That was one of those moments in writing when I really enjoy what I’m doing. I have no doubt that I want to continue writing. Be warned, LA.

The Scriptapalooza contest deadline was last night. Got it in with a few hours to spare. I know it sounds like a rediculus name, but from what I’ve heard this contest is just a tier below the Nicholl Contest so it’s worth while to enter. All I need is that one lucky break, a single judge liking my script, then I could use the blurb “I advanced to ___ round in the ___ contest.” That could get a number of script reads and possibly agent interest.

My next plan is to completely polish off the new ending I wrote. The problem that I’ve had with my script is that the further away we get from the 9/11 attacks, the less plausible the story is. My tagline is, “If 9/11 was only step one, can anyone prevent step two?” It’s a fun story which leads to lots of action.

But as it’s nearing ten years since the original attacks, it makes a second wave of attacks that are connected less plausible. Why would someone just hold onto nine nuclear weapons for so long? I first tried to explain it. But then I’ve thought that it would just be more believable to be set in Summer ’08.

That plan works in the script alright until the end when there is a press conference where the president announces the events that happened. This takes it into an alternative history story because everyone knows that such a conference never took place in ’08. So I called a friend and asked his opinion on a new idea.

So, now my story is still set in ’08, but this time there is a minor cover up that would explain why nobody knows about what happened in ’08. And I think I gave a good reason for the cover up.

That’s where I’m at in my writing right now. I was in such a great mood last night after finishing the rewrite, it was incredible how great I was feeling.

However, I’m still getting some good ideas for my new script. So I’ll still be writting that, just not all in one month. I could see myself getting at least the first act done this month, maybe I’ll try for 50 pages. So yes, that was short lived, but Nicholl is too important.

I’ve been busy. Like today, had classes from 12 – 9, adding transportation, I was away from home from 11 – nearly 10. Easter took up yesterday, plus I left my computer at my mom’s. Luckily work hasn’t needed me yet.

I think the more realistic goal for me would be 50 pages. I’m interested to see how many I get done. Today I only had a little bit of time to write some notes about the new opening during a slow class. I’ll have a little more time tomorrow after hanging out with a friend. Maybe next post I’ll start talking about the new script itself, the story.

For now, I’ll settle for going over story ideas while trying to fall asleep tonight. I get some great ideas while trying to fall asleep. I’ve got a pen and paper right next to my bed to make notes, because I’ve forgotten good ideas after falling asleep and not writting them down.

p.s. “Chuck” just had it’s season 3.0 finale. It’s the episode that was meant to be the finale until NBC ordered six more episodes. I love that show.

That’s right, I’m back on this blog. At least for another month. I’ve decided to participate in this Script Frenzy event. During the month of April, the goal is to write 100 pages. There’s no competition, no winners or losers, it’s just a fun thing to do. There is a forum that other people participating in this event can get together and talk about writing. There’s even a couple of “write-ins” around Portland where a few people are getting together to write.

I came into this at a disadvantage to finish the 100 pages. I started April 1st without an outline, only a single idea. And to top it off I’ll be working full time for two weeks this month on top of taking 20 credit hours of school. So it’s unlikely I’ll get 100 pages, but it’ll be fun to try. Plus, I’ve really been needing to find a good reason to get started on a new script.

I’ve only been working on my original script. The good news: that script is great by now. Bad news: No new start-ups.

So yes, I’m back to blogging a little to follow this process of writing 100 pages in a month. We’ll see how far I get.

Of course I’ll continue writing my screenplay and watching movies and seeing them through a writers eye. I’ll just stop posting about the movies. If I ever get my screenplay sold, I’ll of course come back here and post about it. But for the one or two people who read this besides those who come through google pictures, no one will miss this. My email is BrianPhillipHarvey@Gmail.com if there are any questions about me or my writing.

I just got a letter from the Austin Film Festival about their screenplay contest I entered in May. The letter said I didn’t make it to the second round. Looking back on all of the work I’ve done on my screenplay since then, I’m not surprised I didn’t advance further since I think only the top 5% get past the first round. My first draft that was sent for the contest had a terrible format/storytelling mistake in the first sentence.

