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Day 4 Assignments
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25 Replies
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Bobby’s Act I Rough Draft
MY VISION: A writing life that is mine to do with as I please. Independently wealthy, always creatively engaged, sought after, and utterly fulfilled.
Title: JASON VS THE ZOMBIES
Genre: Horror/Comedy
Concept: A tortured, aspiring serial killer has to join forces with the bullies that were his intended victims when the cabin they’re partying in is attacked by zombies from a nearby Civil War graveyard.
HOW IT WENT: Just finished Act I Rough Draft. FAAAAAR from great, but of course that’s the point! Actually surprised when I went to the next scene in my outline, and realized – oh! That’s the end of Act I. I’ll call it a success!
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Tom’s Next Act 1 Scenes
My Vision: When doing a project with a producer, I quickly come up with workable solutions.
Doing this assignment, I learned I can quickly do a rough draft from the outline and look forward to improving it later.
I find that writing this way is exciting.
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Rebecca’s Next Act, Act 2 Scenes 1 – 4.
Vision: My success in this program will lead me to be the go-to writer for producers looking for incredible scripts for successful movies enjoyed by a vast viewing audience.
What I learned is that despite my best efforts to focus, a perceived problem quickly threw me off course, allowed the inner critique emerge, and slowed down progress. I also discovered that a few deeps breaths and a quick empowerment reminded me that I am in control if I stick to the rule of drafts. Thank you Hal for sharing these tools.
After finishing Act 1 in three writing sessions I started in on Act 2 but with hesitation. Should I leave Act 1 with a cliff hanger or wait and insert the beginning of Act 2 into Act 1 to keep with the outline. Self-doubt crept into my writing. I did a quick empowerment and reminded myself that I can solve that problem in the next draft. I finished 5 pages that day and 3 the next.
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Jeffrey Alan Chase’s Next Act 1 Scenes
My vision: I am an “A” list writer who is known for high concept ideas, great execution, a string of successful movies and is always ready to share his knowledge and do what he can to help another writer on the way up.
What I learned from doing this assignment is: I’ve written my first ACT. It’s 20 pages, which I think is about 3-7 pages short. But that will be fixed in due time. I’m moving into ACT 2 even though my inciting incident isn’t exactly where I want it along with several other things. It’s uncomfortable at times but I will continue to push myself to WRITE FAST and keep going. It’s hard to turn off my auto-editing mode.
Title: Shards
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Logline: A woman with no childhood memory is involved in a cat and mouse game with a cunning hypnotist not knowing the man is responsible for both her amnesia and the death of her treasure hunter father.
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Andrew Kelm’s
Vision: I am going to do whatever it takes to be a great writer of TV and movies who is sought after by people I respect within the industry and has multiple successful TV series produced.
What I learned doing this assignment is… To keep going without looking back. There is one act 1 loose end that I know has to be resolved differently but I have resisted the urge to go back and fix it, and I get the wisdom of that.
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Terrie’s Continue Act 1
Vision:
I get paid to write screenplays that get made into crowd pleasing successful films using a process that allows me to keep up my equestrian hobby.What I learned doing this assignment is how valuable the outline is. It’s the main reason I’m able to write a scene quickly and not get stuck.
How it went? My scenes are much too short. I’ll probably only have around 12 pages for act 1. But I’m focusing on getting each scene from outline to draft.
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Erik’s Next Act 1 Scenes
My vision is to achieve true excellence as a screenwriter which causes me to be a consistently working writer, with actual movies made from some of my scripts, and to become wealthy as a screenwriter, develop relationships in the movie industry where I am recognized as a truly original writer, and to become indispensable in the market in which I want to write.
What I learned doing this assignment… I keep learning with each time sitting down to write this first draft that high-speed writing is phenomenal for generating creativity. For me the important trick is to take down the notes quickly for those areas of the story that come to me while writing but which I cannot stop to write because that would slow down the writing. Usually though, I don’t even have to take down the notes right then, I can wait until I am done with the writing, even if that is an hour away. This seems to be a creative phenomenon that is particular to high-speed writing!
