is this even the time? – i mean, i’ve been planning to do this for so long, but now …
and then there’s this voice saying, “why bother” – everything is fucked and THIS won’t end well – of course, “THIS” refers both to the current pandemic and my belated attempts at becoming a screenwriting-type person
on the other hand, there’s the voice saying (SHOUTING!), “here’s that free time you’ve always been bitching about! use it! you may never get another chance!” – which, it must be said, is a compelling argument
but then on the other, other hand, a third voice wonders aloud, “should you even be thinking about this? sure, you’re okay (for the moment, at least), but millions of people aren’t ... isn’t this all a little bit icky?”
yeah, i do feel a bit icky – it’s sort of like a pre-emptive version of survivor guilt with the added frisson of knowing that this confidence may well be misplaced and, AND, AND! ...
...
as you are reading this, you know which voice won the debate – so let’s do whatever it is when expressions like, “make hay while the sun shines” and “strike while the iron is hot”, are sort of what you’re after, but don’t feel appropriate – so:
welcome to my inaugural blog post!
OKAY! ... here we go ...
shit, this is scary, exposing yourself––
[NOTE: the long, dubious attempt at humour that seemed funnier when i wrote it a month ago has been REDACTED]
let me start again
as i wrote in WHY? the purpose of this website and, by extension, this blog is to introduce screenwriting-Robert to PPs (Potential Partners) e.g.: producers, directors, actors, etceteras, writers ...
i’ve been a “creative” my entire working life – mostly as a graphic designer / art director in the advertising and design industries [1] – so it would be natural to think, dear PP, that i would be acclimatised to “putting myself out there” – but, no
why? because, as any number of mobster flicks have taught us, the work was not personal, it was strictly business – not that i didn’t care – not that i didn’t put myself into the work — it just was not about me
a screenplay, however – particularly a spec screenplay – surely that is about me, right? – i mean, no matter what the setting, characters or subject matter, a spec screenplay can’t help but reveal at least something about the writer – isn’t that scary?
sure, i guess – i mean, yes, it is ... but it’s also a PERFORMANCE
the need to entertain, to be clear, to keep the pages turning (and even the screenplay format itself) ensures that no matter how personal the story is, there is always a layer of “artifice” between the reader and the writer – something to create a comfortable distance between you and your work
but here, on this blog, i’m trying to be as open as possible [2] and avoid ARTIFICE – to let my ideas, thoughts, opinions, brain farts or whatever stand on their own – and so give you, dear PP, a hint of who you may be dealing with one day in the future (assuming there is one)
hence this “style” of writing – i’m not trying to be “cool” (that ship sailed years ago) – it’s just that i didn’t want to have to worry about delivering a performance (or worry about the rules of Proper English, for that matter) – i just want to say what i need to say and then ... get back to my screenplays as quickly as possible (y'know, the FUN stuff)
sure – there will be some PPs (most of whom won’t have read this far) who will find this “style” off-putting or lazy – they’ll say, “this is not the way to promote yourself as a writer” – and they may well be right, but frankly, i haven’t the ”mental space” for anything else
okay, this little performance has gone on long enough – next post will be about something more interesting ... hopefully
[1] this site was not created to spruik (advertise) my design skills, such as they are – so i haven’t invested too much time in how it looks – in time, things may improve
[2] please note, being open about myself requires a degree of honest introspection i may not be capable of – apologies in advance