Three pieces of great feedback from a producer, an agent, and a screenwriting enthusiast has allowed me to greatly improve my screenplay. Next up is a friend whose opinion I hold higher than any of the other three readers I had.

I’m totally excited about my screenplay. It’s awesome. The problem is that as time goes by, it gets less and less relavant. So even if it doesn’t get made, at least I’ll enjoy it myself. By the end of the weekend I should have it completely finished. Then I’ll give it to my friend and get screenplay coverage. Then I’ll work on what those two feedbacks say. Then I’ll send it back to the agent and try selling it directly to producers.

This is an exciting industry to be in and I’m stoked to have the possibility of being in this industry for the next few decades. I’ll keep this blog informed whenever anything big happens. Peace.

So she started by saying it was still much too long. She said I write it too much like a stage play. Too much direction. So that’s something I can work on. Write less action, I can do that. She also said the dialog was a little cliche. Yikes. She suggested to do a reading with a group of friends so I could hear everything spoken and take notes during the reading. I’ve wanted to hear it read but just don’t have the people to do it. Not sure if all my friends would bother. Maybe I’ll just force them to do it.

Now that I’m looking at the agent’s email, she doesn’t have too much criticism which is kinda good. Much of it is that it’s too long and therefor it takes too much time to get to where it’s going.

Here last two lines in the email: “A great concept, takes too long to get there but so what, get to work.” and “Door’s open.”

So its seems like she thinks it’s definitely got potential but just needs some more work. She suggested to trim it down, then get coverage (another post to talk about that), then work on what the coverage says, then resend it to her even if the coverage says to pass on it. Reading her email gave me good vibes even though it’s not like my script is flying through the industry yet. But technically, she never said no. Rather, not yet.

So I’ve still got more to do. Getting a neutral response on something I have invested a lot into did kinda kill my mood and shot me down so I watched the Office all day to cheer myself up.

However, rereading the email gives me some hope. This thing needs to be made into a movie and I would be doing a disservice to the story if I gave up. So… off to work on it some more.

Yesterday I took my boss’s nephew to OMSI here in Portland. It’s a museum with hands on science stuff. Games, brainteasers, exhibits, and lots of things to teach kids about science. They had an exhibit on CSI. The kid and I went through the exhibit. In it you see a fake crime scene and you solve the crime. You go through different labs and match finger prints, shoe prints, and compare fiber and blood samples. It was kinda fun.

Near the end of the exhibit I got a phone call from a number I didn’t recognize. I answered and it was an agent! She just got my letter that I sent out on almost two weeks ago. I had given up on any hope from those letters. Anyway, she said I had a very interesting pitch and my story was a very interesting take on the 9-11 attacks. She didn’t like that my script was 130 pages long but she told me to try and cut it down to 110 pages and email it to her this weekend. I wrote her email and information on the sheet of paper we were given for the CSI exhibit.

After OMSI I went to hang out with a friend. I notice something, I put the sheet of paper in the recycling at the end of the CSI exhibit! I wasn’t intirely sure if I remembered the email. Oops, not smart. I stopped by OMSI on my way home and went back in just before seven. Apparently they close at seven because the security guard was closing up while I was searching through the recycling. I told her about needing something on a paper and it took me a long time to find it. But I did find it! Sweet!

Last night when I got home I thought to myself, “Off to work.” Then I smiled because I was thinking about screenwriting as work. That’s some of the best work I can imagine. Anyway, it’s terribly hard for a screenwriter to cut pages out of a script. While writing and rewriting I’ve tried to keep the script as tight as possible and all that’s able to be cut are small things that build character and help the tone of the movie. I did cut five pages so it’s down to 125. I emailed it to her and said that there are pieces that could be cut later in the process if needed.

I really hope she’s okay with the length. I think it needs to be that long. It’d make for a movie about two hours long, maybe a little shorter since action takes long to write but very little time to show in film.

With a pretty bad week that involved terrible sleep, bad work stuff, cat dying, car breaking down, partially allergic bee sting, terrible pain in a swollen leg, and the worst was not making it to the quarter final round in the nicholl contest (Granted they only had my second draft but I was still hoping for that old version to get further along the contest). After all that I got the call from the agent. Something good at the end of the week. Yay. Now I just hope she likes what she reads. She’s from Sacramento, not LA so even if she picked me or my script up, I’d still have to do lots of promoting myself on my own. But hey, just getting one person to ask to read my script is one step toward climbing the mountain.

