Roger Bannister: Screenwriter in Fredericton, Canada.

Hi All, I am a retired salesman (writer wannabee). Over the years I have accumulated stories and tales created during long drives at odd hours, even longer flights and long, long nights in hotel rooms. Some are memories from my boyhood in Newfoundland, others are adventure stories based on historical events. I really would like to learn how to write a movie script - any suggestions for online courses would be greatly appreciated.

Here's a short story of a memory that is precious.

Nan's Boy

The little boy stood in the cold porch struggling to get his left boot off, his grandmother on the other side of the wall in the warm kitchen heard the thumping. Just as she opened the door one vigorous kick launched the boot the length of the porch striking the outside door and rattling the glass in the door. "Now then my son , you break that glass and you'll be sleeping out here tonight" the little boy looked back over his shoulder grinning because he knew she didn't mean it, after all he was Nan's boy. Still and though he was careful in his efforts with the right boot. As he continued to work on it , his grandmother came up to him and began to help him undress. First the grey wool stocking cap and mittens crusted with snow and ice, than the heavy wool coat, scarf and finally the heavy wool snow pants. He had to sit on the floor so she could pull off the snow pants. "Your feet are like two blocks of ice" she said as he followed her into the kitchen. She pulled a chair in front of the wood stove and lowered the oven door, a folded towel was placed on the door where he rested his chilly feet feeling the pins and needles as the warmth from the oven began to penetrate his toes. She came over with a towel and scrubbed his damp hair dry. As he sat there warming up, she brought a big mug of hot cocoa and the still warm heel off a fresh baked loaf of homemade bread slathered in butter, it was little boy heaven.

I find it outrageous to place the statement by Aaron Sorkin, 'Good writers borrow from other writers. Great writers steal from them outright' on top of Stage 32 FAQ. Why this tendency to sacrifice some basic moral principles for the sake of fun? Creativity is about creating, not stealing. When you steal, you're a thief. And the fact that you have an artistic attribute does not alter this fact. Then you're an artist-thief. Frankly I find this post-modern permissiveness dark and not amusing. Ana

Hi All, Writer Wannabe here! I come from a culture (Newfoundland) where story tellers and musicians are a hugely respected and appreciated so aspiring to be a writer is a good thing even this late in life. I'd love to hear more from all you writers out there about how you got started and how you work. I have some short stories in progress, a feature film script and I've written a couple of poems. I used to be the classic on the road sales guys and did a lot of writing in my head on long road trips and flights, now I'm starting to get it down on paper. I have no formal training and I'm looking for basic technical info on script formatting, I understand there is software out there that helps with that. I'm also interesting in finding a good Script Writing 101 Course available online.

Enjoyed your tale of woe, watched 2 friends go through the same thing a few years back with their own independant film.

Mark, thanks for the invite request.

Hi I'm Savannah J, a writer currently working on my sixth novel. I'm looking to turn my suspense novel titled The Prey into a screen play in the near future. I'd love to connect with other writers and screen writers here.

Very humbled to say I scooped my first ever award last night at the Lindfield Arts Festival, (UK), for my short film Great Ocean of Truth. The film was one of my early efforts being produced over five years ago, but it goes to show how persistence and pitching to the right niche work - http://www.stage32.com/video/623616620425651315

It feels great working across the globe, across all the boundaries, time zones and finally earn. Just earned my first international payment.. My first Dollar.. Just want to thank all the Stage32 friends and people!

Laura, thoroughly enjoyed reading your post here, as a fellow cancer survivor I can appreciate what you are saying. For me surviving cancer was the impetus to quit talking about writing and actually do some, so far I've written a couple of short stories, a rough draft for a feature film script and even a poem. Thanks for sharing!

Yes!

GREETINGS FROM GOOD OLD BERLIN :-)

To a large degree I am defined by my heritage, I was born and raised in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, formerly the Republic of Newfoundland , formerly Her Majesty's British Colony of Newfoundland. Our origins are multitude, our history long and hard but filled with wonderful stories, music and art. We are a people who revere our story tellers , our musicians and our artists. To be a writer is to be something wonderful, even to aspire to be a writer is a worthy dream. I love to tell the stories of my home and my people and I am bursting with ideas I want to communicate. I'm currently working on a film script revolving around some of our family stories, (2) short stories sort of autobiographical and I even managed to write a poem. I'm interested in learning more about writing for the screen and stage and working with folks here to develop ideas and help others develop theirs.

Tom, still looking for writers for your "Train Your Dog DVD"?

Developed the writing bug late in life, got exposed to the film world while working my day job on a 3 year contract in Los Angeles. Met some great people, had the chance to get up close with a film project and found a mentor who encouraged me to write. I've finished a draft of the first one and working on a couple of other ideas. If anyone needs a business pro to help with sales and marketing go ahead and reach out.

Hi Roger. I'm RB, co-founder and CEO of Stage 32. As an actor, screenwriter, and filmmaker, I know first-hand the challenges all creatives face finding work and attracting attention to their projects. That's why we created Stage 32. Since our launch in September of 2011, the community has grown to 90,000+ members strong spanning 180+ countries making Stage 32 the social network uniquely populated with the most creative people on Earth. This is a network for you, built by you. Like most things in life, the more you participate, the greater the rewards. We ask all new members pay it forward and invite at least 5 fellow creatives and to spread the word of Stage 32 through other social media sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. You can also invite fellow creatives through the site by using the "Send Stage 32 Invites..." button on the upper right side of your profile. The more creatives, the stronger the network. The stronger the network, the more opportunities. Thanks for joining the movement and for being a part of this most talented and inspiring community. PS - Please take a moment to like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter at @Stage32online.

Hey Roger, I'm the CTO and lead developer at Stage 32. Please let me know if you have any questions or feedback about the site. I'd love to hear your comments! To get started with Stage 32 and understand all the features and resources the site has to offer, please check out the Getting Started section and our FAQ.