Starting the Process

So I began working on the outline for my Bounty screenplay; got the first three scenes all lined out and stuff. I suppose I could go ahead and actually write those scenes, but I'm not writing page one of this thing until the outline and all that sort of stuff is complete.

But before I go any further, I need to re-establish Plot Point I, Plot Point II and all that other important stuff. I figure if I have those biggies already figured out, I can let everything else fall into place no problem.

I should begin the outline for Notna shortly. Seeing as how these are two stories I've had in my head for a little over 10 years now, I should have no problem working on them both simultaneously.

And hey, Hollywood seems to be all over the supernatural/comic book film, so my pieces should fit right in.

Annoying

You know what I find really annoying? Back when I took that screenwriting class, the professor told us time and time again to avoid words that end in "ly" and "is/are" words when writing our screenplays. For three straight weeks he told us to avoid those words.

But now I read a bunch of screenplays online (many can be found at http://www.script-o-rama.com) and what do I see? Tons of "is/are" words and words that end in "ly." I guess these are written by more established screenplay writers who can do almost anything they want, but it's a tad annoying when I'm told to not do something and then I see a bunch of other people doing it.

Oh, and as an aside, give the Buffy the Vampire Slayer screenplay a read. Much better than how the movie actually turned out.

Screenplay Goodness

Okay, so I took a screenwriting class in my final semester of college and it really helped get the creative juices flowing. But after that class, I had a 60-page screenplay and no time to finish it. But lately I've found myself wanting to revisit that screenplay, as well as develop another one, so here I am.

This blog is mostly to keep my thoughts and notes as I work on both of my screenplays. Feel free to read and comment if you'd like.

I've decided to scrap the 60 pages I wrote and start from scratch. Between the book we used in the class and a book I bought recently -- The Screenplay Workbook by Jeremy Robinson and Tom Mungovan -- I think I'll go step-by-step rather than just dive right in. It might make writing my screenplays a bit easier.

Here's what I'm looking at for my two screenplays:

Bounty: Baltimore homicide detective Jillian Andersen decides her everyday job isn't enough, so she becomes the vigilante Bounty to fight corruption and overcome her demons. Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Batman.

Notna: Archaeologist Jack Corbett discovers an ancient crystal and finds himself thrust in an eternal struggle for the fate of the world. Indiana Jones meets Lord of the Rings.