I went back outside to finish mowing the lawn. I couldn’t because I saw about 15 bees flying around where I got stung. Seriously, it was crazy. I didn’t know what was going on. What I didn’t know was there are such things as underground beehives. I walked close enough to see a hole in my lawn. There were too many bees and I took a while to reach the mower so I could finish mowing the lawn. The next morning I sprayed bee poison down the hive’s hole. Then my mom’s husband rolled a rock over the hole.

Not neccessarily the best story. But I’ll continue with the stories anyway. The same morning that I sprayed the bees, my mom’s husband was there because he was checking out my car because something was broken in it. We figured out it was the alternator. My neighbor mentioned a guy and we drove my car, found out he didn’t open for an hour, left my car there, then my mom’s husband drove me back to my house. I had my mom’s car so I drove to where I left my car. The guy told me he was three weeks late in his work. So I had to take my car to a battery place that fixes alternators.

On the way to the battery place I stopped at a stop light. My car died. So I put it in neutral and pushed it to the closest commercial driveway. I look up and find that I pushed my car into a Meineke. They do brakes, alignment, and shacks. So I just walked up to them and asked if they do alternators too. Yes they did! It was a very funny coincidence.

They said it’d be done in half a day. I still had to go to work and thought about taking the bus straight to work, but my mom’s car was still at the guy’s garage where I drove it to get my car. So I took the bus there but didn’t have any cash so I had to run to the max which has ticket machines that take debit cards. Finally I get the car and go to work where I stood for five straight hours. After two I noticed my leg was hurting. I rolled up my pants and rolled down my sock. My leg was huge! I had to work in socks because my leg really was huge and it was spreading to my foot. I had forgotten about the bee sting and I think I’m partially allergic.

I could probably tell the stories better in person but you’ll just need to take my word for it that this was just one of those weeks when things just went wrong, but they make for good stories.

Yes, I’m a “Dollhouse” fan, but I haven’t always been. I’ve seen each episode since the premier. I watched many episodes during the actual air time, hulu for the others the next day. I watched because it was Joss Wheden, it had a great look to it, and the original idea has so much promise.

But after all of season one’s episodes, I was thrilled about the show. I enjoyed it and was very happy it got a second season pick up, but I still wasn’t yet a fan. That all changed when I saw the unreleased episode “Epitaph One.” It changed the way I look at the whole series.

The episode, it was made seperately from the first season. The studio didn’t even pay for it. I think Joss might have filmed it as either a finale in case the show got cancelled, or maybe for an example of where the show is headed. This episode was probably shown to the studio and I’d bet it’s the reason they chose to renew it. The episode it set later than the series so far, 2019. It’s really awesome, I won’t spoil anything because it seems like it’s where the series will be heading to if it’s allowed to produce the episodes. All I will say is that it’s absolutely amazing. If Joss had chosen to he could have made this a full length movie. And it would have been a great movie. The added length to make it a feature would give it more time to explain the concept and to detail the characters.

I started writing a new story idea realizing that I was really affected by this episode, many of my ideas were too close to “Epitaph One.” Unless I make it very different then I’ll just have to scrap it and leave it for something to pursue later if at all. I did throw around the idea of writing a feature length movie based around “Dollhouse” and I’d just be able to use it as a calling card or as a way to try and get hired from Joss Wheden’s camp. But that would take too much time and I’m trying to get into the feature business with my current script and the new stories I am and will be working on need to be possible scripts that could be sold rather than calling cards that’ll never be made.

So that’s where I’m at right now. Trying to get the feel of this new story. It’ll be a challenge going from action to horror/suspense. But I get encouraged when I see something like “Epitaph One” because I realize it’s possible for stories to be written that inspire others to write. Good job Mr. Wheden, as always.

“Chuck” has a poster for season three! It’s awesome. I’m not a great reporter so I can’t say who released it or even if it’s 100% official. Maybe it came from comic-con. Who cares, it’s awesome.

