1,000 page project

So far this year I have been a bit productive in my writing, but not as much as I've wanted to be. Therefore, I have come up with the 1,000 page project.

It is exactly what it sounds like, writing 1,000 pages of material and doing so before the end of 2013. That's 83 pages a month, 20 pages a week, 2.97 pages a day. Sounds like a lot right? Well, challenge accepted!

I plan on finishing 4 screenplays and a novel by the end of the year. It's a year of writing and finishing projects that I started last year.

I started my first novel last year, "Hunter Blake: Bloodline." It is now about 10,000 words in. Here is a brief excerpt. 

As the dark clouds rolled by and the morning dew seemed to grow thicker, a man gently held a bible and read from it. The words were not familiar to Hunter Blake and neither was this scary place. It was Hunter’s first time in a cemetery and he was overwhelmed with fear. Not because everyone was wearing all black, or that tears were flowing like a river. Not even because he knew that there were old rotting bodies in the ground beneath. He was terrified because this funeral made him think of death and he knew that someday it would be him in that oak coffin. His eyes watered as he thought of how he would die. Would he drown in the ocean? Would it be a horrible accident? What if he was murdered? He tried to shove the thoughts to the back of his mind. It wasn’t fair to be thinking about himself when his Grandfather was being buried in the ground. Even more, what if Grandpa Blake was in heaven looking down at him right now. Would he be angry that Hunter was being so selfish. What if he was a ghost standing next to him. Hunter turned his head to the side. There was nothing there and he felt no presence. He was sure that his Grandpa was in a better place. Still, he did not like being around death. It made his bones shiver and the hair on his skin stand up. Hunter’s parents had told him that this was a celebration of life, but it sure didn’t feel like a celebration to him. At fifteen years old Hunter felt like he should suck it up and be more of a man right now, but Grandpa Blake had taught him that it was okay to be scared and vulnerable at times. He figured this was one of those times.

His mother put her arm around Hunter and it reminded him of the time that Grandpa Blake had done the same, a thousand feet in the air as he flew his small plane three hundred miles just for them to get breakfast. He thought back to his thirteenth birthday when Grandpa Blake sent him on a day long hunt to find his present, which was buried treasure. His favorite memory of his Grandpa was the time that he had told the story of their family and how Hunter’s bloodline was centuries old and held power unlike anything on this earth. Hunter was sure none of it was true, but he enjoyed the elaborate story of fighting demons and holding the power of magic and mystery that was, supposedly, unlocked on his sixteenth birthday.  Hunter would be sixteen soon and he always had the exciting thought in the back of his mind. He was sure that was exactly what his Grandpa intended, excitement and possibility. He looked back towards the coffin. He missed Grandpa Blake dearly, but was glad that his thoughts were turning to the positive and his arm hair was flattening out.

Writer's Block Tip #2

• Start a new project

Sometimes you just get burnt out on the same old thing and need to change it up a bit.

The whole world is ADD nowadays. We are wired to direct our attention to multiple places for short periods of time. Twitter, Facebook, blogs, YouTube. Why should writing be any different?

Many writers work well with multiple projects, jumping back and forth between them. I always have several things going on at the same time. If I'm not feeling my horror script then I can write some comedy or even work on a short that I want to get filmed. Multiple projects also help me to sit down at the keyboard everyday and get something done, simply because I know there is so much to do.

So start something new or pick up something old. Your current project will be there when you come back.

Writer's Block Tip #1

• Get up!

If you're at a lull in your typing, rise your butt out of that seat and away from the computer.

Go make a sandwich. Take a walk. Get some Starbucks. Put your Netflix DVD in the mailbox, you know it's been sitting there way too long.

Don't start playing a game or exploring YouTube!

The idea is to take a short break to give your mind a rest. The most productive writing is done in the 10-40 minutes after you begin. This is because your mind needs to warm up and get rolling. Then it needs a small break every 30-45 minutes to refresh.

Don't kill yourself by sitting non-stop for hours staring at the screen, unless of course you are on a roll. In that case, don't get up for anything.

Nora Ephron Interview

Just a little inspiration from one of the best.

Writer's Block and Big dreams

It's 3:45 AM and here I am writing a blog instead of a screenplay.

Some days I find myself writing for hours, page after page flowing effortlessly. Most days, however, it's a battle between me and the page. A battle of story, character, and my mind working hard. Tonight is one of those nights.

I have a couple of screenplays that I just can't seem to finish. I sit down and don't know where I want to go with them. I have outlines and character bios, but for some reason it's hard to start typing. The stories are decent, plot lines set, and the characters are interesting, but I can't get anything down on the page. Is this writer's block? Am I still excited about these stories? Should I put them on the shelf and start anew?

I sit here asking these questions and telling myself that these scripts have to be perfect. Every page, every word, has to be perfection before it comes off of my fingertips onto the page. This is killing me.

The fact is, I just need to write. I need to get something onto the page, even if it's crap. That's what rewriting is for. I need to stop trying to write the greatest screenplay of all time and get back to just writing because I love to.

You see, I feel that this year will be a big year for me as a writer because I have finished a great screenplay that I really love and believe in. I wrote the original draft of that script in about 30 days. I couldn't stop, and the best part is that I did it because I wanted to. Not because I wanted to sell it. Not because I wanted to film it. It was because I liked the story and wanted to tell it. That screenplay is my best to date.

