I have a pen drive.
It's a good idea.
So people tell me.
But every so often it gets a bit mad and the things i save on one place don't actually show up on the next. That's what happened with my fully revised version of IN THE WILD. It's been a week (mostly off from work - yay!) and I still haven't printed the thing... I don't even know where the more up to date version is anymore...
At some point last tuesday I did get home and wrote a bit more on LAND OF FOG. I think I have most of it now. But I still need to revise it and tighten it up more and, probably add a few scenes. It's still patchy...
On wednesday I was back at A VIEW OF THE MOUNTAIN, finishing reading the de-development theory paper. And, amazingly enough, I didn't add any more scenes to the thing...
Also revised PARALLEL LIVES.
(I was at home so I had some free time)
On thursday I typed up some more on the WEIR-D MACHINE (stronger content than I recalled...), printed out LAND OF FOG (that I still haven't read) and failed to print the alterations in IN THE WILD...
Friday I had the day off but spent it going around London. First did a session with a friend, then went back to the house, got some food, went into central london to the myanmar embassy to get the paperwork for my tourist visa. Then off to Foyle's at Charing Cross to get some books for my little cousins, back home, some more food and off to Paul's for another roleplaying Cthulhu session.
(great as always!)
By the time I got home I know I still wrote a bit
I just don't remember on what...
Probably that ML thing.
I simply know that one of these nights I stayed up late writing titles of books and short stories by this writer. And I ended up writing a stream of poems (about 8 or 10).
As it turns out on saturday I wrote some more. And also on sunday and yesterday.
Actually yesterday I decided that what I'm probably going to do for my NaNoWriMo project is to edit ML'S unauthorised biography. In this way i get to use up all the titles I want and have a project where I get to be as weird and inconsequent as I wish.
On sunday I started writing panel descriptions for A VIEW OF THE MOUNTAIN and that was precisely what I did yesterday. For about 8 or 10 hours. I don't know. I lost count. More than 150 panels. That's all I can say. I was running out of angles, I'm telling you... but the story is definitely coming together. I realised I probably need a couple more scenes to better set the stage for the story. The Prince is becoming increasingly important and I think I came up with a couple of interesting page layouts, camera movements and scene transitions. Also did a sketch for the castle's central body. I had the image in my head but then drawing it it became clear that there were a few problems.
So I worked them out.
On sunday it was also my little cousin Mia's birthday so I spent the afternoon with her, Sophia and Lydia and their parents, David and Lisa. And Lisa's mum!
We went to the London Eye, then got on a boat to Greenwich, then went to Greenwhich market, had some pizza and back home. Simple and fun!
(and the girls loved the books I got them. lots of Jacqueline Wilson, one Garth Nix, one Salman Rushdie, one Benjamin Zephaniah and, most notably, Neil Gaiman's latest - The Graveyard Book. Which, at Foyle's, I simply couldn't put down. Didn't know if it was the right choice for Lydia or not but... I guess it was, 'cause she started reading it right there in Pizza Express!)
Also had a few more ideas for the ML biography (which, at this point I'm planning on calling Mortimer Lansky: Many Lives, Multiple Deaths - or a version of this)
Today I'm planning on typing all those panels up. Quick and simple.
Just don't know what I'll do when I get home... probably some more panels... might as well get it over with as soon as possible! It would be great if I could have A VIEW OF THE MOUNTAIN semi-finished before NaNoWriMo starts...
Peace
Showing posts with label weird machine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label weird machine. Show all posts
Tuesday, 14 October 2008
Tuesday, 7 October 2008
Comics Scripting - Foggy Patchwork
If friday was a busy day, the ones that followed weren't any slower. Sometimes staying indoors is the best way to get busy. Especially if there's a lot of stuff you want to write about.
(who needs the house cleaned anyway?)
After work (and work finished at 11.30pm on that day...) I still wrote a bit on the RETALHOS project.
Saturday I also came to work but upon arriving home I wrote quite a few things. An idea for a horror film (I know, weird innit?), a bit more on a distorted superhero series that I won't tell you the title (just too good to be shared), some more on THE IMMORTALISTS, a quick return to the book about my trip to Burma almost 4 years ago, THE ORGANIC INSIGHT ENGINE (yeah, it is a good title, but I'm willing to share this one...), some more on another weird SF comics series called THE FUTUROLOGISTS and LAND OF FOG.