These high-speed writing rules are still going great! A few times in the last session I slowed down for the first time since starting but realized that it just takes practice and discipline to keep it up. The benefits of high-speed writing, for me, are much better than perfection writing. It has become apparent that high-speed writing is far better for creativity than the careful, striving-for-great-writing-in the-first-draft writing.
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Leona Heraty’s Next Act 1 Scenes
My Vision: To be the best family comedy screenwriter in the industry where my screenplays are produced into fabulous movies, making audiences laugh a lot and making me independently wealthy!
What I learned from doing this assignment is…setting a timer when writing the scenes keeps me writing faster and also, it keeps me from going back and doing research. High speed writing frees me from being critical of my writing so I can stay focused on moving forward and writing quickly.
Title: Tara vs. the Termo-Lytes
Genre: Comedy (Sci-fi)
Concept: A teenage tour guide with no sense of direction and an extreme fear of bugs takes a wrong turn and leads her group to an abandonedHow the High Speed Writing Rules Are Working for Me: The rules work and help me to keep writing fast! I think my Act 1 is too short…but I know that’s okay for the First draft, since I will improve my script on subsequent drafts, when I can always add more scenes.
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This reply was modified 2 years, 8 months ago by Leona Heraty.
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This reply was modified 2 years, 8 months ago by
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Micki’s Next Act 1 Scenes
My vision: Be recognized as a writer that will work with the industry and would do what it takes to be that WRITER.
What I learned from doing this assignment is by doing a routine in my writing. I am finding out that I can write at a good speed. Five pages a day is good for me. I know that it might increase with time, which I am pretty sure will increase soon
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CJ’s Act 1 First Draft Part 1
Vision: I am a confident and empowered writer who embraces challenges and changes and writes produced highly sought-after projects with fresh and exciting ideas.
WIL: I am excited that I have a crappy – yes crappy draft of my Act 1. But I have Act 1 done – does it need work – yep – loads of it – but the groundwork has been laid!
Title: MEMORY HUNTERS
Concept:
In a future with technology to retrieve memories, a Memory Retrevalist, caught in the mind of a psychopath struggles to find a way out before he destroys her mind and kills her.
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Eclipse Neilson: Lesson 4 First Draft Part 1
My Vision: I want to be a great award-winning, successful writer, known for her genre, who creates the most beautiful films that inspire others to feel deeply, pause, and ponder ways to make the world a better place
What I learned from doing this assignment is…that some of my structure order needed to be switched and a few scenes added so as to stay on course.
Title: THE NUN AND THE WITCH
Genre: (mystical /Sci-fi )
Concept: A dedicated nun destined to become a saint, bonds with a witch to achieve a sacred task to battle the evils of hatred consuming the heart of humanity, only to find out that time is running out.
How the process went for me: I am now in the 2nd act and the story is feeling more alive and inspires me to write more. I am excited about the script. For awhile the scenes weren’t hooking me and ai had to keep reminding myself first draft 30%. But then I happened to research a piece of Celtic music and played it as I wrote the scene and it felt perfect – exactly what I was looking for and now with the music in the background I am once again inspired and in the flow.
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WIM MODULE 5 LESSON 4 91222
ROBERT SMITH’s ACT 1 SCENES
MY VISION FOR SUCCESS AFTER THIS PROGRAM:
I want to become a great writer who delivers entertaining, informative, and uplifting scripts that sell and get produced.
WHAT I LEARNED FROM DOING THIS ASSIGNMENT IS…?
The importance and also the difficulty of sticking to the Speedwriting rules.
HOW IS THAT WORKING FOR ME? :
TITLE: “ANGELS IN GANGLAND.”
GENRE: Gangster Comedy.
Important: My project, “Angels in Gangland” is my SCREEN ADAPTATION of my stage play of the same title.
