Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Report 111

I did got a place for the writing workshop, I hope I wont be the only one there, cause it would be awkward for the lady. Anyhow I am, sort off ready for the ScriptFrenzy! I have all my beat sheet write up, I just have to separate my scenes better like that I will know when and where to type shit up. I have less hours at work ( we're training a new girl so) so I will have so much free time to write, so I know I will finish it in like...2 weeks. I also have the A-to-Z challenge to do also, so it will be interesting month.

I miss writing stories ( even if , you know, I've been writing short stories here and there), well my novel anyway, but there is so much I need to understand about characters, I can feel that I'm close to the "EUREKA" moment its exhilarating.

Except of that nothing much happen this week, important anyway.Ho, well there is this guy that is participating at ScriptFrenzy who will blog interview me for the A-to-Z challenge! Because my username is Zenxara ( basically everywhere) and he had a hard time finding a theme about scriptfrenzy with the letter Z XD so there is that.

Well I guess I'll keep it short, I be working away now ( ish) take care!

Steph~

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Report 110 script writing

I want to the library yesterday, to pick up and give back a book, when I saw a flyer on their desk. It was about a work shop, a local writer was giving, saying if you always wanted to write a book then here's your chance, blah blah blah. At first I was like: I should go there I want to be a writer. But then it morph to: "wait I'm a writer, and the author is probably one of the BIGILLION* who wrote about the Maritime. Again. BUT THEN I was like.... does she know about NaNoWriMo GASP I should totally promote NaNo and be totally awesome.

all that in like...5 second, no kid. It falls on the 31 in the afternoon, I'm still debating to go since I just really want to get ready for ScricpFrenzy ( and the blog challenge) But it only on the afternoon, not the night so I be fine, in a way. and I'm going to write a few of my blog post in advance for the blog challenge like that it will give me some free time to work on my script.

I got the "save the cat!" book on scrip writing and I only read the first chapter but I am so surprise on how it sound ( and it is) just like the tips Holly Lisle gives me on her course. "The log line" in the book is made to explain what the movie is about, while "The Sentence" is a 30 word less explication of what the book is about. Its the same concept. "What is it ?"

I didn't want to buy the book yet ( that and I'm kinda broke), I wanted to know if it would be a good one about script writing, and really I think I will buy it just for the fact that it is so similar to writing novel, and that he doesn't buttercup everything. Basically say: " if you suck, witch you do, here and how to be better, but I'm not responsible for you to still suck".

Also the weather here is trolling us, for the past two days it was soo beautiful outside, you didn't even need coat, at all. But we all know it wont last so everyone is like rushing to enjoy it until its over. But it been a year now, since I place my computer in this room, where I open the blind to let the sunlight inside. The first time since a very long time, that I'm all awake and full of energy because I'm not working through the damn yellow light of my light bulb. Its great. Blinding at time, but great.

I think it was Friday? Yeah Friday, that the new iPad came out? Well I bought it ( got the money back) for my sister, and when they came down, I lend my kobo to her because she wanted to read the hunger game trilogy, yesterday she text me saying if I had all the books, cause she was starting the second one now. I text back saying yeah.

She ask me if the book end well... I say it ends differently from other books...XS She is probably starting the last book right now ( we read fast.)

HO GOD I JUST REMEMBERED! Gini Koch Alien Diplomacy comes out in April! God dammit, this coming moth is getting more and more pack as the day pass. But I know that I will finish the script in like, two weeks like it happen to NaNo. Even with work in between, but I have mostly night shift for a bit because we are training a new girl on the cash. Girl who is supposedly the one going to replace me later XD since she is bilingual also. But anyway, mostly night shift so I can work most morning witch is the time I am most efficiency. And I download Celtx and played around a bit, its a great writing tool for different scrip type and novel also!

I don't use ( well mostly I can't) any software for novel experience, I like to have all my notes and index card in hand then virtual. I write on normal Microsoft word. I tried once, to use a novel tool on the computer but I don't like on how I have to search, or even click on a tab to see my notes, character sheets, and the index cards. I like to just, turn my head and its there on my table next to me, I don't have to stop writing for take my hands away from the keyboard, everything is at a glance away.

Anyway, I have to go eat and work on my script preparation now, take care!

Steph~

* I do know its not really a word, but I like the sound of it XD

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Report 109 (Heist Society review + Report)

Review:

So I finish the Heist Society ( finally), I can say that it had a good point, interesting story, but it wasn't well written, or could have been better. I felt like the author rush to finish the story, there was some points where it didn't make sense at all, where I had to read three time to make sure I was really reading correctly.

The main character, she is a 15 or 16 year old girl ( right there, I don't know her age, I read three different one in the book) but she sounded like she was 30. There was a lot of characters, a lot, and I only knew how they look, who they are only when they actually act their part in the mission.

There was some scene that was so odd, like the main character is sitting down ( with the whole description of the velvet cushion and how old the chair is), but the girl next to her is helping her with the skirt design for the mission. skirt, and she make her twirl and everything! But its really written down that she was sitting down, yet twirling on her butt as the girl is pinning the skirt for modification.

the whole crew for the mission with the main character felt all tense up during the whole book, I felt like, even if they are supposed to know each other since ever, even work together, I felt like I couldn't see their connection, I couldn't feel it, or believe it.

There was also at some point, I wasn't sure if I was reading from the first point of view or the third point of view.

