I sent off my first submission to 2000AD's Future Shocks.
Of course as soon as I sent it I immediately hated it. I hope I'm just being overly critical with myself. I'm not sure when I'll hear back, if I even do, but at least it's something.
Right now I have just finished my second script for Future Shocks. I still have the treatment to write. It's based on one of my stories up on crooked fiction so it came out fairly quickly. Also explains why the treatment is coming second.
Tomorrow there is a talk at the BBC in Salford by Stephen Butchard. I'm down on the list. Apparently if I don't go now then it will jeopardize my place at future events put on by the BBC Writer's Room. Sounds serious. I'm not sure what exactly will be going on. I assumer he'll be at the front talking at us and then there'll be a q&a. Isn't that how these things usually work?
I already feel like I'm out of my depth, I'm not really sure I'm the type of person this sort of thing is aimed at. I don't even remember putting my name forward. It was probably something I saw on the North West Vision site. Those things are usually for industry professionals. I'm sure I'll find out more when I get there, IF I get there. Never been before so I'm pretty sure I'm going to get lost. I can find Manchester alright, it's taking the tram to the BBC I'm more concerned with.
It's turned up at a very awkward time. I am, to coin a phrase "on the bones of my arse". Money is pretty tight for me right now. I'll be OK next week but this even has just fallen at the wrong time money-wise. It's that no mans land between bills going out and pay coming in. Plus I've also found out that my DJing night is off this week whilst the venue undergoes some maintenance.
So I'm not really starving. Not in the literal sense. Although I am on a diet, and the good news is it's working!
Monday, 17 October 2011
Tuesday, 11 October 2011
Nuclear Family
I just wrote a comic.
That's what the title is about. That's the name of the comic.
Just a short one. I'm submitting a short story to 2000AD's Future Shocks. It seems like a good place for new writer's to get a break. Also I'm hoping that producing more short works will help me get some momentum going to do something larger. Also I'm sure getting one published would help too. As soon as that happens I'll start calling myself an actual writer.
Got a little postcard from the BBC a few days ago to say they had received my script. So I'm doing better than last time. I did however remember that I still only had a first class stamp on the return envelope. So if that gets back to me there will be postage to pay (IF it gets back to me at all). I'm sure if they actually like what I wrote I'll get a call anyway so not to worry.
Still banging my head against the wall with the longer comic. The one about the supervillain who goes up against some other villains to avenge his brother (who was the world's greatest superhero) but it is tough going. So tough that I've actually come up with half a treatment for the exact opposite idea. One about a kid who through no fault of his own ends up becoming a hero. That one is actually going a lot better. I'm much more satisfied with the arc, the theme and especially with the ending. The way the forces of antagonism build and build. It all came so much easier than the absolute brain crusher that the supervillain story has turned out to be.
It is a much more complex story though, that was why it was so appealing to me. Every villain is the hero of their own story. That was what I started with, so then it was a case of coming up with a story where a person could make totally justifiable choices that when looked at from the outside appear to be the wrong ones. I ended up with a lot of it being about the way he refused to align himself with earth's governments and so they used the press to paint him as the bad guy whilst the hero was something of a "corporate stooge" and so they used their media ties to make him a hero. But that all seemed to be too political, not necessarily a bad thing but I wanted the story to be much purer than that and more of a saga about a family and the consequences their choices have.
I'll keep that one on the burner for now and work on the hero story.
That's a longer term goal. In the meantime I have at least 3 more Future Shocks to work on and send in. Hopefully the people at 2000AD will start getting a slew of submissions from me in the next 2 weeks and maybe they;ll get used to/sick of seeing my name and decide they should just give me a chance/shut me up.
That's what the title is about. That's the name of the comic.
Just a short one. I'm submitting a short story to 2000AD's Future Shocks. It seems like a good place for new writer's to get a break. Also I'm hoping that producing more short works will help me get some momentum going to do something larger. Also I'm sure getting one published would help too. As soon as that happens I'll start calling myself an actual writer.
Got a little postcard from the BBC a few days ago to say they had received my script. So I'm doing better than last time. I did however remember that I still only had a first class stamp on the return envelope. So if that gets back to me there will be postage to pay (IF it gets back to me at all). I'm sure if they actually like what I wrote I'll get a call anyway so not to worry.
Still banging my head against the wall with the longer comic. The one about the supervillain who goes up against some other villains to avenge his brother (who was the world's greatest superhero) but it is tough going. So tough that I've actually come up with half a treatment for the exact opposite idea. One about a kid who through no fault of his own ends up becoming a hero. That one is actually going a lot better. I'm much more satisfied with the arc, the theme and especially with the ending. The way the forces of antagonism build and build. It all came so much easier than the absolute brain crusher that the supervillain story has turned out to be.