The two that I'm having trouble with right now have great potential and I'm excited for them. The problem is that I want a sale or an agent so bad that it's affecting my creativeness. I'm hell bent on getting this dream of mine going, but I need to chill.

So I'm going to stop worrying, stop pressuring myself, stop looking into the future, and just write. The sooner these screenplays are finished, the sooner I can rewrite them and start on my new project.

Dream big, but don't let those dreams overpower you. You'll get there eventually.

New Year, New Project

It's a new year ladies and gents, and that means it's time to start a new project. Unless, of course, you are like myself and still haven't finished last years projects. Either way, now is the time start or continue that screenplay, short story, novel, or blog. New Years resolutions can be a great motivation and that can jump start you into your project. The goal is to continue at it until it's done.

This year I'll be posting more helpful tips, events, websites, and books to get you there. I'll be dishing out my highs and lows and keeping you in the loop on my progress. I'll even post excerpts from my screenplays for you to read, give feedback, commend, or criticize. Check in every now and then to see that i am on track and that, in turn, will hopefully bleed over to keep you on track.

I'm going to set a simple goal for us. Let's get one project done this year. One screenplay. One Novel. One short. Whatever your poison, let's do it together. That's simple enough right? Plus, it gives us extra time to finish up those projects that are lingering, like my two screenplays that i was hoping to finish by the end of last year.

So start thinking about what you want to write. I have an idea in mind already. It's a love story in the vein of 500 Days of Summer. It's a very personal life story that will probably be the hardest thing I've ever written. This does not mean you should find the most difficult thing to write about. The fact is, I've been wanting to get this thing on paper for awhile now, and that is the point. It's something that I'm excited to write about. Find a story or topic that you want to write and start thinking.

Who knows, maybe this will be the year the us nameless will become famous.

Deadlines!

Screenplay deadlines. Web-series deadlines. Editing deadlines. I'm officially overwhelmed! Everything seems to be coming at once and it's got me sleep-deprived, but excited. It's a mixture of stress and adrenaline as projects are finishing and festivals approach.

I am finishing up and polishing a new screenplay to send out to some festivals. It is by far my best work yet and I think it has some great potential. It's an action thriller in the vein of "League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" with some "Underworld" aspects to it.

I'm also polishing my previous screenplay "Murder Mansion" and fixing a couple of minor weaknesses it might have had. I hope to market that one later this year in one form or another.

Christopher Michael Harper and myself are hard at work writing the last few episodes of our web-series, "The Uninfected." We added some new twists and characters that should really add some additional suspense and mystery to the overall plot. I'm very excited to film those episodes.

Episode 4 of "The Uninfected" will be coming out early in May and it'll be well worth the wait. We have upgraded to a beautiful HD camera as well as a new editing computer and 3 new characters will be debuting. You'll love it! Stay tuned at www.theuninfected.com and follow us on twitter @theuninfected.

It's craziness right now, but I absolutely love it and hope that someday I'll be able to quit my day job and make a living off of this cuckoo creativeness!

Keep writing!

Write and Read

Being a reader for Abbot Management and now Bluecat Screenplay Competition has taught me more than I could have wished for.

Reading screenplays is the best way to learn what works and what simply does not. You learn about format, story, and character more than you could in a book or a class. Even if you have a great understanding of screenplays, it will benefit you to read tons of them.

Yeah, I read a lot of junk, but it just reminds you what not to do when you write. Sometimes I read a great screenplay that flows seamlessly and that's where you can go back and study what the writer did and why it worked. So whenever you are not writing, read.

Look through your local job boards for internships, ask your friends and colleagues if you can review their scripts, or simply go to http://www.imsdb.com/ and read some screenplays. Trust me, it will help your craft!

Hardcore

After countless hours and almost a year in the making, Episode 1 of  "The Uninfected" is here!

With virtually no budget and limited access to equipment this is truly a great accomplishment for me. As the snowball keeps rolling we hope to bring you a great story with great characters for several seasons.

Tune in the last Sunday of each month for a new episode!

Here is Episode 1: "Hardcore"

That's A Wrap

It's December 31rst and 2010 is almost "in the can." It's time to reflect on what you accomplished and what your goals are for the new year. You know that saying, "You can anything if you put your mind to it?" Well... It's true.

It's amazing what one can do in 365 days. I have accomplished quite a bit this year. 52 weeks of hard work has paid off. I reached most all of my goals associated with film and writing. 12 months of creative juice flowing through my veins, onto the paper, through the camera. It wasn't easy, but it was fun. Here's the rundown...

I placed in a screenplay festival.

I wrote one new screenplay.

I was a creative development intern at Abbot Management.

I am currently a script reader at Bluecat... and I get paid!

I created and developed my first web-series to debut January 23rd. That's writing, Directing, and producing. It's hard work. Check it out at www.theuninfected.com

I was approached to produce another web-series.

It's been a long, hard working year for me, but the payoff is definitely worth it. One step closer to my goal of wealth and stardom, or just making enough to do what I love for a living. I'll take either one.

So, while I'm here, having not yet sold a screenplay, using pocket change to fund a dream, still working a regular job to pay the bills, I'd like to say what many people have said with millions of dollars and Academy Awards in their hands...

Follow your dream. Don't ever stop. Because...

You really can do anything if you put your mind, and a little hard work, to it.

"That's a wrap"