My whole idea for this weekend - the plan - was to focus on the RETALHOS project. Sunday was going to be spent working on the ideas I had for the 8 page long comic. And then I would mail it on monday.
But when I woke up on sunday I REALLY felt like writing LAND OF FOG. So, I thought, why not? Still plenty of time.
And then I wrote more than 8,000 words. And this went on until 1 am.
(so RETALHOS had to jump to monday...)
I finished a chapter and wrote most of another. And I'm quite happy the way both of them turned out. The scenes, even though quite freaky, seem solid enough. I enjoyed the way the characters defined themselves, came together and then drifted away too.
Monday was graphic novels reading group night and we discussed (albeit briefly) Gilbert Hernandez HEARTBREAK SOUP.
(which I still haven't read 'cause all the copies went to the readers...)
(that's why I'm not saying anything else about it right now)
On monday I managed to whip up the first draft for the RETALHOS comic. And send it out. Missing all the weird portuguese accentuation but hey... it is a first draft. And at least I'm totally cohesive on it: not a single word has any of the need accentuation.
(which means when I review the thing I'm gonna spend a couple of hours right-clicking on words and correcting them...)
When I got home I still wrote a bit more on LAND OF FOG (I really want to finish it some time soon - and I'm really enjoying the story - that's the advantage of being the writer: you get to readt it and be surprised by it before anyone else!)
Today I spent some time typing stuff I had on THE WEIRD MACHINE and, as it almost always happens, adding a few ideas to the patchwork.
Did the same with IN THE WILD. Typed everything up and am now in the process of connecting the bits of dialogue with the panels. And it's looking good. The feel of deep conection to the Earth is coming across. And I know I'll fine tuned it a bit as I go along, since it is the main drive of the story.
Anyway, can't wait to get home and...
yup
true
write some more on LAND OF FOG...
Sometimes stories just take you away.
With no return date to be found.
I've got to finish this one quickly 'cause NaNoWriMo is almost upon us all!
Peace
(who needs the house cleaned anyway?)
After work (and work finished at 11.30pm on that day...) I still wrote a bit on the RETALHOS project.
Saturday I also came to work but upon arriving home I wrote quite a few things. An idea for a horror film (I know, weird innit?), a bit more on a distorted superhero series that I won't tell you the title (just too good to be shared), some more on THE IMMORTALISTS, a quick return to the book about my trip to Burma almost 4 years ago, THE ORGANIC INSIGHT ENGINE (yeah, it is a good title, but I'm willing to share this one...), some more on another weird SF comics series called THE FUTUROLOGISTS and LAND OF FOG.
My whole idea for this weekend - the plan - was to focus on the RETALHOS project. Sunday was going to be spent working on the ideas I had for the 8 page long comic. And then I would mail it on monday.
But when I woke up on sunday I REALLY felt like writing LAND OF FOG. So, I thought, why not? Still plenty of time.
And then I wrote more than 8,000 words. And this went on until 1 am.
(so RETALHOS had to jump to monday...)
I finished a chapter and wrote most of another. And I'm quite happy the way both of them turned out. The scenes, even though quite freaky, seem solid enough. I enjoyed the way the characters defined themselves, came together and then drifted away too.
Monday was graphic novels reading group night and we discussed (albeit briefly) Gilbert Hernandez HEARTBREAK SOUP.
(which I still haven't read 'cause all the copies went to the readers...)
(that's why I'm not saying anything else about it right now)
On monday I managed to whip up the first draft for the RETALHOS comic. And send it out. Missing all the weird portuguese accentuation but hey... it is a first draft. And at least I'm totally cohesive on it: not a single word has any of the need accentuation.
(which means when I review the thing I'm gonna spend a couple of hours right-clicking on words and correcting them...)
When I got home I still wrote a bit more on LAND OF FOG (I really want to finish it some time soon - and I'm really enjoying the story - that's the advantage of being the writer: you get to readt it and be surprised by it before anyone else!)
Today I spent some time typing stuff I had on THE WEIRD MACHINE and, as it almost always happens, adding a few ideas to the patchwork.
Did the same with IN THE WILD. Typed everything up and am now in the process of connecting the bits of dialogue with the panels. And it's looking good. The feel of deep conection to the Earth is coming across. And I know I'll fine tuned it a bit as I go along, since it is the main drive of the story.
