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Writing Tag . . .

Posted by 2 Dollar Productions Wednesday, February 06, 2008

I was tagged by Pobble with a writing quiz, so if you care about writing roughly as much as the Spice Girls aborted tour, then check back tomorrow. I, however, enjoy writing and I have a streak of tags answered to keep intact, so . . .

What is the last thing you wrote? Fiction ~ the first sentence of a novel; blog ~ Drunken Viking

Was it any good? Fiction ~ I subscribe to the Hemingway maxim of just trying to write one true sentence (or something like that). Blog ~ the Viking writes stuff writes itself.


What’s the first thing you ever wrote that you still have? A story about my great-grandfather traveling through time, and shooting armadillos on his riding lawnmower. This story was somewhere in elementary school and earned me state-wide honors for a contest. I'm still riding that gravy train.

Write poetry? Not serious poetry, although sometimes I'll do parodies.

Angsty poetry? This kind of crap belongs in junior high diaries as far as I'm concerned where it should never see the light of day or be forced onto other people.

Favorite genre of writing? Screenplays for now.

Most fun character you ever created? The Collector. A wild card with a handlebar mustache, and an affinity for random sayings as well as awkward public embraces.

Most annoying character you ever created? Alyssa. Uber-competitive, religiously-toned suburban wife with the upwardly mobile morals of a goat.

Best plot you ever created? A complex, ensemble-cast colliding on a train ride through Europe.

Coolest plot twist you ever created? Who gives away a plot twist up front?

How often do you get writers block? As the day progresses, I get less creative and attune to Writer's Block, which is roughly as fun as a kidney punch by Andre the Giant. I do my best writing in the morning with multiple cups of coffee.


Write fan fiction? No.

Do you type or write by hand? I use the computer, although to edit my stuff, I always print it out and take a red pen to it. Then, I add the changes onto the computer.

Do you save everything you write? Yes. I wish I were better at organizing it, however, as I have pieces all over the place. That's one nice thing about the blog is that it's all right there in the archives.

Do you ever go back to an old idea long after you have abandoned it? Sure. I have lots of little notes/phrases/ideas jotted down just waiting to be used one day. If you're honest with yourself, however, some of them should never appear because they stink.

What’s your favorite thing that you’ve written? My first screenplay, "Last Train to Amsterdam," simply because it was the first thing I felt like showing to professional people.

What’s everyone else’s favorite story that you’ve written? Various letters to various people, and my second script, "Monkey Business."

Do you ever show people your work? Yes. It's better to show it to people who aren't that close to you or are pure professionals because otherwise it's hard to get an opinion that isn't hopelessly biased.

Did you ever write a novel? I'm starting my first one right now.

Ever written romance or teen angsty drama? No. I don't think I'd be good with either genre.

What’s your favorite setting for your characters? Real life - whatever that entails for the characters.

How many writing projects are you working on right now? Four. Two screenplays being revised, one novel being started and one blog to feed.

Do you want to write for a living? Ideally. I've done it before for a few years, and it's a hard dollar. If I could write fiction or screenplays for good money then I would quit my job tomorrow.

Have you ever won an award for your writing? Nope. The closest was being 1 point away from the semi-finals of the International Screenwriting contest last year. I was robbed.

Ever written something in script or play format? Yes. The fist one was in college, and based on a song "The Road Goes on Forever." It was fairly crappy. Now, I've written 2 comedies that I'm proud of, and am trying to do something with if I can line up enough luck.

What are your five favorite words? Brouhaha. Lonesome. Pussyfoot. Loathing. Atavistic.

Do you ever write based on yourself? Of course. The degrees vary greatly, but I rarely divorce myself completely from characters.

What character have you created that most resembles yourself? Hunter from my first script as he's a fed-up sitcom writer who is consistently bemused by life.

Where do you get your ideas for your other characters? People I come into contact with, friends, and reading the newspaper.

Do you ever write based on your dreams? Not really as most dreams should only be relayed to a psychiatrist who's being paid to listen to them.

Do you favor happy endings, sad endings, or cliff hangers? If I like the characters, then I favor happy endings that don't cheat to get there. More specifically, it doesn't have to tie everything up in a happy bow, however, I want an ending that feels true and not sloppy.

Have you ever written based on an artwork you’ve seen? No.

Are you concerned with spelling and grammar as you write? Yes. But my spelling is average, so spell check is a good friend of mine.

Ever write something entirely in chatspeak? Hell no. LOL.

Entirely in L337? No idea about this, so the answer is no.

Does music help you write? Yes. If it's not too loud, then I enjoy listening to Bob Dylan or James McMurtry.


