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Tag: rewriting

Posted
June 19, 2019
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Writing While Black
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Writing and Rewriting and Rewriting and…

If writing is the release of all creative ideas, then rewriting is where the real writing begins. Putting all your ideas on the page is great, but it lends itself to being the equivalent of verbal diarrhea. It’s a mess that requires pain-staking clean-up. But in the end, it’s all worth for the aftermath.

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Rewriting is a daunting task for me as the major of my scripts are passion projects. It’s hard to say your baby isn’t perfect, but it’s a necessary process in creating (and sometimes dismantling) your idea. I’ve found rewriting to be my best friend in finding new ways to approach an idea or concept especially when said idea isn’t working anymore.

As a writer, I’ve found myself getting attached to my stories and characters on a personal level. Having spent months (if not years) crafting my work, coming to the realization that I might not be my best can be heartbreaking. But it’s just another sign that I’m growing and learning as a writer. My work needs to reflect that.

As I mentioned in my past blog The Screenwriting Forum, I’ve been concentrating on making an hour-long drama into an animated half-hour dramedy for pitching in the near future. It needed to be shorter for the format I planned on using. Plus, rewriting the original allowed me to cut the fat while reintroducing some ideas I lost in the original screenplay. After some many years of going back and forth with the idea, all I needed to do is step away and fine tune it.

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All with that screenplay, I’ve been working on my children’s series idea and the series bible for it. I still have some tweaking to do to the two scripts I created, but it’s the series bible I needed to focus on. I wanted something more tangible to complement my screenwriting. Writing the second bible has be both easy and hard as I try making the necessary adjustments for a different genre. Who knew children’s television and angst-ridden teen dramedies didn’t mix?

I have some many ideas floating around this brain. Only time will tell if any my concepts make on the screen in some form.

Over time, I’ll reveal more about the ideas and stories I want to tell so stay tuned to this spot.

And as always, don’t be a stranger! Leave a comment below.

Posted
August 31, 2018
Category
Screenwriting While Black
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Finding New Inspiration and Motivation

Inspiration and motivation became the foundation of many creative’s careers. As a multi-faceted individual, my creativity became a cycle of work inspiring and motivating each other – both written and visual. My storytelling began with this cycle and hopefully continues as I pursue a multi-faceted career.

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This week, I allowed myself to go back and forth on my writing journey. I went between my two loves – fiction and screenwriting. The two genres fed each other as I wrote like a speed demon to finish them. My fiction writing mixed technicality and fully-realized stories and characters while my screenplay maintained the format and structure with a story-like appeal. I wanted to my work to display as much as personality and imagination when people are finally able to see it. I’ve loved my work influencing each other and in turn influencing my progression as a writer. Since finishing my first act, I’ve been on fire with my writing.

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I kept up the same creative hopping from last week as I switched between screenwriting, fiction writing, and visual output. I fleshed out my children’s series a little more and started a fiction piece. I finished my visual piece from last week while moving on to the next project. My presence on social media and online continued to grow as this blog and my work continued to gain attention.

As my summer draws to a close, I look forward to unveiling my progress to my professors. I still have some loose ends to tie up before the quarter starts, but my thesis journey is taking a new turn. For the first time in a while, I’m not afraid of what’s around the corner.

Come back next week for more on my journey to creating my Master’s thesis.

Don’t be a stranger! Leave a comment below.

Posted
August 24, 2018
Category
Screenwriting While Black
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Recharging and Creating With Writing

While screenwriting is a great outlet, other forms of writing and creativity can help to replenish the think tank. As a multi-faceted individual, I thought about other ways to channel my creativity. Whether visual or written, storytelling became a part of DNA as I gained perspective from every single thing I created.

Juggler

This week, I found myself juggling multiple ideas at once with mixed results. Since finishing my first act, I found myself turning towards fiction writing more. I found channeling my writing energy into another outlet fed my ideas as a screenwriter. Even in fiction writing, I wrote every line and description as if I was creating a screenplay. Where screenwriting is so technical and formulaic at times, writing fiction allowed me to open my mind and just let the words flow out of me. I felt fiction captured more of the personality and imagination my screenwriting can lack from time to time. But I’ve seen some of its influence in my latest effort. I’ve thought about applying some more of this perspective into my first act. I’ve been on fire lately with my writing.

