Friday, September 25, 2009
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Day 5
The first 3 days of writing the first draft went pretty well. In a very short period of time, I completed 23 pages. Then, I crashed. I haven't written anything in a few days because I am trying to mentally envision how the middle part of the movie is going to go.
The next 50-60 pages will be the meat of the movie. Dave Trottier calls it "The Middle", and it follows the Big Event of the film and ends with the Crisis point. Though I have bits and pieces of this part of the movie worked out, there are some elements that I am not comfortable with-- So it looks like it's time to go back to the story boards.
In my personal life, things have been getting intense. My new semester has started at school, and I am at the halfway point until graduation. With my wife working full-time at Walmart, I have been trying really hard to find time to write while making sure the kids have what they need every night. Plus, I have to deal with homework and getting up early in the morning.
This week seems to be a week for friends. One friend of mine has been in Iraq for the last year, and arrived home yesterday. It was a pleasant surprise when he showed up at my Open Mic Night last night. I only wish that there had been a crowd at the show... it was dead. Another good friend of mine, N-Diggity, is coming to visit this evening to go over the script with me. N-Diggity is an excellent writer and wild thinker, so he is an ideal collaborator on this project.
Dave Trottier is not in any way affiliated with Mark G., or this Blog. He owns the rights to "The Screenwriter's Bible", and more information on him and his books can be found at www.keepwriting.com. I own a copy of the book, and am a fan of the material and its author, as it is the definitive work on how to write for film.
The next 50-60 pages will be the meat of the movie. Dave Trottier calls it "The Middle", and it follows the Big Event of the film and ends with the Crisis point. Though I have bits and pieces of this part of the movie worked out, there are some elements that I am not comfortable with-- So it looks like it's time to go back to the story boards.
In my personal life, things have been getting intense. My new semester has started at school, and I am at the halfway point until graduation. With my wife working full-time at Walmart, I have been trying really hard to find time to write while making sure the kids have what they need every night. Plus, I have to deal with homework and getting up early in the morning.
This week seems to be a week for friends. One friend of mine has been in Iraq for the last year, and arrived home yesterday. It was a pleasant surprise when he showed up at my Open Mic Night last night. I only wish that there had been a crowd at the show... it was dead. Another good friend of mine, N-Diggity, is coming to visit this evening to go over the script with me. N-Diggity is an excellent writer and wild thinker, so he is an ideal collaborator on this project.
Dave Trottier is not in any way affiliated with Mark G., or this Blog. He owns the rights to "The Screenwriter's Bible", and more information on him and his books can be found at www.keepwriting.com. I own a copy of the book, and am a fan of the material and its author, as it is the definitive work on how to write for film.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
The Mark G. Story
Welcome to the Mark G. Fan Blog. I am Mark G., and I consider myself my own biggest fan. I am a husband, father and screenwriter from Berks County, Pennsylvania. I am a person who has been through and done a lot of different things. Now, at 25, I am about to pursue my lifelong dream of breaking into the movie business.
I've studied screenwriting on and off for a decade. In between, I was busy working 1000 jobs. I literally did everything you could think of. I was a salesman, a server, an optician, a consultant, a cashier... I worked at every major food chain on the east coast. I sold cars, frozen meat from the back of a pickup, water softeners and kitchen knives... I've done it all.
I've received a lot of criticism from the people in my life over my tendency to not stick with anything for very long. There is a lot to be said for having a steady paycheck, and knowing where you are going to be in a year or five. There are issues of credibility in the job market, or when trying to get loans. Despite all of this, I consider it impossible to try to keep a job that does not allow me to express myself.
It has taken me years of my life to understand my purpose in life. Though I was never an artsy person and I never did well in art class in school, I have realized that I am indeed an artist. Even when I was as young as seven years old, I told my parents and teachers that I wanted to be a writer. So, I am coming into my own as a person and especially as an Artist.
I started studying screenwriting about 10 years ago. I was 15 at the time. I remember going to the newest restaurant in town with my Dad, and we had a waiter named Tack. Tack was a very friendly Hawaiian native who was serving at a restaurant in Berks County to be close to his mother.
I don’t know if Tack was just trying to get a good tip, or if my father and I were genuinely interesting, but he spent a good hour chatting us up. He told us about his screenplay that he just finished. He said that he had a marketing plan and that in a couple of months he was taking a trip to Los Angeles to sell it for thousands of dollars.
