My life as a writer, week 1

Here we go... Act 2!

Posted by joy.the.curious on Nov 7, 2011 in Random | 2 comments

It’s been a full week since I officially sold my company in order to move on to the “next big thing.” I have no idea what that next big thing might be, nor do I have any Plan B lined up at this time. As I mentioned in my last post, I leaped, and now I’m waiting for the net to appear.

For now though, my NBT (next big thing) is a screenplay I’ve been working on for the past four weeks. Back in October, I signed up for an online screenwriting class at Screenwriters Online. What I didn’t realize at the time is that this class would move at such breakneck speed. What was once a tiny seed of an idea four weeks ago, is now a complete synopsis and an entire first act.

There are over 20 people in the class, which includes screenwriters from all over the U.S. There’s even one person from Hong Kong. The class is taught via text chat, so I’ve never actually seen the instructor or any of the other students. I simply pour myself a glass of wine at the appointed time, login, and “watch the credits roll,” so to speak.

The instructor who teaches this particular class is named Sangram Pradhan. The man is a movie genius. He can back up his lectures with on-the-spot examples from any movie, any time, any place. According to his bio, he is a former Executive with The Film Department and Sony Pictures. He was also a Development Executive on these films:

LAW ABIDING CITIZEN, starring Gerard Butler, Jaime Foxx
SUPERBAD, starring Michael Cera, Jonah Hill
STEP BROTHERS, starring Will Ferrell, John C. Reilly
WALK HARD, starring John C. Reilly
21 JUMP STREET-now shooting with Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill
BAD TEACHER- starring Cameron Diaz, Jason Segel

So, like me, you’re probably asking yourself, what in God’s name is she doing in this class? I have to admit, I felt like a kindergartner among grad students for the first two classes. However, by day three, I had caught my groove, and now I really love it. Unfortunately the class ends on Thursday.

So, by Thursday, I’ll probably be on to the next NBT. But for now… this week… I’m calling myself a screenwriter.

FADE TO BLACK.

An example of a movie script. Screenwriting is fun, but a lot of work!

Next time

The thing I have in common with Taylor Swift

2 Comments

1. Deb Van Buren | November 7, 2011 at 5:32 pm

   You and your NBT will never fade to black. All the best on your leap – there are sooooo many nets to land in! Enjoy the jump even though there was no better team in my opinion than you and Betsy!

2. Linda Racine | November 7, 2011 at 5:55 pm

   We all wish you the very best. Those of us whose brain cells only matured with math science capability are in awe of the creative arts crowd. I feel blessed that we have Betsy and Kristin to brag about:)