CONCEPT: A slain mobster cannot get into Heaven because of his life of crime but to redeem himself, he must go back to gangland to convince his killer to quit the mob, flip and go into the Witness Protection Program. THINK: “The Sopranos” meets “It’s a Wonderful Life” – with a Jewish twist.
HOW THAT IS GOING FOR ME:
I am frequently stalling out and when I proceed after empowerment I am asking myself (in a quandary) would it be contrary to the rules to start inserting dialogue and action from the stage play I am adapting to the screen? If I do so, first draft would still adhere to the outline but would it be in violation of the assignment of learning speedwriting? Actually, I think it would be speedwriting to just enter dialogue and action from the stage play (without word-smithing). My ‘inner Hal’ is telling me to enjoy and go speeding on.”
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KRISTIN’S NEXT ACT 1 SCENES
VISION: I want the personal, professional, and financial freedom and joy that come from writing so well that I’m in demand, selling beyond my wildest dreams, and making worthy projects—on a big scale and with my active, collegial participation.
WHAT I LEARNED in this assignment: It’s hard to break old habits. I totally get “writing in drafts,” and I don’t mind not having all the answers, but I do have a habit of “just fixing this one thing” before moving on. Now I’m asking myself, “how long will it take?” or “how important is this?”—because I found myself noticing that I’d lost an hour. Or two. Now, I’m leaving myself notes in my outline to answer questions later.
HOW’S IT GOING? I’m not “stalling out,” but I find that it’s easier to get distracted from “my work” than work I do for money. That is, if I block out X hours for someone else, I feel totally able to ignore what anyone else wants or needs during that time. But if someone reaches out to me while I’m writing for myself, I feel obligated to answer. TODAY I CHANGED THAT. I said NO and kept working.
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Sandra’s Next Act 1 Scenes
Vision: I am doing what I love to do as a writer with several successful produced movies.
What I learned doing this assignment is that I’m staying empowered and allowing myself to continue without having all the answers.
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Joe McGloin’s High Speed Writing Rules Day 3
Vision: I am a talented, highly regarded, efficient, relaxed, happy, WGA screenwriter
Title: Will This Angel?
Genre: RomCom
Concept: A future female vice president has a guardian angel who abandons his mission when he falls in love with her.
How the assignment went for me: Ok. My 30% quality is about 90% dialogue, which I will fix later, making it action with interest techniques. I know because that is my MO. Very short, dialogue-driven early drafts expanded and shaped later.
How it went using the rules: Well. Every time I slowed down, I remembered, Just keep going. Very freeing. I like first drafts now. Years ago they felt like painful births. I was the writer who didn’t like writing but liked having written.
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Farrin Rosenthal’s Next Act 1 Scenes
Farrin’s Vision: To do what it takes to become a highly paid A-List Hollywood writer whose produced movies will entertain audiences around the world.
What I learned doing this assignment is to just keep going and that is what I’m doing!
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Lori Lance’s Next Act 1 Scenes
Vision: I want to be a professional screenwriter recognized by the industry as the go-to for family-friendly scripts and have multiple successful movies produced.
What I learned: I’m glad we spent so much time with the outlines. I’m sticking to it and writing high-speed. This method works, and I completed four scenes today.
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Peter’s Act I Rough Draft
MY VISION:
Title: Día de Muertos
Genre: Horror
Concept: High Concept: A reformed Mexican gangster takes a night job driving a hearse – a tough job by any measure—made supernaturally challenging because the body is the back is his own.
HOW IT WENT: The first act was a major turning point for me. I wrote it quickly. But I still need to work on a timer! Thanks to the work I put into the outline and notes from another ScreenwritingU colleague, it was a very satisfying experience.
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Jane’s Next Act 1 Scenes
MY VISION: I will make my living as a screenwriter by selling my own narrative scripts and successfully fulfilling writing assignments.
By doing this assignment I learned how much the outline helps. Without it, if I tried to use this high speed writing process, I’d probably head down a rabbit hole fast. I’m usually a pretty fast writer anyway but at the high speed, I definitely need the guidance of the outline.