I had been fascinated with becoming a Hollywood player. Though I never had the esteem to want to act, I would kill to be a screenwriter. I just wanted to see my name on something that people paid to see. Tack’s story got me eager to learn everything I could about the industry.
When I asked Tack how I could learn to write for film, I never realized how profoundly his answer would change my life. He said, “There are a lot of wrong books out there. The only one that does it right is The Screenwriter’s Bible.” And that was it. Within a week I had purchased the book, and my life was opened to the words and inspirations of Dave Trottier.
Dave Trottier is an amazing writer, consultant, and teacher. He has taken his knowledge of several aspects of the writing industry and put them into a series of books that have helped hundreds of aspiring writers get their start in the business.
As this Blog progresses, I am going to share some of Dave’s amazing inspirations and use them to help guide me as I finish my work on my latest, and most advantageous script I’ve ever attempted to write. This is it, the big one that breaks an unknown nobody into an industry that prides itself on being exclusive to the most interesting, and beautiful people in the world.
I’ve decided to share it all with you as I change the lives of my family, and make a better life for all of us. It is not going to be easy. I know that it will dramatically affect my relationship with my wife. But I believe that in the end, we will all be better for it.
I will keep these posts up throughout the entire process, up until the release of my movie: JB10. I am eager to share my creative journey with you, and prove that anyone with enough determination can break into any business they want if they chase their dreams.
I've studied screenwriting on and off for a decade. In between, I was busy working 1000 jobs. I literally did everything you could think of. I was a salesman, a server, an optician, a consultant, a cashier... I worked at every major food chain on the east coast. I sold cars, frozen meat from the back of a pickup, water softeners and kitchen knives... I've done it all.
I've received a lot of criticism from the people in my life over my tendency to not stick with anything for very long. There is a lot to be said for having a steady paycheck, and knowing where you are going to be in a year or five. There are issues of credibility in the job market, or when trying to get loans. Despite all of this, I consider it impossible to try to keep a job that does not allow me to express myself.
It has taken me years of my life to understand my purpose in life. Though I was never an artsy person and I never did well in art class in school, I have realized that I am indeed an artist. Even when I was as young as seven years old, I told my parents and teachers that I wanted to be a writer. So, I am coming into my own as a person and especially as an Artist.
I started studying screenwriting about 10 years ago. I was 15 at the time. I remember going to the newest restaurant in town with my Dad, and we had a waiter named Tack. Tack was a very friendly Hawaiian native who was serving at a restaurant in Berks County to be close to his mother.
I don’t know if Tack was just trying to get a good tip, or if my father and I were genuinely interesting, but he spent a good hour chatting us up. He told us about his screenplay that he just finished. He said that he had a marketing plan and that in a couple of months he was taking a trip to Los Angeles to sell it for thousands of dollars.
I had been fascinated with becoming a Hollywood player. Though I never had the esteem to want to act, I would kill to be a screenwriter. I just wanted to see my name on something that people paid to see. Tack’s story got me eager to learn everything I could about the industry.
When I asked Tack how I could learn to write for film, I never realized how profoundly his answer would change my life. He said, “There are a lot of wrong books out there. The only one that does it right is The Screenwriter’s Bible.” And that was it. Within a week I had purchased the book, and my life was opened to the words and inspirations of Dave Trottier.
Dave Trottier is an amazing writer, consultant, and teacher. He has taken his knowledge of several aspects of the writing industry and put them into a series of books that have helped hundreds of aspiring writers get their start in the business.
As this Blog progresses, I am going to share some of Dave’s amazing inspirations and use them to help guide me as I finish my work on my latest, and most advantageous script I’ve ever attempted to write. This is it, the big one that breaks an unknown nobody into an industry that prides itself on being exclusive to the most interesting, and beautiful people in the world.
I’ve decided to share it all with you as I change the lives of my family, and make a better life for all of us. It is not going to be easy. I know that it will dramatically affect my relationship with my wife. But I believe that in the end, we will all be better for it.
I will keep these posts up throughout the entire process, up until the release of my movie: JB10. I am eager to share my creative journey with you, and prove that anyone with enough determination can break into any business they want if they chase their dreams.
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