I finally got myself to start writing down ideas for my horror script. As ideas keep coming to me I’m realizing there’s a lot of similarities to “I Am Legend.” Pretty much too many similarities. As I’m writing I’ll be keeping in mind to make it different. The concepts just call for a lot of the same things. As I’m thinking of it more right now I’m getting worried it’ll be too similar when it’s done and that could keep it from moving through the industry.

I also realized that I’m not the kind of person who can just start writing a first act and end with it being spectacular. I’m thinking about “Diversion,” my completed script. What is said and what needs to be conveyed is pretty much the same as the very first time I started writing. But now it’s more cinematic and there’s a lot more character in it. Rewriting really does improve a script. Maybe Hollywood needs give a few more months for rewriting instead of rushing scripts through development. Anyway, I can’t complain about Hollywood. I love movies and am very hard to disappoint. So I still love most of what Hollywood releases.

So ya, I wrote down ideas for this new script. I’ve got just over a page, but it’s tiny writing and no spaces. Lots of ideas. I’m looking forward to seeing if I can write a horror film. I’m sure I could direct one but it’ll be hard to write a long tense moment of fright when it’s so easy it show it.

Stumach aches have been rolling my stumach in circles today. Am looking forward to going home after work. Yesterday I hung out with some friends and ended up playing poker and not getting home til nearly midnight even though I had to wake up early this morning. Played somewhat well. I was oblivious to a possible straight and lost nearly all my chips in an all in. If I had seen that possibility and folded then I would have at least had a chance for the win. Or I would have still finished third and got to bed even later… I guess I’m happy about that oversight. I like sleep.

After talking about I Am Legend and looking at the picture above, I really want to watch it. It’s a great movie. Maybe I’ll analyze it on here some time later.

But hey, I did put together letters to agents. I found 25 agencies that either are currently or have in the past been looking for newcomers. I know it’s rare for any to look at new writers but I’m taking the chance. I wrote a quick introductory letter about me and my writing and included the query letter to “Diversion.” Mailed them out on Monday so mabye I’ll be lucky and get a call or an email by the end of the week asking for a copy of my script. If not, then I guess I’ll try my luck at finding producers who are looking for new projects.

While I haven’t been writing much, I have been reading a lot. I read all of the “Disturbia” script. The script was really good. I always loved the movie and have watched it way too many times, including with commentary. (Spoilers of course) The end of the script was pretty different than the movie. The end was all set in Kale’s house instead of him jumping out of his window and chasing into the killer’s house next door. There was just a fight in the living room of Kale’s house and his mom stabs the killer. I loved the film’s ending. Having Kale find the killer’s killing room and the basement under the house was pretty creepy and a great setting for seeing victims. The shot after Kale stabs the killer and pushes him into the hole in the basement was great. Seeing the killer dead amongst some corpses of his victims was just spectacular. The script did have more action at the beginning with the dad’s death but I liked how the movie instead made it pretty quick. Having it be quick made it even more shocking and made you feel the shock that Kale felt.

I also read the 1993 script from James Cameron for “Spiderman.” Very different from the “Spiderman” film that came out and broke box office records. This script had Doc Ock as the main villian, similar to “Spiderman 2.” But everything about him was different. He was bent on not only distroying half of New York, but also the whole universe to go with it. He was working on some machine that would rip apart the forces holding things together in the world and on the scale he was working on would rip apart the forces of everything. Peter Parker was in love with some girl named Liz and the Harry character was hardly there. Liz had some sorta boyfriend who was in the script a lot. Parker’s uncle never died and he was bit by a spider that was affected by Doc Ock’s experiment and it happened inside Ock’s lab.

I think the script just didn’t have the quality that the movie had when it was made ten years or so later so I’m glad the studio that had control over the story decided to wait until now to produce it.

Anyway, I guess reading scripts isn’t a bad way to spend my time since that’s one of the first things people say to do when somebody wants to write themselves. I’ll probably read another action type script today instead of writing. Maybe “Fifth Element.” I like that movie.

My script is as good as it’ll be until I get more feedback and comments on it. So I don’t think I’ll be working on that much for a while. I guess if I’m gonna be writing then it’s gonna have to be my new story. I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned this yet but I’m gonna start most of my attention on the horror story. Not the action on because “12 Rounds,” which I watched a few days ago, had too many similarities. The two stories will be completely different but they both have similar skeletons and I’m not sure if I could write action quite as well as that movie had it. It really was a fun movie to watch. Anyway, yes, my horror story is the next to go. I just need to stop waiting for something to motivate me and just start writing it.