It is a much more complex story though, that was why it was so appealing to me. Every villain is the hero of their own story. That was what I started with, so then it was a case of coming up with a story where a person could make totally justifiable choices that when looked at from the outside appear to be the wrong ones. I ended up with a lot of it being about the way he refused to align himself with earth's governments and so they used the press to paint him as the bad guy whilst the hero was something of a "corporate stooge" and so they used their media ties to make him a hero. But that all seemed to be too political, not necessarily a bad thing but I wanted the story to be much purer than that and more of a saga about a family and the consequences their choices have.
I'll keep that one on the burner for now and work on the hero story.
That's a longer term goal. In the meantime I have at least 3 more Future Shocks to work on and send in. Hopefully the people at 2000AD will start getting a slew of submissions from me in the next 2 weeks and maybe they;ll get used to/sick of seeing my name and decide they should just give me a chance/shut me up.
Monday, 10 October 2011
Tumblin'
Just an FYI. I've written some short stories and things which can be found here:
www.crookedfiction.tumblr.com
Just in case you were interested.
www.crookedfiction.tumblr.com
Just in case you were interested.
Friday, 30 September 2011
BBC rejection
Well not quite.
I got a big envelope back which had everything I sent off in it. Turns out I hadn't put enough postage on. So that was a wasted 6 weeks. Going to send it again tomorrow.
Trying to write a short just to send out to a few directors. Maybe someone will like it enough to make it. The way it's written now is too big budget, but I'll fix that in the next pass. Of course I have to finish the first pass first! Also at the moment it's silent. Not sure if I like that or not. It's one character. I thought I should add a second character to give the first someone to talk to, so I could explain what she was thinking and feeling but I suppose it's to have less dialogue and do as much of the story telling as you can visually. That's what all the books say anyway.
Tried to get back into university but they weren't having it. There's nothing to be done for me funding wise and I'm on the bones of my arse as it is. Been talking to my promoter friend about doing some new nights but that's just a waiting game for me with the ball in his court.
I know people question the merits of a screenwriting MA but I feel I need that structure to force me to write at the moment. I find it hard. I over-think and never get anything down. Also having already done a year I owe those years fess. If I don't finish then that's half the fees for nothing.
Plus I want to be able to give my Mum that picture of me in the cap and gown. I think she had high hopes of me, so did I, but I've never really amounted to much of anything. She seems to be falling to bits. Arthritis and other pains. There is probably more wrong with her than either she has told us or she knows herself (between the drinking, smoking and her having been overweight most of her life - she'd kill me for putting that online!). She keeps on at me about wanting to see me have a kid before she dies. A request that seems to be being made more and more frequently.
My Dad was in the Navy when I was younger so was away a lot. My Mum raised us on her own. She also used to foster other children and we frequently had other people living with us who she had taken in. Throughout all of this she went back to University. She was doing the Open University for a while. There was some kind of scheme called "Second Chance to Learn". Given her working class background growing up in the 60s, betterment was never really seen as an option but come the 80s my Mum did something about that.
Then she went to Liverpool Polytechnic. It's now John Moores University. I think the buildings she used to attend are now closed, no longer part of the University, even if they still own them. I remember going once to sit in her class. It was some kind of protest to get a creche provided. The idea was we'd be as much of a disturbance as we could be to annoy the Uni into providing the facilities. From what I remember it worked, which I'm not sure is something I should be proud of. I have 2 memories from the day. One was doing an enormous burp after drinking a can of coke and having to leave the room I was laughing so much and another was being in a sociology lecture and listening in thinking it was a load of rubbish and just stating common sense. When the lecturer saw me listening intently he tried to be funny and ask me what he was talking about so I told him. Put him in his place and impressed everyone with how clever I was haha.
This all got a little more personal than I would usually blog! The point is I'd just like to be able to show her I achieved something before she dies, whenever that might be. I want her to be as proud of me as I am of her.
I got a big envelope back which had everything I sent off in it. Turns out I hadn't put enough postage on. So that was a wasted 6 weeks. Going to send it again tomorrow.
Trying to write a short just to send out to a few directors. Maybe someone will like it enough to make it. The way it's written now is too big budget, but I'll fix that in the next pass. Of course I have to finish the first pass first! Also at the moment it's silent. Not sure if I like that or not. It's one character. I thought I should add a second character to give the first someone to talk to, so I could explain what she was thinking and feeling but I suppose it's to have less dialogue and do as much of the story telling as you can visually. That's what all the books say anyway.
Tried to get back into university but they weren't having it. There's nothing to be done for me funding wise and I'm on the bones of my arse as it is. Been talking to my promoter friend about doing some new nights but that's just a waiting game for me with the ball in his court.