So that's my review. I give 2.5/5  on it. It had great idea, just could have been written better, or took the time to be written better. Spy novels are hard to write, because you have to think about what the reader should know at what point, have great twist and impact, and keeping track of what the reader know at the said point like that you don't give the same twist twice or forget one and it doesn't make sense at the end.

Report 109:

Now I can start study Games of Throne, while ignoring Scott watching the TV show Games of Thrones XD ( just got the blu-ray DVDs)

I also started to watch the TV show Leverage, where its a bunch of thief and hackers that group together to rob evil companies that steals from honest citizen. THAT is my kind of spy movie(the TV show is 44 min long each). Not knowing whats happening until the last minute, trying to figure it out on the side yourself but still  being surprise when your not even close, that's my kind of TV show. I like good mystery that make me hang at the edge of my seat, mouth open, eye wide trying to see everything, trying to figure it out but still shake in anticipation when I was not even close, or it get wurst.

I'm only at the first season, I did some background check and from what I understood, its not the same director after the first season, I think, so I don't know if it would be as good as this season, but I'm looking forward to it.

Two more week until April, the month of hell. Where Scott will be deep in project, I will have Scrip Frenzy AND The A-to-Z (Zed) challenger. I already know what I want to work on for the Scrip Frenzy, I have this idea in my head, I have some of the word and all the characters, but some organization need to be more solid, so I'm working on that  on the side of my brain, letting some piece of the puzzle filling out. BUT I did bought a book from Holly Lisle course ( Create a Culture Clinic) to help me with that. I have a basic understanding, but I don't know HOW to write it down for it to sound that it works. I mean, I basically bullshitting a spy agency for KIDS, if that doesn't make sense, the WHOLE story wont make sense, and that wouldn't be fun. At all.

Anyway, I can't wait to work on it, I learn a lot from my revision and I cant wait to work on it with my new skills. I have a lot to learn about characters, that I know, so I will be taking my time as I study Game of Thrones. I gonna be honest I did cringe when I open the box and saw that it was 700 page or so, and that the text is tiny and barely no white space. I cringe. I'm not proud of it, but I  know I just wanted to thumb through it and go back to my revision as soon as I can, because I hate waiting, I want to work and finish it as fast as I can, but I need to learn its not a race and if I want the best of what I have,  I need to take my time to understand, and see all my mistake and how to fix it, while remembering the good things like that I can apply it to my next novel ( or script).

Well I better cut it short, I want to read a few chapters and do my studies before going to bed, so take care!

Steph~


Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Report 108

 I finish reading  the hunger Game finally! And I finish reading " One for the Money" already, read it in one night. I'm writing a review on Hunger Game already and will write one soon for One for the Money. I bought a few books that was recommended to me for my revision course. ( Game of Throne) Scott love that series, well he watch the TV series that was base on the book, when I told him I had bought the book, it remind him about the series was out on DVDs now and I had to order the series for him too XD

I'm pausing my revision until I read Game of Throne to understand better the impact a character can have on a reader. I know the feeling as a reader, but as a writer I'm starting to notice ( just by the end of Hunger Game series and the One for the Money)

I also got the mission Impossibles movies (1-3) they where like, 5 buck each and I never saw them before so I bought them. Scott told me he liked the 3 one best and hated the 1 one, while for me its the complete opposite! The first one, I felt it was more grabbing, it was brake and steal something, while the other two was more like brake and destroy something ( while the last one we didn't even see the scene where he steal the item needed to save someone). The two last one was more about who got a bigger gun and run to save your life, while the first one was about wits, witch I like the best. I get bored after the third explosion or chasing scene in a movie.

Though I will admit, the villain ( well one of them) in the third movie, was great, give me the shivers, he was scary and that was a great move.

I also finally finish the TV series Charmed!  I always liked that series when I was young but they stop playing it and couldn't never finish it. but now I did!

With all the movie and TV show talking, made me think of ScripFrenzy! Its in a month, I already know the idea I want to work on this year. I couldn't work on ScripFrenzy last year because of school ( but did write a novel instead haha) but this year I will have all the time! Well sort off I am also participating in the A-to-Z blog challenge, it will be a busy, busy month.

I'm doing great with my revision, I've very happy I decided to continue instead of stopping there, because it would only cause me so much more hardship if I did. Now I'm learning on how to make my world and character stronger in their scenes.

I also went in a lesson on how to know how many scene I need, and how long I plan my novel to be. I did the same exercise before, but its the first time that I actually do it and happy about the result. Last time, I always felt unsure about my numbers and that it was always to short or to long for my story. But I notice my problem then, I was giving a number of word length of my novel by what I though was the correct amount, not something I would love to have or felt confident in it. I also, then, didn't have mych experience in writing a novel. I only had one NaNo novel under my belt, now I have a bunch of short stories, and three under my belt. I feel more confident in what I'm writing.

I also realized a few days ago when I was looking at some night class at the University, that hey, I know how to write stories, I have the proof everywhere, but my problem is the grammar and the rules in the English language. I can throw my characters in a bunch of adventures, but I probably have three mistake in one word every time. SO really the only class I need is an English class, on how to spell better, and I be set!

If we end up living in Fredericton instead of PEI that will be my plan, to just take a night class to better my English, 'cause come on, its bad at time. If we still go to live in PEI, well hey I have a place at the University there I can take a few language class there no problems.

So that's my plan. Continue writing and revising until its the Edit part time, then I will be ready.

anyway, that is all for this week report. I will be working on those reviews soon, so take care!

Steph~