I’m reading the Die Hard script on awesomefilm.com which I found from script-o-rama.com which both have plenty of scripts you can read for free. I’m having a little hard time getting through it because the format is way off. There are terrible sluglines that sometimes don’t say where or what time of day it’s at, or sluglines will just say the person its focused on without mentioning the room their in. Also there are a lot of cut to’s and camera angles which are probably because it’s a shooting script.Actually, this paragraph below has two big issues…

“A Japanese man, mid-fifties standing on a desk holds up the bottle triumphantly and looks out at an adoring audience of junior executives and office personnel.  He is JOSEPH TAKAGI, Sr V.P. of Sales for Nakatomi, a multinational corporation.” – Die Hard script.

I don’t like how they describe Takagi before introducing him. This may just be a different technique but it just doesn’t work for me. Also, a huge thing that I still can’t believe. The last sentence, “Sr. V.P. of Sales for Nakatomi, a multinational corporation.” That’s in the description of the character. But this is not shown in action nor is it in dialogue until later. The reader of the script will know this information but if it’s important to the story (which the multinational aspect and that he’s high up on the totem pole is important) then it needs to be shown, not told. How is the audience going to be aware of this information? It is shown later but not right then.

Things like that happen a lot in this script. Where information that can’t be shown to the audience is still written in the action description. “McClaine watches, moved by the sight, then looks around the waiting area, just on the chance his family might be waiting.” It doesn’t tell how to show he is moved by the sight nor how to show he’s hoping his family is there. Hoping his family is there doesn’t need to be said because that’s the normal conclusion from seeing a man alone in the midst of families reuniting.

Maybe these are just things that I’m picky about, or they could be bad writing either from the writer or they could have been acceptable during the years this was written. Either way, it does make it a little hard to read. But ignoring those, this is still a great story almost fully set in or in front of a single building. I actually enjoy movies like those. In the old school Hitchcock days there were plenty of movies set on a train. “The Night Train” is a new movie, came out this year, that I watched that was all set on a train. There are plenty set in airplanes now. It causes the writer to be creative with the limited space they have.

Edit: I just read a lot of the “Gofather” script. All of the third half probably and some parts in the middle. This was a well written script. No problems with it.

Dear_______,

Last night Mark Shepard’s roommate came to him with a work problem, but not your ordinary work problem. See, Mark was once in Afghanistan with the Special Ops and his roommate works at the Pentagon.

So what’s the problem?

Mark’s roommate Jack was put in charge of combining all of the U.S.A.’s nuclear weapons into a single database, but he got stuck. He went to Mark for help. What Mark found was unthinkable.

There was a covert transfer of nine nuclear weapons made at 9:45 on September 11th, 2001. Just eight minutes after a 757 hit wedge 1 of the Pentagon. But that’s not the only problem. The transfer was made from the computer of the Secretary of Defense.

So today Mark prepares to break into the Pentagon and sneak into the Secretary’s office to track down the coordinates of the transfer. As he settles himself in front of SecDef’s computer, he has no idea he is about to begin an action packed, thrilling adventure that includes a car chase in St. Louis, a gun fight in Washington D.C., a hostage situation inside the FDR memorial, and a final standoff that requires he puts his life on the line to save the love of his life as well as tens of millions of Americans.

Diversion is an action thriller with a strong protagonist. When looking upon Mark, hearts beat twice as face from both women as well as his enemies. While action and twists are abundant, this story is one of love, friendship, and the courage of one man who becomes a hero not because he wants to, but because he needs to.

I’d like to submit Diversion for your consideration. I have studied screenwriting at Portland State University. Portland State is a renowned business school where my major of marketing helps me realize the highly marketable and bankable aspects of this screenplay.