I know people question the merits of a screenwriting MA but I feel I need that structure to force me to write at the moment. I find it hard. I over-think and never get anything down. Also having already done a year I owe those years fess. If I don't finish then that's half the fees for nothing.
Plus I want to be able to give my Mum that picture of me in the cap and gown. I think she had high hopes of me, so did I, but I've never really amounted to much of anything. She seems to be falling to bits. Arthritis and other pains. There is probably more wrong with her than either she has told us or she knows herself (between the drinking, smoking and her having been overweight most of her life - she'd kill me for putting that online!). She keeps on at me about wanting to see me have a kid before she dies. A request that seems to be being made more and more frequently.
My Dad was in the Navy when I was younger so was away a lot. My Mum raised us on her own. She also used to foster other children and we frequently had other people living with us who she had taken in. Throughout all of this she went back to University. She was doing the Open University for a while. There was some kind of scheme called "Second Chance to Learn". Given her working class background growing up in the 60s, betterment was never really seen as an option but come the 80s my Mum did something about that.
Then she went to Liverpool Polytechnic. It's now John Moores University. I think the buildings she used to attend are now closed, no longer part of the University, even if they still own them. I remember going once to sit in her class. It was some kind of protest to get a creche provided. The idea was we'd be as much of a disturbance as we could be to annoy the Uni into providing the facilities. From what I remember it worked, which I'm not sure is something I should be proud of. I have 2 memories from the day. One was doing an enormous burp after drinking a can of coke and having to leave the room I was laughing so much and another was being in a sociology lecture and listening in thinking it was a load of rubbish and just stating common sense. When the lecturer saw me listening intently he tried to be funny and ask me what he was talking about so I told him. Put him in his place and impressed everyone with how clever I was haha.
This all got a little more personal than I would usually blog! The point is I'd just like to be able to show her I achieved something before she dies, whenever that might be. I want her to be as proud of me as I am of her.
Monday, 26 September 2011
Back to blog
Not blogged in ages.
I'm going to try and get back to it more frequently. Try and help me form a writing routine.
On the writing front I'm trying to get back on my MA course. i couldn't afford the tuition so had to drop out. the course has a rolling intake of once every 2 years so this year I can start the second year again.
Pitched a story to Com X comics. Eddie Deighton said he liked the idea. I'll be sending the treatment once I have it. Hopefully they'll want to publish it. He didn't say anything about them specifically wanting to pick it up at Com X but here's hoping.
I have a script off at the BBC. That sounds bigger than it is. I sent a script to The Writer's Room. They promise to get back to me eventually. Not sure how long it's been now. Hopefully something will come of it, even if it's just a contact who thinks maybe the script isn't right for them they could see something in me worth working with, offer to let me do a trial script for something or other. I have a sitcom for the BBC I'm "working" on which I'll send as well once I have it.
Last of all I've been putting writings up on tumblr. At first they were just little ideas I had and wrote straight off the top of my head. Sort of horror themed but kind of funny. I have a few longer stories I'm still working on to go up.
They're on www.crookedfiction.tumblr.com if you're interested.
I'm having a tough time writing an actual screenplay. I just don't think any of my ideas are any good. been reading a few more professional scripts and honestly, most of the ones I've read are no good. I'm convinced I can come up with something better... if I could just come up with something better.
I'm going to try and get back to it more frequently. Try and help me form a writing routine.
On the writing front I'm trying to get back on my MA course. i couldn't afford the tuition so had to drop out. the course has a rolling intake of once every 2 years so this year I can start the second year again.
Pitched a story to Com X comics. Eddie Deighton said he liked the idea. I'll be sending the treatment once I have it. Hopefully they'll want to publish it. He didn't say anything about them specifically wanting to pick it up at Com X but here's hoping.
I have a script off at the BBC. That sounds bigger than it is. I sent a script to The Writer's Room. They promise to get back to me eventually. Not sure how long it's been now. Hopefully something will come of it, even if it's just a contact who thinks maybe the script isn't right for them they could see something in me worth working with, offer to let me do a trial script for something or other. I have a sitcom for the BBC I'm "working" on which I'll send as well once I have it.
Last of all I've been putting writings up on tumblr. At first they were just little ideas I had and wrote straight off the top of my head. Sort of horror themed but kind of funny. I have a few longer stories I'm still working on to go up.
They're on www.crookedfiction.tumblr.com if you're interested.
I'm having a tough time writing an actual screenplay. I just don't think any of my ideas are any good. been reading a few more professional scripts and honestly, most of the ones I've read are no good. I'm convinced I can come up with something better... if I could just come up with something better.
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