Rachael C Marek's Lounge Discussions

I wish you success.

Thank you! And to you!

You can pitch to Bob, if he likes it, he'll get it to the right people in Hollywood: http://www.moviepitch.com. Suscribe to Done Deal to keep an eye on what's Hollywood buying: http://www.donedealpro.com/default.aspx

You are awesome! Thank you. These are two I hadn't heard of.

Here is Jessica Brody, whom u should connect with. She's young, very talented, very giving, and just recently got a 3 picture deal with the Big Studios in Hollywood. They're producing a big motion picture of her novel 'Unremembered'. She's going to get big and busy, so connect with her and she'll tell u how she did it. http://www.jessicabrody.com

we always need good writers

Good for you, Rachael! ;-)

I just read your latest blog entry. I felt similar to you at the ending of Dexter. I stood there mouth open & muttering "that's it?" over and over. We can only hope for a big screen return.

Nice blog, Rachael. And good on you for giving back! Happy Holidays.

Thank you! Happy Holidays!

Maybe? Attach the alternate ending beginning with the page number it would replace and add the heading "ALTERNATE ENDING" as a header before the page number at the top right. It should be only around seven or eight pages and wouldn't push it over the one twenty limit (by weight ;o) ).

Use better words. Screenwriting is like haiku, you have limited words to paint the picture... so you have to find the best ones.

Your comments and suggestions have been very helpful, but may I impose one more time? LOL! Here’s the way I left it – yesterday. INSERT - SERIES OF VARIOUS SCENES A mashup of video clips and sound bites, including.... BUT, could I leave well enough alone? Hell no! I had to mess, and did when I realized I could use it to make a smoother, more logical and in a more dramatic way, transition that sets up the key/major-must-have plot point that immediately follows. Why not? I thought it was rather camp (ordinary) to begin with. Now, OVER those sound bites and video clips (and music, which I just thought of), which makes them secondary, I see her out jogging in the woods near her house, which she’s done before (which provides, in addition to how great she looks in loose fitting shorts and a tee, great visuals to boot – the path, little streams, rock formations, the lake in the BG), the dog, Big Nose, is with her, as always, the tension builds, she gathers speed, running faster and faster, as if desperately trying to escape her problems, only to have it conclude tragically, when…. What/how would/should the header read now, with all that going on in the BG, and say it in a way that won’t confuse the reader or require him or her to think of doing it that way on their own? The only thing that comes to mind is to add a short note, explaining it.

I hate to tell you this Bill but 120pp is considered very long for a script at the moment. I'm a vivid writer myself and even after getting scripts down to this length I've had many a HW reader comment on the high page count. You have to keep in mind you're writing for other creatives, so they really should be able to paint in the blanks themselves. Plus you have to accept that film making is a team process, every specialist brings their own element to the table. My advice is to put that talent you have for description into the feeling and tone of scenes rather than the raw detail of objects and sounds. Most of us don't need to be told what woods are like, but if it's a glorious yet tranquil day and your character is radiating confidence and beauty, that's important.

I often postit my logline to the screen and anything that is not that story gets flushed.