If you would like to read Diversion, you can reach me at 503-936-2347. I look forward to hearing from you.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

Brian Harvey

13245 SE Maple Ln., Portland, OR 97222 (503-936-2347) BrianPhillipHarvey@Gmail.com

In the sixth book there was a lot of storytelling about Voldemort’s youth and upbringing. Some might think this was to show how he became evil and why he does what he does. I disagree. I think the reason Voldemort is so scary and fearsome is because he is just plain evil without a certain reason. Yes, if his parents and childhood were different then maybe he’d be a little different but that wasn’t the reason for sharing that part of his life.

It shows the similarities between Voldemort’s life and Harry’s life. They both grew up with no parents, were raised by people who didn’t love them. They both have issues. The reason for showing the similarities are to show the differences. With similar pasts, Harry choose good while Voldemort choose evil. A villain that is evil because of whatever reason is not near as daunting as a villain who choose evil, who relishes in it for no reason like loneliness or revenge.

Okay, now I’ll veer away from Harry Potter and Villains. Yes, I tried to make the villain in my script pretty bad. He laughs when he nearly gets shot, but falls silent when his plans start to unravel. I think I’ll go back and try to improve my villain some though anyways. Like I said, a strong villain requires a strong hero. And my story is all about my hero. I’ve gotta write about a hero, that just the kind of story I like to read.

Okay, so my script. On Friday during my lunch hour (yes, I’m working at reception again for the next two weeks which gives me lots of time to read and write) I took my laptop to McDonalds and sat in a corner. I had a list of agents I found from the Hollywood Creative Directory open on my laptop. I started calling to find the ones that were open to new screenwriting clients. None, not a single one was even open to new screenwriters. That really sucked. I called forty agents and couldn’t even get to the point of having them reject me based on my writing. O well. I guess I have to continue trying with the producers. This industry really is a tough one to crack into when you don’t already have contacts within. Come on Hollywood, you are desperate for new ideas, you need people like me.

Anyway, after lunch on Friday and all day yesterday I worked on the beginning of my script. I rewrote a lot of it while keeping the same information in it. I also wrote a great series of shots that show flashbacks that cover the years after the 9/11 attacks for my hero. It’s needed information that should be shown if possible. And I think I wrote a wonderful way to show it. Sorry if that sounds like I’m bragging. I hate bragging but I just really enjoy reading what I wrote. If it could be made on film in the same way I imagine it in my head then it would be spectacular.

So yes, I rewrote a lot of the first half. I still have a ways to go though but I hope it’s good enough that when I finally get some requesting to read it maybe they’ll like it. I had to fix some character points, giving them more individualism which I still need to improve on. I also worked on making it more plausible. That was a big thing with the script supervisor who read my script talked about. First character, then plausibility. The story was always plausible to me but that’s because I did all the research. I know all the numbers but I didn’t want to fill the story with expository dialogue. So I tried to fit it in the script in a natural way. If it’s something the reader would ask, then why shouldn’t a character have the same doubts?

I sent it off in an email to someone who read this blog and asked about it. I hope they enjoy it. She offered to give me feedback which is greatly appreciated because she is now only the third person to read it. Surprisingly, no one I’m close to has really asked a lot about it let alone asked to read it. It seems that strangers are more excited than my friends.

I’m still trying to get into this career. As every day goes by I get more and more stressed about finishing up school and it feels like if I were to do that then I’d be giving up on this dream of mine. Everyday I think about moving to LA or atleast living there for a little while to gain contacts and network. I spend lots of my time with adults more than twice my age so it’s not like I would be scared to meet and talk to the pros in the industry. I think if I made such a step toward my dream then it would help me focus even more on it and become as good as I can be, both my writing and most other aspects of my life.

So that’s where I’m at right now. Well, okay, I’ve at work right now but that’s where I’m at in my life right now. Pondering my future, writing, and not giving up on my dream.

(Old version of the movie poster from when it was gonna come out in ’08.)

If you think I’m gonna make fun of them, think again. I actually stopped by and talked to them quickly. I told them I was a huge fan too and told them about five times that I thought them waiting at the theater was awesome. They were so excited for the midnight showing. It made me want to skip work and wait with them.

As I continued on my way to the MAX station (our public transport, subway type train car) I started thinking about the Potter book series. I am a huge fan and think the Potter books tell possibly the greatest fictional story I’ve ever heard. It helps that I was 12 when I first read the books. I read books 1-3 when Harry was the same age that I was. Then when I was 14 I went to a midnight party for the fourth book. Then of course I ended up going to midnight parties for the sixth and seventh, couldn’t make it to the fifth for some reason.

