I Feel Like A WRITER!!! :D

I believe I mentioned that as of June 1, 2007 and until 11:59:59 June 30, 2007 I'm participating in a lunatic online event called Script Frenzy?

Well today I logged my first official word count: 2,875 word!

And what's REALLY nuts is that today I completely switched script! Started from SCRATCH!

Here's the thing: I offered for Brian to join me in this insanity, explaining that I think it will be a freeing educational exercise. I have found, over 15 years of study and trial and oh-so-much error, that in the beginning stages as writers we can really over-thing ourselves and our abilities, to the point of paralysis. As complex and subtle as writing is, it's also JUST TELLING A STORY. It's very simple, and most of us can do it intuitively.

So Brian came up with this far-out, well wacky Comedy idea that threw this brilliant character he created into this whole new slew of situations and characters. I came up with a basic structure, and I went to work on it.

I hit some road blocks, and he and I had some in-depth conversations about possibilities. Then I got back to work on it.

This weekend I wrote 1,170 words on it before I realized I was just out of my depth alone.

Brian's not really down for this spend-a-whole-month-devoted-to-completing-a-draft thing (which I FULLY understand) and Comedy is just not something I can write by myself.

So I dug up this Horror concept I've been toying with... That is to say, a concept that's been toying with ME. I have this brilliant -- I'm serious, it's BRILLIANT -- idea that keeps adding to itself in my mind. Many idea seem to shrink once you begin exploring them. (Anyone who has tried to write a novel or feature-length screenplay for the first time knows EXACTLY what I mean.) But this idea keeps growing and growing!!!

So I thought, "What the hey?!!"

Script Frenzy isn't about which idea is the best or the most marketable, it's about starting from scratch with an idea and trying to complete the rough draft -- 20,000 words or more -- in a month.

So I whipped it out, slapped it on the table, and I've been writing on it since roughly 7:00 am this morning. That was 9 1/2 hours ago, lol.

Now, much of that time was not putting words into a document file. That's the smallest part of writing. (The fun part.) Most of it was eating, doing laundry, going to the grocery store, doing dishes, watching a couple of episodes of THE SIMPSONS on dvd, chatting with Brian, trying not to fall asleep, listening to some Book Of Love, and then eating again, lol.

But the words that made it into a document file...!!! NICE!!!

And the rush I'm feeling right now comes from the excitement of CREATION!!! Today I created a bunch of characters with lives and desires, and I threw some nasty stuff their way, and I'm watching them deal with that stuff!!!

It's so funny: I created an approaching storm for them a couple of hours ago, and I still FEEL that storm coming when I'm away from the keyboard, lol! I through the storm in there because it's dramatic and symbolic, and because I like storms. And I step away from the fictional world I made and I still get to enjoy the storm, lol.

And the nice things about this is that THIS time I'm writing a Horror world I really enjoy. The last Horror script I wrote -- back in December or January -- had a lot of elements I didn't really connect with. I had to research the world of BDSM, and power-exchange is just NOT something I can relate to. (In a relationship, I give myself wholey to someone willing to give herself wholey to me. It's about mutual respect and trust and adoration... not "scenes", ya know? Not that there's anything wrong with that, it's just me. I'm "vanilla," I believe the term is.)

But THIS WORLD...! It's a world I grew up with! It's a world I spent HOURS at the cinema recoiling from! (In that FUN way, hehe.)

For YEARS I rejected the possibility of writing this world because I thought it too simple! But now I understand that I only found it simplistic because I hadn't explored it fully. There are nuances I want to put into this script that I still haven't figured out how to do yet!

I'm sorry. I'm just very, very giddy right now. If you hear someone say that writing is like a drug, don't dismiss them so quickly. (As I have.) It's not the mere act of creation, it's putting in the hours, then looking back and discovering that you've ACTUALLY DONE SOME WORK! It's AMAZING!

And I'm getting all that fun stuff you've heard/read writer's talking about: I sketched out an outline before I started working, so I knew that the place I was going was a destination worth visiting, and when I stared writing, my characters wouldn't follow the beaten path, lol. I can't force them to go where I'm leading them, so I just follow them and try to herd them in the (generally) right direction. But following them gives me a much more interesting journey. (If you haven't experienced this phenomenon, SERIOUSLY, just sketch out a story in 3 acts -- it doesn't have to be great or even good, just something you like -- then create people and give them personalities, and then write the story and remain true to their personalities. You find they do things a bit differently than you expected! YOU! THEIR CREATOR!!! I'm not saying their behavior will SHOCK you very often, but it will OFTEN throw your original outline for a loop, lol.)

Blah.

Okay, I still have a bit more work to do before I can let myself off the hook for today. (This blog entry is yet ANOTHER in my many (may I add "necessary") breaks between writing, lol.) So I'm going to get back to work and wish all of you A WONDEFUL EVENING!!!

And to my Gnomey Goddess: I LOVE YOU SO VERY, VERY MUCH & THANK YOU FOR YOU!!!

PEACE!!!

:D