Putting Myself Out There...Again

Last year I wrote a short five-page screenplay. I thought maybe a few friends and I could film it using cellphones. It never materialized, but it was fun to write.

I find, sometimes, the writing part is a lot of fun.

A couple of weeks ago, another idea hit me so I fired up the laptop, opened the Final Draft program and wrote it down. It's slightly longer (eight pages...) and definitely meaner. 

I like both stories, each have their strengths, and their weakness. I can see both actually being filmed--it wouldn't take much, few locations, few actors, one-day shoots.

I'm part of two writing groups, one for traditional writing and the other for screenwriting. There's been times--months, actually--when I haven't attended the screenwriting group. I'm doing more of that now, especially since we're holding on-line meetings. As he does often, Blake, the group's leader asked us if anyone had any stories to submit.

I spoke up.

I sent them in.

Next week we're discussing them.

This is a tough group. They don't hold back when it comes to critique and their opinions, and that's a good thing. False praise from friends will do you no favors in the long run. I've submitted to the group several times before. Each time the group's helped in many ways. Each time I come away with more knowledge than I had before. You'd think, after doing this a few times, I'd be used to the process. But, there was still that feeling in my gut when I had to make the decision of whether or not I would submit my stories, if I would put myself out there.

I did.

Now, let the carving begin!

Hanging Out...Talking About Writing

As far as a regular participant goes, I've been bad. I haven't gone in a while to our bi-monthly screenwriter's group meeting. Many times I haven't been able to attend because I've been doing shows, but I haven't done a show for a while. I decided last Wednesday I should go.

We meet in the office where the organizer, Blake works. On the walls are framed movie posters, mostly movies that appeal to the geeks and nerds inside us all. And many  times we discuss those films, but we also talk about other things, too. Normally, we have either a feature film to critique, a TV episode, or a short. Last week we had none of those--it happens sometimes. During those times the group improvises. 

Because screenwriting is, at its core, storytelling, we discussed some of the points on how to best tell a story. We talked about conflict, what's at stake, themes, character types, and how all those ingredients can be combined to create magic. Every movie begins with a story. Every great movie begins with a great story and every crappy movie usually begins with a crappy story.

In the past the group has critiqued some of my the stories, and by "critiqued," I mean ripped apart. They were not unkind, but then group is honest. If your story stinks they will let you know. It's a good thing, really. If a story is not where it needs to be, at some point someone needs to tell you that. I know this group will (because they have...).

I'd like to attend more. I should. They discuss sound principles and they're students of the craft of filmmaking. I hit a home run with the very first screenplay I wrote. Of course, that was over a decade ago. Will it happen again? I really can't say, but I'm confident that if I do get another script made into an award-winning movie, I'll have the guys and gals in my screenwriting group to help thank for it.

Submitting A Screenplay...An Exercise In Trust

Tonight I need to submit a screenplay for our screenwriter's critique group. I'm excited to do it, but there's always that little voice that tells you (or me...) that it's just not good enough.

I know it's for a critique group and it's our job to do what auto mechanics do when they want to learn more about something--they tear it down to its most basic parts, study them and then put it all back together.

Creating anything that didn't exist before (like a screenplay, or even this blog post...) requires several things, one of which is trust. There's a huge amount of trust that's needed for any project to be created and shared. There's entire libraries dedicated to Writer's Block. Those trying to overcome writer's block get lots of advice. Try this, try that, do this, write that. The advice can be useful, but in my experience, overcoming writer's block is a matter of confidence.

And confidence goes hand-in-hand with trust.

So, later tonight I'll e-mail my latest story. It's not my first time; I'm used to the process. Next week we'll meet and go to town. We'll rip it apart and participate in the age-old art of creation. I am excited and hopeful that when we conclude, we'll have something great, something that's the bigger than the sum of our parts. Good thing I trust those guys. 

Returning To The Group...

I've been away for so long. I can't remember the last time I attended the screenwriter's writing group. Maybe last summer, or spring--definitely months. Amazing how doing plays (four in a row and now five...) digs deeply into your free time.

I saw the invitation earlier this week, the same invitation I've been getting twice a month for years. This time, however, I looked at my calendar and realized I didn't have any other obligations for Wednesday night.

So I drove to work and after work, I picked up fast food for dinner then drove to the meeting.

The script we discussed was short, precise. It read well--good dialogue. The characters were strong, which is important in a short script. There's not a lot of time. We each took turns giving our opinions. I find when I attend these meetings that my opinion changes a lot as everyone else speaks. It's amazing how different a story can be, almost limitless.

Last year I got brave and wrote a full-length script for the group. After a few hours of "discussion," I felt great--not how I expected to feel. I thought after the group shared their opinions, I would feel terrible and defeated. Quite the contrary. I felt excited to try again. Since I've been gone for so long, I haven't done a lot of script writing. I have an idea for an upcoming project. We'll see what happens with that.

As always, I enjoyed the time I spent with the group. Will I be back? We meet every other week and I'm pretty sure my Wednesday night in two weeks is going to be open as well.

The Screenwriter's Group...

Every other week, a group gathers in a small coffee shop on State Street and we discuss scripts. It's an informal group--not a lot of structure. Of course, I think that's why, in part, those who participate choose to be there.

I pulled up and parked my car right at 7pm, starting time. A few were already there so I plopped myself down in a big comfy chair, opened up the Mac and joined in. The evening's script? It was a Jane Austen-ear piece written by Evany and it was her first attempt at screenwriting. She did a pretty good job.

We're supposed to take turns and give our opinions and critiques. By the end of the meeting we've all done that, but not necessarily in that order...like I said, it's pretty informal. As far as experience in writing scripts goes, I'm one that resides in the "lesser" camp, but I'm learning each time I go. I've only gone a few times, but I've been impressed each time. Maybe one of these days I'll be brave enough to submit something I've written. Can't really grow w/o risk now, can we?