Anyway, while I was walking to the MAX I was thinking about why the series was so great. It’s easily gotta be because of the Harry Potter character. We grew up as he did. We experienced everything he experienced. He became part of our own lives. As he struggled, so did we. As he triumphed, so did we. When he went from being sad to being happy, it took us on a rollar coaster of emotions too.

But now I wonder, why is he this great hero? What makes him the hero we all care so much for? After all, isn’t he just a made up person that came from ink on a paper? If you want to look at Harry in a negetive way, you would see many faults. Faults which of course make you root for him even more. I think what we are rooting for him to accomplish is why he’s so important to us. We want him to succeed in the fight against Voldemort. Yes, I said his name. “Fear of a name…”

This made me realize, villains are what shape the hero. A very weak villain requires a very weak hero to fight him. But a strong villain calls for a strong hero. Voldemort is evil. That sentence is exactly how I see Voldemort. He’s evil. Not mean or nasty, but evil. He kills, he wants evil to rule. And yes, he is strong. “He has done great things with that wand. Terrible, yes, but great.” – Olivander, Sorcerer’s Stone. Voldemort is probably the most powerful wizard ever and he used that power for evil. So, yes, he’s a strong villain. I can’t think of any other villain in any story or history that’s worse. The Hitler comparassons are obvious, but I think Voldemort had more evil in him despite Hitler’s numbers outwaying Voldemort’s. Anyway, with Voldemort being such a terrible villain, this means our hero’s “good” must outshine our villain’s “bad.” Harry is our “good.”

That’s a great lesson to learn in any form of writing. The stronger you can make your villain, the stronger your hero must be. With a terrible villain in a story, the hero begins to write himself. So maybe next time we start from scratch writing a hero/villain story, lets try creating the worst villain we can imagine. Ignore finding your hero, that’ll come with ease.

Now for the slightly longer, but thankfully pretty short, story…

NBC has this new show called “Kings” which they started showing in the midseason, spring time. It did pretty bad in the ratings so they exiled it to Saturday nights during the summer. So many kings have been exiled so I guess that was fitting. Anyway, I absolutely loved the two hour pilot. I would suggest the pilot to anyone who likes tv or film. The story telling, the acting, the visual aspect, it’s all wonderful. Unfortunately it is a tv show so some of the storylines they have to take to make a full season out of it causes the show to lose it’s awesomeness. But I’ve still been watching it as they finish off the front 13 episodes they ordered. Since I’m usually busy on Saturday nights I’ve been watching it on hulu.

Now we come to today. I just started the newest episode and right before the first commercial break the main character is sent off to a mission with the words, “Off you go.”

Then everything just started to click. I wrote down a few quick sentences and I’ve got the story. I’ve got it! In two minutes time I have the foundation of an entire script. I love how ideas can come to fruition. So quickly. Now I’m going to have to start writing. I’ve got characters to flesh out, I’ve got antagonists to make up who believe they are the hero. I’ve got a terrible deed the hero is forced to perform in order to get the love of his life back.

I love writing. I just absolutely love it. Writing is awesome. The only thing besides others that truly excites me.

Today, however, I’m just relaxing at home. That’s what has led me to watching the pilot of “Burn Notice.” So far I really like it. I think it could make for a wonderful movie instead of a tv show, but I like tv shows because of the massive amount of screentime.

Anyway, “Burn Notice” has narration from the main character directly to the audience. It really works for this. Other narrations that worked include “Little Big Man” and “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.” I don’t think I’d ever start writting something with the idea of using a narration through out it. While writting if you imagine a bunch of internal comments that you just wish could be told. But if you add in a narration to your work, you have to keep with it the whole time and every comment made from the main character better move the story along and have purpose.

“Little Big Man’s” narration was great because it added tons of comedy. “Burn Notice’s” narration is absolutely needed because he does a lot of spy stuff that can’t be just shown and need to be explained.

It’s happened pretty quickly, but I really like “Burn Notice.” I’m looking forward to the entire first season I have on DVD.