Bleeding US dry....

Free advice...

You know what they say about it, right? It's usually only worth what ya paid for it.

Usually.

Not this time...

I managed to stumble across this by reading Max Adams' blog comments and clicking on the link for a commenter there. I like how this woman (Toni McGee Causey)writes so I read further down the page, even though she's a novelist, and I'm generally zeroed in on the screenwriting stuff. But-- being a writer, I read anything, anywhere, at any time of day or night... so I read all of her blog entrys until THIS one stopped me in my tracks. Stopped me cold. Totally blew me away. In fact, I'm in orbit around Neptune's new planet right now.

The topic? Getting your work sold. Not read. Sold.

Get more than two cents; here.

Shrub, Dick, and old Rummy....

George Bush, Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld are flying on Air Force One.

The President looks at the Vice President, chuckles, and says, "You know, I could throw a $1,000 bill out the window right now and make somebody very happy."

The Vice President shrugs and says, "Well, I could throw ten $100 bills out the window and make ten people very happy."

Not to be outdone, the Secretary of Defense says, "Of course, then, I could throw a hundred $10 bills out the window and make a hundred people very happy."

The pilot rolls his eyes and says to his co-pilot, "Such arrogant asses back there. Hell, I could throw the three of them out the window and make 6 billion people unbelievably happy."

(I laughed my ass off at this.)

Thanks to Kristy for posting this joke at Triggerstreet!

I already said he IS!

Read the full article here.

Asked and answered, kinda...

Just got some info in re both of these contests and thought I'd share....

As some of you may know, the beginning of Writer's Arc competition opens on the day that the Nicholl closes. (Postmark deadline for the Nicholl is May 1.) Considering that it takes quite a bit of time for the Nicholl to cull it's submissions and award the prize (this doesn't presuppose that I'll win anything btw), I was wondering if it were possible to win and hold the Writer's Arc fellowship prior to being selected and awarded the Nicholl. I scoured the web looking for the info and failed utterly in finding anything that would answer the question... so, I dropped the good folks at the Academy an email. Today, they answered!

Here are both my and their emails.

Sent on April 4th from me:

Hi,
My name is ******* and I'm writing to ask about holding a fellowship that only last for 16 weeks while you are evaluating scripts submitted to the Nicholl. I'm speaking of the Writer's Arc fellowship, which opens their competition on the same day as your deadline (May 1). All this is precipitated upon the assumption (which may not happen, of course) that I win the Writer's Arc summer fellowship. (I was a finalist in the Winter 2005 fellowship, so it's not outside the realm of possibility!)

Here's the time line: Commencement of their 16 weeks fellowship would begin on July 31st and last until Nov 10. Your fellowship would be evaluating scripts and selecting winners during their fellowship. Assuming that I was a winner of the Writer's Arc fellowship, would this timeline disqualify me from your contest? Additionally, your rules stipulate that there be no winning of a contest where a "quid pro quo" situation exists. I don't believe this is the situation with the Writer's Arc fellowship, but I would appreciate clarification as to whether or not winning the Writer's Arc fellowship would preclude someone from entering the Nicholl contest.

Thank you for your time and attention to this matter.


Their reply today:


Unfortunately, I don't know anything about the Writer's Arc Fellowship. However, I can say that if you receive that fellowship and there isn't any professional element attached to the prize (i.e. an option, a contract, a purchase, etc.) then you would be eligible for the Nicholl Fellowships. You just can't be participating in another fellowship at the same time that you are participating in the Nicholl Fellowship. I hope this answers your question.

Sincerely,
Shawn Guthrie


The way I read this (knowing that there are no "professional" elements attached to the winning of the Writer's Arc), it sounds to me that you could conceivably be eligible to win BOTH of these contests.

For those unfamiliar with the Writer's Arc; here's their site:

Writer's Arc

Ok, hope this helps someone!

What should you be?

Courtesy of Rabbit and Crow blog, I took this test. (Evidently, the originator of this is Shawna of Shouting into the wind)

Took it once, answering honestly and it spit THIS out.

Hmmm, veddy interesting...

If you want to take it; click on the link below. Don't forget to tell us what it says!

You Should Be a Film Writer

You don't just create compelling stories, you see them as clearly as a movie in your mind. You have a knack for details and dialogue. You can really make a character come to life. Chances are, you enjoy creating all types of stories. The joy is in the storytelling. And nothing would please you more than millions of people seeing your story on the big screen!

What Type of Writer Should You Be?

Thanks Neil!

Tagged, twice!

