Writing is... well, it's writing

Hello everyone, and Happy Holidays. I hope the end of 2011 brings good memories of a well lived year. Mine was okay. I accomplished a few writing goals - an option, a few accolades from screenwriting festivals, and most recently the completion of a TV spec for the show Supernatural.

Will the script ever make it to the screen? Probably not. That's not the way TV spec writing works. Would it make a good episode? Well, I'm biased. But that's not the point. The point is that I wrote it after years of swearing to myself that I would never write something for TV.

Why, you ask, would I limit myself? Good question. Part of it most likely has to do with the desire to procrastinate instead of grapple with a challenge. I always believed the writing for TV would be hard. Too many fans hope their scripts will make the cut. Shows already have their writers, so staff is extra critical when they read your spec - IF they read your spec. Chances are they won't. If you're lucky to get someone to read it, it's for a show other than the show you wrote the spec for because, like I said - that's just the way the TV industry works. The rules for writing TV are a little bit odd.

But I'm proud of myself because I did it anyway. I wrote a Supernatural spec, and I think I did well. And now I feel excited at trying my hand at another. Maybe a comedy. Maybe another supernatural themed show. The point is that I was inspired to write it, and I followed through. And now I have another script to showcase my talent. Or at least I have another script to showcase my learning curve. It felt good to do it and to complete it in spite of the odds of it ever getting made. It felt good to overcome writer's procrastination.

Hopefully, the new year will see me continue to overcome writer's procrastination. I wish the same success to all my friends and family in their 2012 endeavors as well. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and Happy New Year to all!

The Aftereffects of September

Well September has come and gone, and I am in the midst of wondering where to start now that I have the success of an option under my belt. The script that has been optioned (I can officially break the news now) is A Good Soul. I'm very happy to be optioned and look forward to one day seeing it hit theaters.


Shriekfest has come and gone, and although I didn't make it past finalist with my short script Pwned, I am again happy to have made it that far. I was able to catch some of the films that screened on the last day of the festival, and I had a great time. A big thank you goes out to festival founder and coordinator Denise Gossett, who continues to open doors even after the festival is over.


Thanks to everyone who made the month of September full of promise, and here's to continued promise in the coming months and new year.

Slowly, But Surreality Part 3

It's a bit of an agonizing wait when updates keep dribbling in over the course of weeks, even days. That's what I've been going through over the entire summer!


But this is a good thing, because those updates continue to foster progress on several fronts.


My short Pwned has progressed to finalist status at Shriekfest. Check out their website for tickets and event passes for the festival. There are some great horror indie features and shorts in the lineup.  Save the date for some horrific fun - September 30th through October 2nd.


Surreality is moving along, still slowly but surely. I'm still looking forward to the next phase of development.


Finally, option/sales negotiations for that unnamed feature of mine is close to being complete. I'm looking forward to seeing it happen - and to getting the pic made!


That's it for now. Keep writing!

Slowly, But Surreality Part 2

Good news! I have just been given word that my short script entry Pwned  has made it to the semi-final round of Shriekfest. 

That, plus the progress of the web series Surreality, and the potential option of one of my features is making the month of August one of the best months ever.

Again, Surreality will have Special Effects artist Gage Hubbard, from season 1 of the Syfy series Face-Off, on board to do some cool horror makeup. I'm still excited to see this series get off the ground, and I'll post dates when I know more.

Shriekfest is "LA's most successful and entertaining horror film festival," according to the LA Weekly. My fingers are crossed that Pwned will make it to another round.

Keep keeping your fingers crossed too, and keep writing!

Slowly, But Surreality

I have been given the greenlight to talk about the web series in preproduction that includes an episode or two written by me. Surreality, the series is getting closer to reality, although a lot of the details are still under wraps.

I can say this much - if you like horror, you'll probably like Surreality. Special Effects artist Gage Hubbard, from season 1 of the Syfy series Face-Off, has been tapped to do some cool horror makeup. I'm excited to see this series get off the ground, and I'll post dates when I know more.

More good news involves the option of one of my features. We are currently in a negotiation phase, so I can't say much more, but I hope to report back on a promising looking deal soon.

Keep your fingers crossed for me, and keep writing!

Things are still looking good

And there you have it. I have been busy working on material for an upstart production company. I wish I could share more. But I can't. Yet. And that's a good thing.

I will say this. As much as I hate networking, it's a necessary evil and the reason I was asked to come on board the project I'm working on. It could be as simple as "Hey, you're in the business? Me too! We should stay in touch!" It's never enough to just write. STAY CONNECTED!

Oh, and I wanted to give another shout out for some friends of mine, Greg Goyins, whose short After the Denim is featured in the upcoming Florida Film Festival, April 8-17, 2011. Maggie Franks for her successful docu-short The Board Meeting, about a pair of retired executives who ponder life while surfing. And Chris Billett, who is moving on to bigger and better things. Congratulations, guys! And good luck!

Off to a promising start

Happy New Year, everyone! I hope that 2011 holds the promise of fulfillment of your goals and dreams. My year begins with good news - my last completed script TURF WAR was named a top 100 finalist in the Sundance Table Read My Screenplay competitions.

It did not go on to win, but any accolade that has the name Sundance in it is okay by me.

In other news, I have completed my classes for a degree in library science, so as I continue to toil away as an uncredited writer, I may be doing it within the realm of easy to reach research tools. We'll see what the job market allows.

There are still a couple of scripts that beckon for my attention, and I have been working on adapting one of them into a novel. Wish me luck!

And keep writing!