Anyway, can't wait to get home and...
yup
true
write some more on LAND OF FOG...
Sometimes stories just take you away.
With no return date to be found.
I've got to finish this one quickly 'cause NaNoWriMo is almost upon us all!
Peace
Tuesday, 9 September 2008
Sequential Scripts, Weekend Writs
Spent the weekend writing some more stuff for A VIEW OF THE MOUNTAIN. Quite a lot of stuff actually. I've been reading through a paper on de-development (the collapse of empires on the western world) and including some of the ideas into the script. The idea is to create not only a solida basis for the story's society but also a platform for potential solutions that will come forth as part of the Monk's teachings to the King.
I'm still not finished with it but I know that probably most of what I've written will never end up in a script. But just creating a more recognisable society, a more defined framework within which to move the characters is already important enough. At least for this story. And, in any case, I can always use up some of the key ideas in other stories. There are a few that touch on those points anyway.
I also wrote captions and dialogue for a full (?) issue of The WEIRD MACHINE. And some odd bits. Mainly ideas, directions. Stuff that I could only write synopsis but not really come alive just there and then. I've learned that some stuff needs to be in the back burner for a while. And when it's ready, you'll hear it ring...
Also wrote the opening sequence and a few other bits for an idea that I had a little while ago. A comic about music and what it brings up inside. But I don't really want to talk about this because it's not only quite a personal thing but also something that I will only share when it's completed or secured in some way. All I can say is that I think this could be an amazing project and I'm quite sure it would be successful. Really enjoyed the writing as it was coming out, flowing so easily through the character and into the screen (this one I was typing it directly - which is something I don't do that often - I prefer to write on paper (comics wise) and then already do a semblance of a revision as I write it down on my pc at home), I felt the momentum going, which, to me, is one of the most important things tp be felt whilst writing. It's the momentum that keeps the writing going even when there's no "inspiration" or will power. The momentum sustains the story.
Read a bit of Joana Bertholo's new book: DIALOGOS PARA O FIM DO MUNDO which I'm (slowly...) helping her revise. It's a powerful book and filled with lots of brain candy and provocative ideas. To my mind it's as demanding as it is rewarding. Her writing has a beautiful way of capturing the subtleties of the portuguese language and of revealing our inner connundrums and intricacies. It tells the tale of an Ukranian family, the Kozak, on their quest for that mysterious country, Brazil, to where Father Kozak disappeared once upon a time, leaving behind a promise of a better life, an escape from poverty. In a way it's a book about the many things riddling our existence. A book about existence itself. A book about many books...
Yesterday, while cycling home, had an idea for a short comic and proceeded to actually write the whole thing as soon as I got home. It took me about 2 and a half hours to write 12 pages of comic! I was really surprised! Obviously the ideas changed a bit since their inception but I never assumed it was going to take that long! It's called PARALLEL LIVES.
In any case it's more of an exercise than anything else. It's the story of two guys, one with a mobile phone and another with a flashlight whose worlds end up clashing. It's a short thriller. In any case the idea was to have the points of view alternating between one and the other through the comic. I think I managed to pull it off. The ending was the most difficult, after the characters separate once again. It has no captions or dialogue and there's only a couple of panels where some text shows up. Hopefully the story still comes across crystal clear and creates a reaction.
Today I'm reviewing a theatre play (DOUBLE SIDED) I wrote in Portuguese for a competition (I have to send it by the 15th this month). Just rephrasing a few things. Realised that I'm still not that happy about the whole thing. It has some really good moments (it's good to find out that some of the stuff you had in mind actually did the trick for you at some point down the line...) but I still don't see it as being cohesive. Then again, if I get selected I'll have plenty of oportunities to work on the structure and I'm sure the actors will have more suggestions than I'll possibly be able to handle...
Also finished reading KING by Ho Che Anderson, an amazing comics biography of the life and times of Martin Luther King. Visually it's quite daring and the script really is intense. Ho Che Anderson manages to shift gracefully from in depth political debate to human drama. And, more often than not, seamlessly entwines both. Like my good friend's book, it may not be an easy read, but the plentiful rewards are there for the taking...
I'm still not finished with it but I know that probably most of what I've written will never end up in a script. But just creating a more recognisable society, a more defined framework within which to move the characters is already important enough. At least for this story. And, in any case, I can always use up some of the key ideas in other stories. There are a few that touch on those points anyway.
