My old television is dying...

and it's always reminds me of when I bought it. It's one of those VCR/TV combinations that cost way too much in 1990. Its predecessor was destroyed when a bookcase fell over. But it's been a good TV and a lived a long productive life.

It was purchased at a time in my life when way too many duplicitous, cowardly, corrupt and criminal people made their way into my life. I can't really talk about some of it unless you're married to me, because of a contract that I signed to escape the place. So if you're one of the scumbags that I'm not supposed to talk about, don't worry there were many more scumbags in your community.

That period of my life was a thorough education on the duplicitous nature of a typical antagonist in a screenplay. The worst of the scum actually saw and sees me as the bad guy for a variety of reasons. (And yes, your significant other gave me a *******!) Remember that when you have a vile antagonist. The antagonist sees himself as righteous in his actions. Like most of the scum that I dealt with, the bad guys see themselves as justified and correct in their actions. The bad guys blame the protagonist, no matter what.

Of course, your antagonist can see the light. That time in my life brought me into contact with a future politician, a future war criminal, too many inheritors of wealth and way too many self-righteous "Christians". Very few of these people are capable of seeing the light. Their minds and thought structure does not allow for them to see their duplicitous and corrupt nature. And those are your antagonists, acting from flawed logic and being all too human.

I recall a reviewer on Triggerstreet of my first screenplay. This person could not believe that a corrupt businessman would hire hitmen to kill a whistleblower. The reviewer had the same filter that I had to abandon after that period in my life. It's unfortunate that big turds rise to the top with the cream, but many lumps of shit do. It's worth mentioning that the reviewer's script was eventually assigned to me. This person claimed to have years of relevant experience. His script contained multiple quotes from marginally popular movies and selected songs for the montages.

My point in all of this is that your antagonists are duplicitous because they can be. They are evil, corrupt, self-serving, wicked, etc., simply because the opportunity is there. Most importantly, the antagonist sees your protagonist as flawed for his/her best qualities. Those are the antagonists that make the best villains. For that reason, I'm somewhat thankful to have been acquainted with a few venal, criminal, corrupt, self-serving and dispicable individuals that will serve as fodder for my scumbag antagonists.

Getting a bill for a broken window

A popular spec script that is making the rounds breaks a ton of the rules of screenwriting. It's not from an established writer, producer, director or anyone else who can ignore the rules. Plus there's a plot hole that sticks out like Glenn Beck at Harvard. While I'm fairly new to screenwriting, I'd expect any script I sent out with those errors would be thrown through a window. Then I'd get the bill and feel compelled to pay it.

I've heard aspiring screenwriters make the excuse that some popular screenplay has a myriad of problems, and it sold for a gazillion dollars. So of course those errors should be acceptable and even downright useful. If I had a quarter for the number of times I've heard that stupid argument, I'd dine on one humongous pizza from my favorite eatery.

A spec script will be rewritten several times before filming, but don't be stupid enough to prove that you're incapable of being involved in the process that gets the script to production. Your new and improved version of screenplay formatting just might get you excluded from everything, even screenwriting credit. Or someone could believe you're such a hack, that they'll simply steal your concept and rewrite it themselves.

There tends to be an inverse relationship between the number of errors and the quality. If you don't follow the rules, your script tends to be overly complicated, bad and convoluted. So just stick with the rules until you're the guy/gal with the career that allows you to break the rules. The next time you go to that bold icon, change fonts or type MID-MORNING just stop yourself and stick with the rules. Those simple, easy on the eyes, rules to screenplay formatting.

The Lions win and Screenwriting in Michigan

The Lions won today in dramatic fashion. It came down to literally no time on the clock and one play to win the game. And what's that have to do with screenwriting and the entertainment industry? Everything and nothing. Most likely everything if you live in the state and nothing if you live elsewhere. For those of you who don't happen to be sports fans, the Lions have won two games in two years. And Detroit's baseball team missed their chance for a trip to the playoffs and World Series on the last day of the season after being in first place nearly the entire season.

About 30 of my 47 years have been spent living in the state. Living through many years of economic woes and too much bad news takes its toll on me and everyone else, especially in the past year or two. When there is good news, people get excited at hearing something other than news of another lost job, home, marriage or other tragedy. Like the Lions' win today, people tend to have a positive reaction about Michigan's film incentive program.

