I have decided to enter a couple of my screenplays in the StoryPros script contest. Sometime this summer, I would like to start approaching agents and managers to try and get my career off the ground. I have an option, which is great - but, placing in a contest or two would really kind of beef up my credentials. It's hard to get read in Hollywood when you don't live there, so I need to take opportunities where I find them.

I'm still plotting out bits for my submission to a writing opportunity, while working on the expanded plot of Gaia 4 for the novel. When you create a world and know everything that's going on in it, one of the hardest things to do is to determine what to share.

Every glimpse that you give the reader shapes their impressions and expectations. Revealing to much information too soon can rob a scene of dramatic impact. If you don't reveal enough you may lose the reader or leave your world flat. So, yeah ... I've got a lot of work ahead of me.

And, months later, this happened ...

I really, really promise - the blog thing is going to pick up. Life has been busy in a good way. First off, I've optioned my first screenplay! BLACKBURN BURROW was picked up by Amazon Studios and is now on their development slate.

Even better - it's going to be a comic book written by Ron Marz and illustrated by Matthew Dow Smith! Look for it around Comic Con time - I'll have more to announce then, I'm sure.

I've been struggling with what to focus on since then. I've completed a couple more screenplays, but the challenge is where to go from there. I do believe I'm going to turn one into a novel. I think a book would capture the world and allow greater exploration of the setting than my screenplay allows. Hopefully, it will generate more interest, as well.

Anyway, I'll leave it there for now! Exciting things are afoot - now, I just have to actually put in the work!

I still exist!

Wow, it really has been a long time since I posted. It goes to show you that a full-time job while trying to write full-time gives things a chance to slip through the cracks. I'm going to have to get better.

What I have been working on is a new screenplay, which I'm relatively sure will go to Amazon. Honestly, it's the only place right now for an unknown writer to even have a chance -- if you don't live in Hollywood.

I'm plotting out my Blackburn Burrow rewrite that Amazon requested. It'll be a pretty big change. It will move the movie from low-budget to big-budget, which means everything has to be re-written, even if I use some of the same scenes.

I also made the finals for Amazon Studios first Script Spotlight -- I rewrote Zombies vs. Gladiators. It would be nice to win, but it's hard to tell since every writer took it in a different direction.

A Winner is Me!

I've been away from the blog so long, mainly because I've been working on a lot of stuff. Primarily, I've been whipping Blackburn Burrow into better shape. I'm happy to say, it won the March Amazon Studios screenplay contest. The award is $20,000! It's the most I've ever been paid for my writing, so I'm hoping it's only going to go up from here.

There are so many projects I want to work on, but there just isn't enough time. Work has been crazy! Not in a bad way, I've just been really busy, and it's exhausting me. I'm working on another project I want to get done, just in case I have the opportunity to get representation.

I'll try to post more regularly. It would be a good habit to get into!

Here's a link to the Amazon Studios contest: http://studios.amazon.com/contests/

So, that didn't go so well ...

Yeah, didn't make the top 6 in the Amazon contest. Again, I didn't really expect to, but it's still a wee bit depressing. I did edit the screenplay and set up a revision, which will be entered for the February contest, but I don't expect much to happen there. Still, top 50 out of 2500 or so scripts means I don't completely and utterly suck.

However, I must be a glutton for punishment as I'm entering the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award competition. They have a young adult section, so I'm throwing Shiloh's Way into the ring.

The problem is, it's not ready. It needs massive editing. I've already cut an entire page out of the first chapter, and I'm finding passive voice everywhere. It's kind of overwhelming because the contest deadline is so close -- worse, they have a limited number of entries allowed, so it could close earlier.

So, I'm back to editing! Wish me luck!

Been away so long ...

Wow, it's been a long time since I posted here. I really should keep my blog better up to date. For those of you checking it out - my screenplay of Blackburn Burrow made the top 50 of the Amazon Studios contest. I have to say, I was pretty shocked by that. They'll be announcing the top 6 soon, I'm not really sure I have a chance at that ... Still, it's nice to be in consideration!

Everything else is pretty much the same. My mind is overwhelmed with story ideas, and no time or focus to be able to get them down into long form. I'm going to keep trying though.

I will update more often, though! Hopefully, that'll keep me on track.

Book review: Usurper of the Sun

I've been away from the blog for a couple weeks (so sad ...), but I'm back to do something new - a book review! Ok, review might be too strong a word -- perhaps, a book impression is better.

Book: Usurper of the Sun
Author: Housuke Nojiri
Translated by: John Wunderley
Published: 2003 JP/2009 US

Book Summary: The mysterious Builders have brought humanity to the edge of extinction; can they be reasoned with, or must they be destroyed?Aki Shiraishi is a high school student working in the astronomy club and one of the few witnesses to an amazing event—someone is building a tower on the planet Mercury. Soon, the Builders have constructed a ring around the sun, threatening the ecology of Earth with an immense shadow. Aki is inspired to pursue a career in science, and the truth. She must determine the purpose of the ring and the plans of its creators, as the survival of both species—humanity and the alien Builders—hangs in the balance.

Impressions: The novel is one of the staple concepts of sci-fi - a first contact story. However, it's more in the vein of Clarke, as in hard science in a fictional setting, rather than Lucas - fantasy in space. I love sci-fantasy books - warp gates, hundreds of aliens interacting, high adventure across the galaxy ... but, it's not even close to being realistic. And, the concepts that are explored, while possibly important, are extremely broad.

Usurper of the Sun deals deeply with the science surrounding awareness, intelligence, and cognition. While the physics and difficulty of space travel is presented in a highly believable manner (other than the speed of the spacecraft, though they remain sub-light) , the real core of the story is Aki and her passion to understand the aliens that they have dubbed the Builders.

I have to admit, I highly enjoyed the book. Between all the hard science, there was enough adventure to keep the plot moving. I did break down the book into chunks, as the concepts were worth dwelling upon, especially when deal with theories regarding self-awareness and intelligence that I had never been presented with before. To get the most from this book, you really have to open yourself to somewhat high-level conceptual frameworks. I wouldn't say it's difficult to read, however the concepts are more along the level of grad school than high school. However, they're presented well -- you're taught the information through dialogue and example rather than having an info dump or the author just expecting you to just get it.

It's hard to write about an author's style in translation, because you never know if the writing is more like the original author or the translator. Still, the book is well written and easily understandable - I never felt like something was lost in translation. Some of the dialogue had that odd floaty feel that seems unique to Japanese in translation; this may raise the eyebrows of a few readers, but the characters still feel distinct even though it is really just Aki's story.

I'm purposefully not delving into much of the plot other than the summary provided on the back of the book because you really don't know exactly what's going to happen. I had a few good guesses, and I was pretty close. Still, I was served with several surprises. The flow and all the events of the book seemed very natural -- even the extended time span the book covers.

That is, except for one event. One little thing happens in the book that, while it was set up earlier in the novel, still feels a bit like Star Trek -- you know, everything is going bad then suddenly Spock or Data says, "I now have this one piece of never seen before technology that will solve our problems, and it just so happens to be right here in my hand." Like I said, it was mentioned earlier, but that it suddenly works like it supposed to at the very last second feels a bit manipulative, but it didn't ruin the book for me. It was just one small, weak point in a very strong story.

Recommendation: Worth reading - especially for those liking real sci-fi.