Ok, so I got tagged a while ago by Alicia @HarvestHome for a 4 favorite things meme and I promptly forgot to answer. (SORRY!) I know, I know, clearly... I'm deranged! Nevertheless, here they are:


Four Jobs I've Had
- sergeant in the Army
- Defense Industry contractor
- Salesclerk at Eddie Bauer (part-time while in school)
- Real Estate Investor (buy, fix and sell houses)

Four Movies I Can Watch Over and Over Again
This is gonna sound strange, but I never purposely watch movies more than once for entertainment. I'll do it for research but not for the fun of it. Usually, if I'm watching a movie twice, it because someone has brought the DVD over or it's on TV and I stumbled across it.

Four Places I've Lived
- Frankfurt Germany
- Myrtle Beach, SC
- Taipei, Taiwan (born there)
- Seattle, WA

Four TV Shows I Love
I don't "LOVE" any TV show. I did make "The L Word" appointment TV in the first season but I haven't even seen all the episodes this season. I like:
Medium
Monk
Battlestar Galactica
Earl

Four Places I've Vacationed
- Munich
- Maui
- New York City
- Miami

Four of My Favorite Dishes
- My Grandma's Banana Creme pie
- Steak, medium well, fresh off the grill
- Shrimp with linguine
- Roasted Oysters (can't stand the raw ones!)

Four Blogs I Visit Every Day
- Complications Ensue - smart, funny, and we agree on politics.
- Kung Fu Monkey- Hella smart, and even funnier, especially on a rant.
- Living the Romantic comedy - has lots to say about screenwriting in general, written with wit and verve.
- Artful Writer - Craig knows! Plus, he's on the board of the Union I wanna join!

Four Places I'd Rather Be Right Now
- On a sailboat, flying through the water, under full sail.
- Laying on a beach in Pensacola, surrounded by thousands of other gay folk.
- Getting a full body massage.
- At the movies.

Four Bloggers I'm Tagging

Not tagging anyone, this is so old!


Also, I was recently tagged by Konrad West for the first ten verbs in the latest script I've been working on, which is "Regular Army". I am polishing it for the Nicholl. So, here they is!

mill
waiting
thumps
whirl
packed
strolls
turn
passes
pauses
surveys

Yep. Somebody's doing something!

Links have been updated!

So, I updated links...

Julie in H'wood has been "promoted" 'cause she gettin' PAID now.

Max Adams (she's the only screenwriter to EVER win both the Nicholl and the Austin in the same year) has a blog as well as a website (I didn't add the website, only the blog... you can link to several of her websites from her blog. My pup is on "DogshateBush")

Olaf has a blog that makes me laugh out loud. He acts the fool at "Idiot Screenwriter".

Heidi tells us tales of Hollywood in "Tinseltown Chronicles"

Sal lets us in on what goes on during a Disney Fellowship at "Let Me In"


**** Updated again to include a couple writers/readers from the UK.***

Lucy and the Optimist Reader!

Go, read, enjoy!

Pitching at the vet's office

My widdle pup, (see picture below) has a boo-boo. A very sore and very blistered left front paw. The technical term for it is "lick granuloma". "Boo-boo" works for me. And her. This type of skin disorder is very difficult to treat; frankly, not many vets know what to do with it. The vet she is seeing now is the fifth (yes, FIFTH) one I've taken her to about it. Thankfully, she seems to know what to do. We saw this vet about 3 weeks ago and things were improving. Until yesterday. When I got home from work, she was bleeding from the sore, and not using her leg. Wouldn't even put it down. Basically, when I left I had a dog who walked on 4 paws, when I got back only 3 were working. Not good. So, I whisked her off to the doggie doc today. After an examination, and some scrapings for perusal under the microscope, it was determined that she would be fine, but she needed to go back on the antibiotics that we had stopped giving her. The first round of antibiotics (they did seem to be helping) was only prescribed for 2 weeks. This time, we're going for the long haul... 6 weeks. Wish us luck on the meds working!

Anyways, once the exam was over (and the possible cancer scare was eliminated), I explained to the vet that I was hoping to begin another career as a screenwriter and I was in the midst of planning a romantic comedy in which one of my characters was a vet. I asked if she would mind some questions about being a vet? She said it was fine and I asked a couple "does this idea work in the real world" kinda questions. She assured me they did and then started asking me what the story was about. So, I told her. She said: "Cool, I'd go see that."

Imagine: Going into the vet's with a sick dog and coming out smiling even if you did have to spend a boat load of money on doggie meds and carry 52 pounds of wiggling dog. (She's put on weight while on these steriods.)

Here's a possible Mastercard commercial.

Vet visit: 45 bucks
Meds for the dog: 72 bucks
Validation the your script idea is interesting: priceless.

9 years ago, today... love. Covered in fur.

Here's hoping for another nine.