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Jamie Handley MOD 5 LESSON 4
VISION: To sell my script or limited series with future spin-offs to a great producer. And made!
WITHOUT RECOURSE “Inspired by a True Story”
Today, first thing I am going to check on Act 1 and conflict. I’m going to make sure that the beginning, middle and end are clear and on to writing more. My Act 1 is longer but needed for the protagonist. We need to see her hurting at a much deeper level. I’ll go back to that in draft 2 but need to skim over it to make certain the set-up is very clear. We know who she is in character and the accident has happened but is it loud and clear that she is in a bad way (pain and suffering) when her problems are internal. She has her surgery in Act 2 but showing how one (person) suffers from an accident when they aren’t with a cast, tons of stiches etc., has to be seen. Working on that one down the road but I know it’s there and I need to make it bigger. That’s it for now. Just glad I am allowing myself to write fast. Yesterday, I had a moment that I couldn’t think of the answer and I went for a brief walk and it really helped.
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Jacqueline Murphy Next Act 1 Scenes Lesson 4
MY Vision: To empower myself to be an A+ List writer, actress, producer whose scripts are optioned, sought after and made into TV shows & Film Feature films that inspire, receive critical acclaim, awards and are financially successful and emotional satisfying.
What I learned is that practice ingrains a great discipline to be in the habit of writing and starting off w. state to activity puts me in a positive empowered state. LOVE IT. Wonderful technique to use that works!
1. Do State-To-Activity empowerment process.
State: I truly enjoy…Activity: …writing a high speed first draft!
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Amechi’s Next Act 1 Scenes
What I learned from doing this assignment is that high speed writing makes this process move faster. I shouldn’t dwell on getting a scene perfect before I move on. That will slow me down and make later changes more difficult. Keep moving!
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ASSIGNMENT Lesson 4: Continue Act 1. Next 6 – 10 Pages JACK P. Next Act 1 Scenes
MY VISION: I will do whatever it takes to write a produced script that is recognized by the industry and leads to multiple successful movies.
I truly enjoy writing a high speed first draft!
What I learned: I’m forced to stay with my outline, even
though I see improvements every other scene or so, I’m staying with the process
of speed over perfection. I will fix these things later. -
John T’s Next Act 1 Scenes
Vision: to become a reliable box office success and entertain audiences all over the world.
Considering how far behind I am, this is going rather well, stupendous in fact. As of two weeks ago, I hadn’t even finished Module 4. But then I listened to Master Session 14, and suddenly it all sounded doable. I followed through with all the lessons in 4 knowing that it would enable the high sped writing that the lesson plan 5 calls for. This is all about getting used to the high speed process (and training my typing fingers to catch up) and developing confidence that I can put a reasonable idea on paper without being overly critical of it. Yeah, it could turn out crappy but invariably, the crappy stuff leads to better stuff. We’re on a roll.
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Valeriya’s Next Act 1 Scenes
My Vision: I am a masterful, ahead-of-the-game, and outside-the-box writer. Ideas and creative energy pour through me in abundance. My writing is fresh, impactful, iconic, beautiful, and genius. My projects deliver outstanding commercial and artistic success. I am the leading edge. I create a lot, and it’s a lot of fun – sheer pleasure. My whole life is that way. I love it.
I truly enjoy writing a high speed first draft!
What I learned from doing this assignment is…
– I don’t need to fight with myself, I can negotiate and come to a beneficial agreement.
– Criticizing habits are in the way and, clearly, out of place here.
– I want to accomplish better focus on this.
Tell us how it is going for you.
– I wrote three pages and I’m proud of it.
– I chose to focus on the “keep moving” rule as it feels to me it encompasses all of the rules.
– I remind myself that a scene may or may not stay, so the details are not important for now.
– I noticed I like taking time to think as I write, but I can keep this pleasure for rewrites and take pleasure in speed as I write the first draft.
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