Writing and Software wars

So it's begun, I have started writing Ghostkeeper 2. Well, sort of writing; I'm doing what is called a beat sheet, which means establishing the beats to the story. In simpler terms, it's a version of index cards which have been used in the film business probably since silent movie days.

Of course today we have the software version of index cards, software that even asks you questions. There are several out there, but my favorite is Power Structure, which I've been using for at least 10 years, maybe even more.  It was created by the people who created ScripThing, the first real screenwriting software that went beyond a Word stylesheet called Scriptor, first used in the mid 1980's.

*A note here;  There often occurs a debate as to which software is better. In my mind there are only two standards, Screenwriter and Final Draft. Yes there are others, some even free, but those two are the standards, like it or not. Does this mean your screenplay won't sell if it's not one of the two? Of course not, you can write your script on stone tablets if you want, just as long as someone can read it.

I used Screenwriter as it originally was ScripThing but I also keep a copy of Final Draft just in case someone wants me to rewrite a screenplay in that format. I don't particularly like FD as I feel it's just a Microsoft Word template. And Screenwriter software support is free while FD charges. But also because of the politics of The Writer's Store who always suggest that FD is "the professional's choice".

This feud goes back years, the Writer's Store never really liked ScripThing because it had a sense of humor in it's program. There was a cute little monster icon and I remember that if you left ScripThing for ten minutes or so and came back, an icon would pop up and say "I've been looking at your screenplay and I think you need more character development". It's a joke, of course but apparently some writers and the store didn't think professional writers should have funny software.

However I did, and so did others. When I taught UCLA screenwriting I always suggested Screenwriter because I thought it was easier to use and more intuitive towards screenwriting. But in at least 2 examples, the Writer's Store told my students that they really should have FD as it was "the professional's choice".

So I called Jesse at Writer's Store and told him that it wasn't fair to do that, being that his people had promised not to change buyer's minds anymore, something I was told by Screenwriter staffers, suggesting that the Writer's Store did it more than I even knew. In the end, the Writer's Store exchanged FD for the students who preferred Screenwriter.

Both softwares are used by professionals, some writers still use typewriters, others use a writing pad and pencil and ultimately it doesn't matter what you use, as long as the screenplay is good. But that's another blog.

Back to Power Structure; what it does is help me figure out the beats to the screenplay, as in simple sentences like: 

"Riva arrives at the hotel"

 "Murray sees a stranger"

"A dark figure watches them"

"Evening around the camp fire". 

I do maybe 30-40 of these "beats" and then go back and expand them into more, sort of like this:

"Riva arrives at the hotel-- finds it empty -- cell phone doesn't work -- notices figure in hallway that walks away - her room has been rummaged." 

Slowly and carefully I keep adding to the beats, sometimes deleting a beat or phrase, sometimes adding a whole paragraph.

Remember that thing I said about the software asking questions? It does that too, it will ask me what the backstory is for any particular character, or what is the purpose of that character, what is their greatest success or greatest failure. And it asks questions about the story; what has to happen in this act, how is the story moved forward, what's the ticking clock, and much more.  Like my own development executive but cheaper.

It sounds strange, but by filling in the pieces of character by answering those questions, you get a more detailed person. You can even chart the conflicts between characters, I never really got that part of the software, but it's handy to have around.

And as always, is this software essential? Of course not, neither is a computer for that matter. But it sure helps me. And I am a professional. At least sometimes.

So today and Friday I will continue expanding my beat sheet, filling in details and answering questions until it's ready to go to screenplay. With this my job is at least 50% over, the second 50% is the fun part where the characters come to life.

(Mon: Start)

Blog 7: Screenwriting -- The writing process

I've told you how Travel Day came to be and this deals with the process. There are no specific rules to how one writes, some like me write in the mornings, some in the afternoons, some write at night. I'm a fast writer, others are painfully slow, a friend of mine can toil over one page for a day, I can do 5-10 pages on a good day.  Does it make a difference. No. Good scripts come from any method. So do bad scripts. We mostly all use computers, there are a few I know who still use typewriters. I use Screenwriter software, others use Final Draft, both can do the job but Screenwriter is more writer-friendly.

Screenwriters can be an odd bunch, some rarely like to talk about what they're writing, many are secretive, a lot of us are envious of other's work, some don't care at all. But the one thing that affects all of us is that once we finish our screenplay and hand it in, they are going to hire someone else to rewrite it. And it happens more than you think. 

I have been rewritten once for a movie called Maiden Voyage, it was a friend of one of the executives at Granada. I have rewritten other writer's scripts at least ten times, because I was a friend of the producer's. And that's how it goes. I rewrote a script called Riddler's Moon to the point that barely 10% of the original remained. 

However I never got the credit. 

Even the script supervisor wondered why I didn't take a credit. The reason was simple, it was the deal we made. I took an ambiguous credit, "Creative Consultant" in the titles. I also got a weekly salary and a great trip to Europe for 4 months.

As I mentioned before, there are basically two types of screenwriting, being hired to write a story and writing a "spec" script on your own.  I have done both. You have less freedom when you're hired, but you get paid all the way through. You have more freedom in a spec, in fact total freedom, but you might never sell it.  

Writers get people who tell us that their life story is incredible, and should be a movie, and that I should write it and they will split the fee. This is what someone once said "most people want to have written, rather than to write". And my answer is to tell them that their story is so great and so rich that I could never write it as good as them.  Then I watch the smile disappear from the faces. 

It took me around 4 weeks to write Travel Day. I use a software called Power Structure, which I believe to be the best of a lot of structural softwares. It's simple to use and the support from Mark is great. It asks questions of you, and offers a program that resembles using 2x4 index cards, which was what we did pre-computer days. Maybe that's why I like it.

Someone asked me once about "writer's block" wherein a writer is stuck for an idea, kind of like being stuck in calm on a sail boat. I answered that I didn't have the luxury of writer's block, not when someone was paying me to write. The truth is that I do get stuck, but when I do I turn off the computer and go for lunch, or shopping, or a drive into the Mojave, anything just to get away. And sure enough, in an hour or a day, a solution comes to me and I begin again. But when the script is finished and it's time to show it to someone else, that's when things get interesting. 

That is called "screenplay development" and that's in the next blog.

Blog 1: Making Movies the Hard Way

To begin with, I was pretty apprehensive about starting a blog on how I plan to make a movie. Samuel French has dozens of books just on this subject (right next to the hundreds of books on screenwriting) and what could I possibly add.?

But I wanted to share the ups and downs of looking for money for a movie and figured that this might be the best place to do that. Some people might get a kick out of it, some might not care, others might find a little encouragement.I’m not an Academy winner or flavor of the month (although a short I filmed and co-produced made it to the Academy finalist list) rather, I’m a working writer, producer and director like so many others.

The blood of this industry.

The reason for this blog comes from several places and all are connected to one, the world of movie-making. I invite you to follow the process from screenplay to the development and funding and, hopefully, to the production itself. I wanted to call the blog Making Movies the Hard Way because, put simply, there is no easy way. Ever.

Along with the business, technical and artistic sides, I will also talk about the people; the talented, the untalented, the crazy ones and the rare angels and saints. And since I have been in this process more than once in my 30-plus years in the business, my friends assured me I could keep you entertained.

Easy to say for them, they get to watch me run and fall and get up and fall again in one of the worst recessions in a long time. I will post new blogs Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and anytime if something good comes up like someone writes me a check for $400,000, or maybe $50.

So hopefully you’ll stick with me until the end, wherein I actually get it made. If I get it made. And that’s a hell of a big “IF”.

You know the odds.