Ceara Comeau's Blog: Lessons From A Struggling Writer - Posts Tagged "scripts"
Fresh Perspective
As this month comes to a close, I reflect on the little blessings that have come my way in the last few weeks. I’m on the third to last chapter in my latest book and I am getting so much help with my upcoming film.
In fact, this past week I met a fellow filmmaker who was local to me. We spent a few hours today going over my script and even looking at some of the locations I was planning to use. It was probably the most productive two hours I’ve had. He gave me valuable suggestions on the script and was not only interested in the film but asked me how else he could help with it! And although the time we spent was great, I took something away from our meeting that was not what I expected—a fresh perspective.
For those who are just “tuning” in, I’ve taken my short stories of Amber Oak and turned them into screenplays. The trick is, I’m trying to combine the short stories with my science fantasy novel, “Memories of Chronosalis” and the prequel “A Scientist’s Remorse.” Now, this is a huge challenge for me as, in a way, I’m having to entirely rewrite these screenplays. I knew my first screenplay was a bit rough, but I figured I could manage with what I had. When he took the script and read it, some of the things he noted, I had never even thought about. What’s even better, this is coming from someone not only new but someone who hadn’t even read my books. And contrary to what you may be thinking, this is exactly what I needed.
As I told my parents and husband after the meeting, it’s difficult to have people proofread things when they are so familiar with the universe they’ve known for years. Not only that, but many of the people who will be watching this film, might not have ever heard of Amber Oak until the movie premieres.
So, all this to say, if you are a writer of any sort, I want to encourage you to get out of your comfort zone and in addition to the current beta readers, find new ones too. You will be amazed at some things that may come up in your writing that a fresh pair of eyes will catch!
In fact, this past week I met a fellow filmmaker who was local to me. We spent a few hours today going over my script and even looking at some of the locations I was planning to use. It was probably the most productive two hours I’ve had. He gave me valuable suggestions on the script and was not only interested in the film but asked me how else he could help with it! And although the time we spent was great, I took something away from our meeting that was not what I expected—a fresh perspective.
For those who are just “tuning” in, I’ve taken my short stories of Amber Oak and turned them into screenplays. The trick is, I’m trying to combine the short stories with my science fantasy novel, “Memories of Chronosalis” and the prequel “A Scientist’s Remorse.” Now, this is a huge challenge for me as, in a way, I’m having to entirely rewrite these screenplays. I knew my first screenplay was a bit rough, but I figured I could manage with what I had. When he took the script and read it, some of the things he noted, I had never even thought about. What’s even better, this is coming from someone not only new but someone who hadn’t even read my books. And contrary to what you may be thinking, this is exactly what I needed.
As I told my parents and husband after the meeting, it’s difficult to have people proofread things when they are so familiar with the universe they’ve known for years. Not only that, but many of the people who will be watching this film, might not have ever heard of Amber Oak until the movie premieres.
So, all this to say, if you are a writer of any sort, I want to encourage you to get out of your comfort zone and in addition to the current beta readers, find new ones too. You will be amazed at some things that may come up in your writing that a fresh pair of eyes will catch!
A Novelist's Mind
The best part about being a novelist is all the things you can create with absolutely no restrictions. You can write about other worlds, future societies, aliens, magic, and alternate realities. Heck, you can transport your readers to different parts of the country that they’ll probably never see—well with a little help from Google.
But, being a screenplay writer is a whole different ball game. When I first started writing screenplays, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing, and I guess to some degree I still feel that way. But I was unfamiliar with terminology and the format, so I started asking filmmaker friends I knew and one told me to write the screenplay how I saw it.
Now, that’s the biggest mistake to say to a novelist with a crazy imagination. Write what I see? Well, I see a castle here, I see fairies over there, oh and I think there’s a dragon in the mix. Hey, I need a school too, think I could land a school? Yeah, that’s pretty much the thought process I had in writing the first round of screenplays, I wrote exactly what I was seeing.
It’s taken me this long to realize that I don’t think that advice, “write what I see” was meant to be taken that literally.
Being a low-budget independent filmmaker, I get the locations that I’m able to. If that means making a town hall look like a school and a fire chief’s office, then that’s what I’m going to do.
And the more I looked at my future screenplays, the more I realized that I had been too specific with the locations I had in mind. I can’t guarantee I’m going to get a specific room in a specific building, but I can, at the very least, write down what I want the room to be used as in the scene. That right there gives me the opportunity to write the screenplays, send them off to the reoccurring leads, and start looking for locations. If one location falls through (as several have in the past with just my pilot episode of Amber Oak), well, I know I just need a room to have the right look.
The screenplay writing journey has definitely been that—a journey. And one I’m definitely not going to give up on, I just have to wear two different hats—one for novels and one for screenplays. In a way, both help with my creativity and they honestly challenge me as a writer.