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Since mentioning my latest project last week, I’ve been creative hopping as I switch between screenwriting, fiction writing, and visual output. I took some time to work on my children’s series along with some fiction pieces that had been flowing around in my head. I decided to dedicate some of my time to expanding a project I did earlier this year (at a snail’s pace but this making progress). All this creativity has helped me to grow my presence on social media along with my website.

I’ve allowed myself to rest a little bit as summer break draws to a close. The interest in my work has surprised me as my social media continues to grow. This could only help me transition into my future goals. I still have some loose ends to tie up with school before it starts. My thesis journey has become more of a reality as the school year approaches.

Come back next week for more on my journey to creating my Master’s thesis.

Don’t be a stranger! Leave a comment below.

Posted
August 17, 2018
Category
Screenwriting While Black
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Caught Between Two Screenplays

Screenwriting has become a means of letting creatives channel their innermost thoughts and ideas to life. As a multi-tasker who deplores routine, scriptwriting became the best choice for a writing career. My animation background has allowed me to visualize the scenes and characters as I craft them through words. Merging visual representation with written words became second nature to me as I thought of all the possible script ideas.

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This week, I was faced with something I haven’t dealt with in a while – nothing to do. Since finishing my first act, I found myself pondering my next move before Fall quarter began. I thought about pushing forward with my second act (but then my independent study would be fruitless), and I still need some feedback on my first act. I’d hit a crossroads as I finished revising and rewriting some of my first act earlier than I expected. I knew there was more work to be done, but I needed an unbiased set of eyes to know how well my work is being translated. I thought about working on some pieces I had started a while back. But I was in screenwriting mode and wanted to try my hand at writing another idea I’ve been playing with over the past year or so. I felt a little guilty about starting a new project as if I was cheating on my steady girlfriend with a fun-loving side chick. At the same time, I felt being a free-spirited creative afforded me the advantage of hopping from one project to another. I needed another project to channel all my writing mojo at that moment.

 

Being a Black man writing a screenplay about Black women in a white patriarchal world could be daunting and otherworldly at times. My new project was the total opposite as I began writing a potential children’s series that’s been bubbling for years. This screenplay focused on two brothers and their daily misadventures in their backyard (think of Little Bill and The Backyardigans had a love child). Creating this new effort has sprung open the door to creating more original ideas. My ideas need to be fully formed and ready when my big moment arrives.

I’ve spent the past few days creating whatever my heart desired. I hadn’t done that is a while (it was quite refreshing). Opportunities presented themselves in ways that surprised me. These could be the right direction for me and my future. I still have some loose ends to tie up with school before it starts. My thesis journey has become more and more realistic as my break begins to wind down.

Come back next week for more on my journey to creating my Master’s thesis.

Don’t be a stranger! Leave a comment below.

Posted
August 10, 2018
Category
Screenwriting While Black
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Working Out the Kinks in the First Act

Writing has always been a discipline that allows the artist to re-shape their vision at any point with no regrets. Screenwriting became an art form for me as I constantly went back and forth about my chosen profession. I’ve enjoyed pondering new ideas and approaches when it comes to scenes, characters, and dialogue. I’ve loved being able to take a story and create turns and twists with each word.

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After taking a breather from my thesis, it was back to business as usual as I began to revise my screenplay. Proofreading has always been a tedious process for me as I spend hours scanning over every phrase and word.  I read over every line and description trying to find grammar and spelling errors. But that’s only part of the story as I read every piece of dialogue trying to perfect my script. I revised and rewrote any and every line as an act of sharpening and defining my characters in a better light. My characters’ words have aided in creating the personality and thoughts I need for this screenplay. Looking over the scenes allowed my creative nonfiction skills come into play as I allowed the city of Atlanta and the places to be its own character in each scene.

During the revising and editing process of my screenplay, I found that some scenes and dialogue weren’t working for me or my vision. I began the process of adding and taking away scenes to flesh out my screenplay. Streamlining my dialogue goes in hand with this as I tried making my script more show than tell. I wanted my first act to be at least halfway there when I start independent study this Fall.

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After my thesis break, I continued my visual work while focusing on my writing. Creating visual content allowed my creative writing to be more fulfilling. While I missed some big opportunities this week, I found myself opening to other opportunities I never saw coming. I’ve begun looking forward to the input from my professors and other writers within the next few weeks. My thesis journey has become more and more realistic as I make screenwriting my calling card.

Come back next week for more on my journey to creating my Master’s thesis.

Don’t be a stranger! Leave a comment below.

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