"I don't think he would say it that way..."

I was just asked if I write outside of a journaling effort. I do. Some leaks out here, but there is also some creating textualized vehicles. For example, I have a screenplay coming together; an adaptation of someone else’s novelized narrative. It’s really not that hard with all the digital tools available; just spill out your story and pour it into the mold. Let it set, show it off…take criticism and be prepared to compromise, cause creating something like a film, well, you have to give everybody their own creative hooks or they won’t play. Don’t set the scene too much, leave room for performance, and respect other people’s art. Some ideas/suggestions/demands good, some bad, all opinion…but it has to be producible or what exactly are you doing?

Producible…there are a lot of considerations I wouldn’t have thought of, thank gods and goddesses for mentors. Performance rights?...don't get me started. It gets harder as you go though. For example, to produce a film, if you’re aligned and partnered with a production company, whether they're attached to a studio or not, you have to take advantage of what they offer. Stock footage, environmental connections, in-the-can relationships…re-use, keep cost projections low, stay away from exotic locations or big effects…at least while you’re pitching. It’s understood that everyone is saying one thing but meaning another, and thinking yet another or two; if you’re not comfortable with that, not your gig. Getting a dose of that early helps, and having a buffer to explain what just happened right after it happens and you’ve totally missed what happened…priceless.

Anyhoo, project one has actually got momentum, and project two, the real love here, will be informed from it even if it’s a miss. The real issue with two is that there is life writing all in it, people and places that are hard to disguise without watering down the creation, the emotional content. So, I’m writing out loud, and I’ll get some editorial help when/if we get to that relationship-altering bridge.

Several of you are invited to the premier(s)…should luck stretch out her hand.