I also wrote captions and dialogue for a full (?) issue of The WEIRD MACHINE. And some odd bits. Mainly ideas, directions. Stuff that I could only write synopsis but not really come alive just there and then. I've learned that some stuff needs to be in the back burner for a while. And when it's ready, you'll hear it ring...
Also wrote the opening sequence and a few other bits for an idea that I had a little while ago. A comic about music and what it brings up inside. But I don't really want to talk about this because it's not only quite a personal thing but also something that I will only share when it's completed or secured in some way. All I can say is that I think this could be an amazing project and I'm quite sure it would be successful. Really enjoyed the writing as it was coming out, flowing so easily through the character and into the screen (this one I was typing it directly - which is something I don't do that often - I prefer to write on paper (comics wise) and then already do a semblance of a revision as I write it down on my pc at home), I felt the momentum going, which, to me, is one of the most important things tp be felt whilst writing. It's the momentum that keeps the writing going even when there's no "inspiration" or will power. The momentum sustains the story.
Read a bit of Joana Bertholo's new book: DIALOGOS PARA O FIM DO MUNDO which I'm (slowly...) helping her revise. It's a powerful book and filled with lots of brain candy and provocative ideas. To my mind it's as demanding as it is rewarding. Her writing has a beautiful way of capturing the subtleties of the portuguese language and of revealing our inner connundrums and intricacies. It tells the tale of an Ukranian family, the Kozak, on their quest for that mysterious country, Brazil, to where Father Kozak disappeared once upon a time, leaving behind a promise of a better life, an escape from poverty. In a way it's a book about the many things riddling our existence. A book about existence itself. A book about many books...
Yesterday, while cycling home, had an idea for a short comic and proceeded to actually write the whole thing as soon as I got home. It took me about 2 and a half hours to write 12 pages of comic! I was really surprised! Obviously the ideas changed a bit since their inception but I never assumed it was going to take that long! It's called PARALLEL LIVES.
In any case it's more of an exercise than anything else. It's the story of two guys, one with a mobile phone and another with a flashlight whose worlds end up clashing. It's a short thriller. In any case the idea was to have the points of view alternating between one and the other through the comic. I think I managed to pull it off. The ending was the most difficult, after the characters separate once again. It has no captions or dialogue and there's only a couple of panels where some text shows up. Hopefully the story still comes across crystal clear and creates a reaction.
Today I'm reviewing a theatre play (DOUBLE SIDED) I wrote in Portuguese for a competition (I have to send it by the 15th this month). Just rephrasing a few things. Realised that I'm still not that happy about the whole thing. It has some really good moments (it's good to find out that some of the stuff you had in mind actually did the trick for you at some point down the line...) but I still don't see it as being cohesive. Then again, if I get selected I'll have plenty of oportunities to work on the structure and I'm sure the actors will have more suggestions than I'll possibly be able to handle...
Also finished reading KING by Ho Che Anderson, an amazing comics biography of the life and times of Martin Luther King. Visually it's quite daring and the script really is intense. Ho Che Anderson manages to shift gracefully from in depth political debate to human drama. And, more often than not, seamlessly entwines both. Like my good friend's book, it may not be an easy read, but the plentiful rewards are there for the taking...
Friday, 5 September 2008
WeirD Machine
Just had an idea for a comic.
(that's what happens when you skip breakfast, have breakfast after lunch and find yourself making cheese sandwiches in the middle of the afternoon with no one to blame)
(they've all gone home by now. It's friday, remember?!)
It's called the WEIRD MACHINE. And it starts with the line:
"The guy who invented the WeirD Machine got invited to a lot of strange parties."
And it's about a guy who invents a very peculiar machine. But perhaps more about the eerie people he gets to meet...
(strange times, weird worlds, eerie explorations...)
(that's what happens when you skip breakfast, have breakfast after lunch and find yourself making cheese sandwiches in the middle of the afternoon with no one to blame)
(they've all gone home by now. It's friday, remember?!)
It's called the WEIRD MACHINE. And it starts with the line:
"The guy who invented the WeirD Machine got invited to a lot of strange parties."
And it's about a guy who invents a very peculiar machine. But perhaps more about the eerie people he gets to meet...
(strange times, weird worlds, eerie explorations...)
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