I've been pondering the wisdom of sending the 10-draft outline, 2nd-written draft of my screenplay to a contest. I think it's going to take at least 3 more written drafts to get my screenplay to a final draft state, and 3 drafts is really an optimistic number. But entering my screenplay into a contest is the only way to measure how I stand up to the competition. Sending the secreenplay out into the world is a also a good place to end the project and move on to my other types of writing.
I'm looking forward to starting Nanowrimo in November and I even have a new novel idea. The working title to my new novel will be "The Crow Priestess". It's about an 18 year old superstar head priestess of an ancient tribe, and her rise and fall from power. This will be my first attempt at fantasy type literature, and I am so looking forward to it. I won't have to deal with conventions of reality. I will be able to create this wild and fantastical world where magical creatures exist and people can do fun magical stuff. I can make my characters literally as big and powerful as I want them to be, or small and insignificant as insects.
My 18 year old superstar priestess will be betrayed by her fellow priestesses, who crave her power. I see the novel as study in power, and how it affects people. People who want power but don't have it, people who have power and don't care about it, and people who want power and will do do anything including murder to get it. My teenage superstar priestess has an ancient family secret, which is the source of her power and her abilities. She has been sworn never to reveal it, but the power of her position goes to her head and she ends up revealing the secret. Pride is her downfall, and it will cost her the head priestess position and practically her life. I decided that I didn't want to kill her off at the end, but she will be left at the end to ponder very painfully the consequences of her actions.
Isn't that more of a fun plot than my silly family drama baseball screenplay? I would have given up on the screenplay a long time ago, if I didn't have this crazy urge to finish it. By October 31st, the baseball screenplay will be done, sent off and out of my hands, and I am so looking forward to that day.
Monday, October 21, 2002
I'm kind of wishing I was still working in downtown San Francisco, so I could go to the World Series SF Giants rallies. I would even lurk around Union Square to see if I could get an Anaheim Angel sighting, since the team is probably staying at one of hotels there. If the Giants win, I'm sure they'll parade down Market Street. The 49ers did that whenever they won the superbowl, and it was such a trip to see the football players in the cable cars waving at their adoring fans. Steve Young looked massive up close, and he was small compared to some of the defensive guys.
If the Giants win the World Series and they have their victory parade, I'm definitely taking time off from work to go and see them. The crowds will be massive and it will be chaotic, but it will be so much fun. And who knows when the Giants will ever win the world series again, since it's been about 40 years since the last one.
GO GIANTS!!!
If the Giants win the World Series and they have their victory parade, I'm definitely taking time off from work to go and see them. The crowds will be massive and it will be chaotic, but it will be so much fun. And who knows when the Giants will ever win the world series again, since it's been about 40 years since the last one.
GO GIANTS!!!
The weight loss is going slowly, but at least it's going. I'm down to 157.5 pounds, despite the fact that I made my way through a pint of Ben & Jerry's vanilla ice cream with fat free chocolate sauce chocolate. I definitely can't keep ice cream in the house, without eating it every day. I don't usually crave icecream either, so I'm sure it was a stress craving.
I bought some strawberries on Sunday, so when I'm craving a dessert I'll have strawberries with chocolate sauce. Strawberries are probably better for me than icecream anyway. I also bought some apples, and I'm looking forward to eating applies with fat free caramel sauce.
What's weird is I can see eating like this for the rest of my life. It's really not that bad. But who knows what I'll feel like doing in April or May, which is my new target time to be at my weight goal. I can easily see myself totally binging on chocolate and icecream for a week, just to celebrate. I might even break down and eat a steak, just to really be evil and bad. It's been years since I've eaten a steak, so maybe I'm due for once every five year steak meal. I know just where to go too; Harris Steakhouse. I think it's supposed to be the best steak house in San Francisco, and I've never been there, and I want to check it out.
Look at me, I'm already dreaming of binging on chocolate, ice cream and steak next spring. YIKES!!!
I bought some strawberries on Sunday, so when I'm craving a dessert I'll have strawberries with chocolate sauce. Strawberries are probably better for me than icecream anyway. I also bought some apples, and I'm looking forward to eating applies with fat free caramel sauce.
What's weird is I can see eating like this for the rest of my life. It's really not that bad. But who knows what I'll feel like doing in April or May, which is my new target time to be at my weight goal. I can easily see myself totally binging on chocolate and icecream for a week, just to celebrate. I might even break down and eat a steak, just to really be evil and bad. It's been years since I've eaten a steak, so maybe I'm due for once every five year steak meal. I know just where to go too; Harris Steakhouse. I think it's supposed to be the best steak house in San Francisco, and I've never been there, and I want to check it out.
Look at me, I'm already dreaming of binging on chocolate, ice cream and steak next spring. YIKES!!!
I managed to get to scene 17. It's hard to write this baseball screenplay of mine, when the home team is playing in the world series, and I feel obligated to watch them. The 9 scenes I wrote tonight were the hardest though since I had to get through to the first act and the crucial turning point of the story.
I'm resigned to the fact that I'm probably going to have to write several drafts of this screenplay before it's any good, and even then who knows. The writers of the movie "Blue Crush" wrote 8 or more drafts, and that movie while good, had some major flaws.
I don't know why more women don't watch sports. God, talk about a bunch of pretty boys on both teams. I love watching all that young male flesh in their prime at the top of their game. JT Snow is really cute, once he takes his cap off. Robb Nen looks way better without facial hair, although what is it with that heavy gold chain around his neck. So disco.
