Coming Up For Air

I called Len yesterday with the following conundrum: "Len, I'm just getting to the marriage and I'm on page 113. I think I'm running a little long. Should I bring in pages this week? What should I do?"

Screenplays are only supposed to be 120 pages long. The marriage happens about 10 pages before the end of Act 2. At this rate, my script was headed towards 160+ pages.

I talked to Len late last night, after I got in from Biz class, about what I should bring in this class on Thursday.

I've written another 60+ pages (not counting the ones I've written and tossed because even I am aware of how awful they are right after writing them) since the last time I brought anything into class. I didn't think that my classmates would appreciate getting another huge quantity of pages to wade through, especially a)right before Thanksgiving and b)when I haven't changed the things we talked about for Act I.

See, I don't go back and rewrite -- I take notes of things that need to be changed and I keep going, because if I stop, I'll never start again. At least, this is what I believe: if I spend too much time fine-tuning things as I go, I'll be paralyzed because I can fine-tune endlessly. Some of my classmates, like Linda, begin writing every time by rewriting what they've already done. I couldn't face doing this -- Len's suggestion is that I just back up 10 pages at each sitting and rewrite those 10 pages before starting to write anything new.

Len said that I should bring in a copy of everything I've done so far for him only. I should bring in questions on various scenes for the class to help me with. Len believes that if I am put on the spot -- or, more exactly, I put myself on the spot -- I will force the answers out of myself in a way I can't when I'm just working by myself.

For our last class, in December, he said I should bring a copy of my rewritten Act I for the class. My first reaction: The rewrite of Act I in 2 weeks? I can't get that much writing done! (For someone who can easily do 20+ pages at a sitting, methinks the lady doth protest too much. Act 1 is only 30 pages long.)

Anyhow...talking to Len gave me a goal for what to bring in on Thursday. So today I reached the end of Act 2.

It's a really weird feeling to have gotten this far. Act 2 is the Sahara Desert of a script: you have a tough road to hoe and nobody can help you with it. And I've gotten through it. I know it's all got to change, and that's okay -- I've done it once. There is at least one way through the mire, which indicates that there's more than one way through it.

Len asked me what my biggest concern was with hitting page 113 without being at the end of Act 2: structure, or details? Details, definitely, which puts me in good shape. Here's the difference:

• A details problem goes something like this: "I need Butch and Sundance to meet cute. Currently I have them competing at a fair for the stuffed bear. Is there a better way?"

• A structural problem goes like this: "My cute romance between Romeo and Juliet suddenly turned into Will Smith chasing some space aliens. Is this a problem?"

I picked up the copies of my drafts that I'd gotten back from my compatriots two weeks ago and started copying all the comments they'd written on the pages. I also transcribed the notes I'd taken in class when we talked about my pages. A lot of the same things kept coming up that people didn't like or were confused by, so I made notes about those things.

What really startled (and amused) me was that in one scene I have my main character cry, and everyone said that they thought it was out of character.

I made notes about elements I have to concentrate on and things that I need to clarify.

Whee ha.

I know that Act 3 is going to be a long haul, but I'm not going to worry about it until I have the Act 1 and Act 2 in much, much better shape.

Lies, Damn Lies, and Statistics

3.5 miles, with some walking thrown in there.

Wrote about 10+ pages before I reach THE MOMENT and started going back over the changes I want to make in the first two Acts.