I need to mention on here because i've been meaning to for a few weeks.
In no particular order:
I saw Watchmen. My views on the film can be found on my regular blog that I write for In/Out magazine. Here's the link http://www.inoutmagazine.co.uk/blogs.php?blogauthor=robinbell
Need to learn how to make those links shorter.
Next, well just had a bitch of a month money wise, I'm sure this is a struggle for many a writer, judging how many hours they can give up at work whilst keeping the money coming in. Hopefully on top of this now.
Lastly I promised Danny Stack that I'd link to his short film scheme, Ican't donate (see above paragraph) but here's the link to check out see what you can do. http://dannystack.blogspot.com/2009/01/short-film.html

That's all from the blof entitled Stuff

A week in the life

Well, it's been a busy week. which I will now quickly recap in, hopefully, a quick readable blog.
Last Sunday saw my first appearance on radio, on the Richard Holland Inexperience at http://www.calonfm.com/ discussing the oscars and films. this was after a day of frantic comedy sketch writing for the oppurtunity that came up on writers room over at the BBC. www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom
I think the radio show went well, although haven't heard it back yet. Should I? Or will hearing my own voice send me to my own death?
The week continued and I redrafted a few pages of my TV drama, which was rudely interupted by mountains of marking for my teaching job. URGH!
What started off as fun, writing these sketches, ended up becoming very stressful indeed. Three sketches were needed by Friday morning, working with a writing partner and struggling to get i partner on Movie Magic Screenwriter working, it became hard work.
They were done, if we had more time they could have been better, but they were sent and I'm kind of happy with them. So drafting took a back seat. Writing took a back seat and now I feel beaten down by last weeks workload.
Next week sees the Wedding Present come to Wrexham and Doodle Planet, but hopefully I'll be able to get working through that draft again, or just start something. It's all about getting that motivation again and again. So here goes.