David Eckstein reminds me of that Cousins guy from the Arizona Diamondbacks I love the Angel Salmon story. Salmon has been with the Angels for 10 years, and it's been his only team. He's a rarity in baseball. And poor Kevin Appier. I remember him when he was pitching for the Oakland A's. And poor Russell Ortiz, and in front of a hometown crowd too. The Angel manager, Mike Scioscia, was cute as young man and he's aged very nicely as well. The announcers are so right. You can't tell from looking at Scioscia whether the team is losing or winning. He looks exactly the same.
The world series is definitely a distraction to me right now. And I feel bad because I think I'm an american league girl, and sometimes I kind of root for the Angels. Don't know why either, since they're in the same division as my beloved A's. But when push comes to shove, I will always root for the Giants.
I think it's going to be a great series, and I hope it goes to game 7, only because it's more exciting then. Talk about a nailbiter.
Watching tonight's world series game has really shown me that to get a win, you've really got to work hard. The Angels and the Giants battled for every run. Every inning was like the 9th inning and both teams fought hard. What really strikes me about baseball and these two teams, is thinking of these kids as young boys. Many of the players from both teams, grew up in SoCal and were team mates or rivals in high school.
I think of all the young boys who started out in little league, who played high school ball, then went onto college ball or the minors, and then finally onto to the major league teams, and then if they're lucky, they're playing in the world series. I think about the selection process these boys went through, how hard they must have worked from a young age to even now, developing their talent, their bodies and their skills. And even when they get to the majors, it's not all easy. Look at JT Snow. He's had a bad year, and now he's on a hot streak in the world series.
I know writing must be exactly the same way. These men had god given talent, and they just kept working that talent, developing that talent, and working hard all their lives. These ball players make it look easy now because they are at the top of their individual games, but it took a lot of hard work and alot of years for them to get to where they are.
It would be dishonorable of me to expect that my road, if there is one, to the pinnacle of my writing talent, will not be any less long, difficult and arduous. Like these baseball players, people have told me at a young age that I had natural writing talent. I never believed them, and went on to other things. But unlike these baseball players, writing talent doesn't seem to depend on age. In fact, it seems takes quite a bit of living and maturity to be a good writer, although there are many writers who've excelled at a very young age.
If I write tomorrow, I'll still be on track to finish my screenplay by the end of the week. I had hoped to finish sooner, and probably would have if the Giants weren't in the series. But oh well. I've learned quite a bit about life and my writing from watching this world series so far, and maybe that's all that really matters.
I'm resigned to the fact that I'm probably going to have to write several drafts of this screenplay before it's any good, and even then who knows. The writers of the movie "Blue Crush" wrote 8 or more drafts, and that movie while good, had some major flaws.
I don't know why more women don't watch sports. God, talk about a bunch of pretty boys on both teams. I love watching all that young male flesh in their prime at the top of their game. JT Snow is really cute, once he takes his cap off. Robb Nen looks way better without facial hair, although what is it with that heavy gold chain around his neck. So disco.
David Eckstein reminds me of that Cousins guy from the Arizona Diamondbacks I love the Angel Salmon story. Salmon has been with the Angels for 10 years, and it's been his only team. He's a rarity in baseball. And poor Kevin Appier. I remember him when he was pitching for the Oakland A's. And poor Russell Ortiz, and in front of a hometown crowd too. The Angel manager, Mike Scioscia, was cute as young man and he's aged very nicely as well. The announcers are so right. You can't tell from looking at Scioscia whether the team is losing or winning. He looks exactly the same.
The world series is definitely a distraction to me right now. And I feel bad because I think I'm an american league girl, and sometimes I kind of root for the Angels. Don't know why either, since they're in the same division as my beloved A's. But when push comes to shove, I will always root for the Giants.
I think it's going to be a great series, and I hope it goes to game 7, only because it's more exciting then. Talk about a nailbiter.
Watching tonight's world series game has really shown me that to get a win, you've really got to work hard. The Angels and the Giants battled for every run. Every inning was like the 9th inning and both teams fought hard. What really strikes me about baseball and these two teams, is thinking of these kids as young boys. Many of the players from both teams, grew up in SoCal and were team mates or rivals in high school.
I think of all the young boys who started out in little league, who played high school ball, then went onto college ball or the minors, and then finally onto to the major league teams, and then if they're lucky, they're playing in the world series. I think about the selection process these boys went through, how hard they must have worked from a young age to even now, developing their talent, their bodies and their skills. And even when they get to the majors, it's not all easy. Look at JT Snow. He's had a bad year, and now he's on a hot streak in the world series.
I know writing must be exactly the same way. These men had god given talent, and they just kept working that talent, developing that talent, and working hard all their lives. These ball players make it look easy now because they are at the top of their individual games, but it took a lot of hard work and alot of years for them to get to where they are.
It would be dishonorable of me to expect that my road, if there is one, to the pinnacle of my writing talent, will not be any less long, difficult and arduous. Like these baseball players, people have told me at a young age that I had natural writing talent. I never believed them, and went on to other things. But unlike these baseball players, writing talent doesn't seem to depend on age. In fact, it seems takes quite a bit of living and maturity to be a good writer, although there are many writers who've excelled at a very young age.
If I write tomorrow, I'll still be on track to finish my screenplay by the end of the week. I had hoped to finish sooner, and probably would have if the Giants weren't in the series. But oh well. I've learned quite a bit about life and my writing from watching this world series so far, and maybe that's all that really matters.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)