Quote something you’ve written: Beginning of my last email to a good friend in Ireland (I think email is underrated as a form of communication)

"We'll try this new email trick, and see if you are a man of your word. Personally, I have my doubts.

Then again, if you've got your workers fooled into beating themselves to death with little upfront money and arbitrary deadlines, you might just have the world on a string. I, on the other hand, do not and would require cash money upfront before any work was done.

But that's just me.

I would actually prefer to be paid in Euros, Canadian dollars or virtually anything other than U.S. currency as it is about as strong as complimentary hotel coffee. I would rather be paid in vats of Virgin's blood, which is in dwindling supply according to Some people, however, you can get anything in Hong Kong, Dirty. Consider the implications of that and get back to me."

-BDS

13 comments

  1. Anonymous Says:
  2. You need virgin's blood. I can get you some. But being a Canadian raised with the Metric system, I'm unfamiliar with vats. If you could tell me how many litres is in a vat, I can get you some delivery times for the blood. I'm thinking a vat is probably somewhere around 1 kilolitre. That much virgin's blood would require some serious lead time.

     
  3. Miss Ash Says:
  4. I too love a good Brouhaha, but what the heck is Atavistic? (I just looked it up, by golly it's a real word haha). I suppose that's why you're a writer and I enjoy to read :)

     
  5. I would love to read the story about your grandfather travelling through space on his riding lawn mower and shooting armadillos. That sounds fantastic!

     
  6. WhatIgot - Is that cheaper in Canada? Probably not with the falling dollar, eh? I will look into the conversion and metric rates to determine the best route, but thanks for looking into this problem.

    Miss Ash - Ha. Yes. That word just makes people smile I've found as I try to work it into conversation (brouhaha - not atavistic which looks better written down).

    Native Minnow - I would to as I hadn't thought about it in a long time. I think it's in a scrapbook somewhere in my parents house. Those damn armadillos are a nuisance.

     
  7. BostonPobble Says:
  8. Personally, I think you should post the great-grandfather-on-the-mower story but that's just me. And I love your comment about writing for a living: "it's a tough dollar." Beautifully put.

    Thanks for doing this. I was really hoping it wouldn't be too big and take up too much of your time (especially with the new responsibilities at "real" work.) Getting insight into another writer's process is fascinating to me.

    Good luck with the novel! Keep me/us posted.

     
  9. nobich Says:
  10. ok quit pussyfooting around & call your parents I want to read the grandpa story too!!! & what is
    L337??

     
  11. Bostonpobble - I might just mention that when I call home this week. Ha. I'd like to look at it too as it's been at least 20 years since then. I also enjoyed reading yours quite a bit as the process is a large part of the result - no matter how painful that may be. I'm nervous about the novel, but why the hell not? Finally, a hard dollar indeed, which makes it all the more impressive if you can do it for a living. At least it is to me.

    Nobich - You see - pussyfootin' is a great word. It sounds even better too as it's a great conversation piece to hear aloud. I'll dig into this armadillo story. No idea about L337 as I'm hoping somone will volunteer the information.

     
  12. Jenny Says:
  13. Oh 2$, to quote my favorite line from Sunset Blvd... "words, words, words"

    So many! But I did manage to read enough to figure out you're a good writer.

     
  14. Very informative! I can't write with music going. I need complete silence. I could never work in a busy newsroom. Also, virgin's blood is yucky. And probably wouldn't work too well in that credit card slidey thing at the supermarket.

     
  15. Grace Says:
  16. Now here's a tag I could never do. All my answers would be negative. I write reports (for school) and that's just about it. I know, I suck.

     
  17. Anonymous Boxer - I have actually never heard that quote, so I appreciate it as I stockpile them for later use. And thanks on the compliment.

    Wendy - Glad you had a chance to look at it, and you should take the tag for yourself at some point as I'm curious about yr. answers. Generally, I like silence as well, and I got used to writing in a newsroom when I worked at one for a few years. Finally, you're like right about the Virgin's blood.

    Grace - Those were my least favorite things to write as they are usually expected in a fairly standard form with little deviation. But it's a necessary evil, so I don't think you suck. Ha. Besides, you're almost done with them.

     
  18. h Says:
  19. I write. <----True short sentence.

    Mostly historical fiction. I've been complimented on how well-researched my settings are. In truth, it's all vague Skool-Daze memory, half-listened to History Channel chatter, and shit I make up entirely from whole cloth.

    So, I'm good.

     
  20. Troll - If you can make up historical fiction, and have it ring true, then that is indeed a talent. I can get into historical fiction if I want to learn more about whatever time period it was set during the story. I write. True.

     

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