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Michaeltw721
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| Joined: | Wed Mar 5th, 2008 |
| Location: | NYC, New York USA |
| Posts: | 21 |
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Posted: Tue Apr 29th, 2008 07:32 pm |
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I've been exhausted from the arrival of our baby son, but now back at work and trying to write everyday.
I have a full length I've been toying with since maybe December and have 2 solid first scenes written - @ 32 pages. From there I have a sketch of where I want it to go, but I keep overanalyzing the first 2 scenes and wondering if I need to make it heavier/more comedic, etc.
I'm realizing I've hit a wall in terms of moving forward and wondering what any of you fellow writers suggest? Also, every time I try posting my scripts, I seem to get awful looking things b/c of formatting. Do I need to paste it in html?
Also, here's my somewhat less pressing query. Another full length I've been working on since 2006 has gotten a full staged reading this summer at a professional theater in Chicago. This is the 110 pp. version. A group here in NYC is reading it for consideration of their season this Friday. That's the 44 pg. version. In between I hacked it apart. Any ideas on how to finalize whatever product I can?
Last edited on Tue Apr 29th, 2008 07:41 pm by Michaeltw721
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spiny norman
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| Joined: | Fri Jul 21st, 2006 |
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Posted: Tue Apr 29th, 2008 10:22 pm |
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i would forbid myself from reading what i've already written. put the first two scenes in a file & let someone else set the password so you can't get into it. keep going forward. you can kill an idea by fiddling with the beginning of it too many times - it will wither up & die on the vine. be like a shark & keep moving forward!
i was once asked to boil down a full-length piece into a one act & managed to do it but felt the finished product was rushed. it did make me concentrate on what was important, however. every word counted. when i went back to read the full-length version, it seemed flabby.
finally, i put away all versions of the play & rewrote the whole thing. i never never let myself go back to read anything in the previous versions. i felt i knew the characters, their motivations & the plot very thoroughly and went at it as though i hadn't written it before. i didn't get hung up on the length, just wrote.
i think it came out pretty good.
hope this helps!
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nic
Member
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Posted: Wed Apr 30th, 2008 04:37 am |
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I'm a bit with spiny on the subject of not revisiting the early scenes too much but I've found it helpful to begin the day's writing by rewriting the last couple of pages of the script so far. Often, not a word is changed but it sort of gives me a run up for the jump into the next bit.
Silly but it might help
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Paddy
Moderator
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Posted: Thu May 1st, 2008 02:10 pm |
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I'm on the same page as Michael. I couldn't go back and rewrite the last few pages, but an effective thing, is to leave off writing mid-sentence, where when you sit back down, you'll know where you are going and start writing immediately.
I agree with the putting away. Fuss later, when you change the ending, and have to adjust the beginning to work, but for now, get it to the page.
Maybe skip the middle for now, and write the ending, and then you know where you're going.
Do whatever works...but what you do know, is what you're doing now, doesn't work.
Paddy
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