I have no idea who initially said this quote, but it 100% rings true for me this month:
“You don’t always need a plan, just go!”
But, being a screenplay writer is a whole different ball game. When I first started writing screenplays, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing, and I guess to some degree I still feel that way. But I was unfamiliar with terminology and the format, so I started asking filmmaker friends I knew and one told me to write the screenplay how I saw it.
Now, that’s the biggest mistake to say to a novelist with a crazy imagination. Write what I see? Well, I see a castle here, I see fairies over there, oh and I think there’s a dragon in the mix. Hey, I need a school too, think I could land a school? Yeah, that’s pretty much the thought process I had in writing the first round of screenplays, I wrote exactly what I was seeing.
It’s taken me this long to realize that I don’t think that advice, “write what I see” was meant to be taken that literally.
Being a low-budget independent filmmaker, I get the locations that I’m able to. If that means making a town hall look like a school and a fire chief’s office, then that’s what I’m going to do.
And the more I looked at my future screenplays, the more I realized that I had been too specific with the locations I had in mind. I can’t guarantee I’m going to get a specific room in a specific building, but I can, at the very least, write down what I want the room to be used as in the scene. That right there gives me the opportunity to write the screenplays, send them off to the reoccurring leads, and start looking for locations. If one location falls through (as several have in the past with just my pilot episode of Amber Oak), well, I know I just need a room to have the right look.
The screenplay writing journey has definitely been that—a journey. And one I’m definitely not going to give up on, I just have to wear two different hats—one for novels and one for screenplays. In a way, both help with my creativity and they honestly challenge me as a writer.
I have no idea who initially said this quote, but it 100% rings true for me this month:
“You don’t always need a plan, just go!”
Be Your Own Actor
Well, the first episode of Amber Oak is a wrap and the premiere dates are set. I gotta say, now that things are winding down, I’m so happy to get back to writing. Of course, mainly writing scripts, but to be honest it feels like I’m taking a little vacation. Lately, I’ve been getting so many ideas for future Amber Oak scripts and some ideas for the third book in the trilogy. It may have a lot to do with the amount of creative inspiration I’ve been around.
I’ve always said that people inspire me and that stands true to this date. I have been around so many actors with this first episode and seeing them put their all into the character they portrayed—even adding to their character—that’s been so inspiring to me! With the scripts we have planned for next year, I started thinking to myself, how would the actor act this out or can I see them acting this way?
I think that a part of this new endeavor isn’t just writing scripts or trying to take the story and put it into script form, but also how I think the actor would act the scene out. Whenever I used to write stories, I would always imagine the most famous actors I could think of and wonder how they’d work the scene. Now, I’m doing the same thing, but it’s a tiny bit different than I expected. Sometimes the dialogue that I write sounds different in my head than when I have someone say it, and in a way that helps me iron out my writing a bit better. When I was younger, my dad would always tell me to read my stories aloud to hear if there were any inconsistencies or issues. I never had the patience for that, but now, I’m forced to think heavier on the dialogue than anything else. There have even been times on set where the actors look over a line that they’ve memorized and say, “Wait, did I memorize this line wrong?” and come to find out, I just wrote it in a weird way.
So, all this to say—to my fellow writers and aspiring writers…regardless of what kind of story you are writing, make sure your writing makes sense. It’s great to imagine famous celebrities acting out our worlds, but it makes it a whole lot easier if the writing (particularly dialogue) flows smoothly. So, be your own actor and act out that scene! 😊
I’ve always said that people inspire me and that stands true to this date. I have been around so many actors with this first episode and seeing them put their all into the character they portrayed—even adding to their character—that’s been so inspiring to me! With the scripts we have planned for next year, I started thinking to myself, how would the actor act this out or can I see them acting this way?
I think that a part of this new endeavor isn’t just writing scripts or trying to take the story and put it into script form, but also how I think the actor would act the scene out. Whenever I used to write stories, I would always imagine the most famous actors I could think of and wonder how they’d work the scene. Now, I’m doing the same thing, but it’s a tiny bit different than I expected. Sometimes the dialogue that I write sounds different in my head than when I have someone say it, and in a way that helps me iron out my writing a bit better. When I was younger, my dad would always tell me to read my stories aloud to hear if there were any inconsistencies or issues. I never had the patience for that, but now, I’m forced to think heavier on the dialogue than anything else. There have even been times on set where the actors look over a line that they’ve memorized and say, “Wait, did I memorize this line wrong?” and come to find out, I just wrote it in a weird way.
So, all this to say—to my fellow writers and aspiring writers…regardless of what kind of story you are writing, make sure your writing makes sense. It’s great to imagine famous celebrities acting out our worlds, but it makes it a whole lot easier if the writing (particularly dialogue) flows smoothly. So, be your own actor and act out that scene! 😊