Some of my friends and acquaintances ask me about the tax incentive program and usually know more about it. There's been a continual assault on the program from politicians to gut it, cut it or abandon it. Most of the time, my friends know much more about the recent news than I do.

I'm a bit ashamed to say that I gave up on following it. Why? Because it was more bad news all the time, and I just couldn't stand more negative on top of all the other bad news. But I've managed to crank out a couple scripts that might qualify for the state's tax incentive program and would actually benefit the state. Somehow I needed to believe that the scripts could stand on their own merits without the state's incentives.

I just couldn't bring myself to write the letters and push for the incentives when any potential benefit would be personal. If you were one of many people working hard to keep Michigan's film incentive program in place, I thank you very much. Hopefully one of the scripts I've written or will write can benefit the state by being filmed here. My last two in a row could do just that. Hopefully there are more people out there writing scripts that could be filmed in the state and benefit the state at the same time.

Appreciating Triggerstreet

A couple weeks ago, I started a thread on Triggerstreet's message board titled "Appreciating Triggerstreet". It certainly does sounds like a "kiss ass" statement. I agree. I'd kiss Kevin Spacey or Dana Brunetti on the mouth (maybe not the ass) for how much I appreciate Triggerstreet.

See there are other places on the internet to go for aspiring screenplays. The fact is that they all have flaws, even Triggerstreet. While some may see Triggerstreet negatively and some as a genuine ticket to success. my view has changed over 3.5 years to something very different. For me, Triggerstreet has become an anchor that makes the screenwriting experience richer, easier and mostly a whole lot less boring.

I've never been much of a joiner of groups. Joining Triggerstreet was contrary to how I operate. But something told me right off the bat to take my time with Triggerstreet and stay for the long haul. At some point in that time, I became a Reader of the Month (ROM). That recognition of my skills as a reviewer of screenplays was a huge surprise and not expected at all. My shock at being ROM was mostly because, I tried NOT to be ROM. The reason for this was that I felt keeping a distance from "the community" of Triggerstreet allowed me to be more honest in reviews of screenplays and more brutally honest when it would actually help the script or writer.

My journey into screenwriting has been difficult for a couple reasons other than my domicile. Let's face it, being an aspiring screenwriter while living anywhere other than Los Angeles makes the journey a bit more difficult. I'm mostly grateful to Triggerstreet for making the journey more interesting on a daily basis. It's there each day to make what can be a boring, solitary endeavor more interesting. Mostly, it's a community of people that I've grown to become quite fond of in the past 3.5 years.

So I'll be around at Triggerstreet as long as they'll have me. My ability to participate will be easier at some times than others, but I'll be there. For all its flaws, it's a great place that I appreciate very much. Thank you, Kevin. Thank you, Dana. And thank you to all the staff and members at Triggerstreet.com.

Hello from Kalamazoo

Everything I've been involved with in life had a formula to success. There were all these rules and much more talk about just exactly how a person has to proceed to succeed. Whether it was going to college, racing bicycles or screenwriting, there was always a dogma about doing it just right to be successful.

The fantabulous news is that those formulas to success are mostly just a means of wish fulfillment for those possessing an excess of resources. Coming from a fairly lower middle class background, I've dealt with not having many, many things in my life. Part of growing up was realizing just how many advantages of everyday life I didn't happen to possess. Some people will never spend a single day without the advantages of food, clothing and a roof over their heads, etc., but fuck 'em. Seriously, fuck 'em. Up theirs with a hot poker.

A whole lot of those rules and that dumb ass formula to success is meant to make things easier for them and harder for those without "key" parts of the stupid equation. In the years when I could make a bicycle fly, hurting these people gave me great pleasure. That's right, hurting them and making them cry and whine.

There aren't many hills in Chicago, but along Sheridan Road there is a hill at Tower Road. During group rides being first to the stop sign on the top of the hill was a badge of honor. There were a couple "pros" who really liked to be first and second. But neither could ride as well as I could, even on a bad day. I would pace them keeping a one wheel length lead all the way up the hill. At the top, the whining started with excuses about stomach cramps, pedals, races coming on the weekend, blah, blah, blah.

See these boys did everything right according to the formulas and couldn't understand not getting the result that they wanted. I just plain liked seeing that wheel at my side and knowing that they could not pass me. But I could never complete the formula for success that these boys did. My life simply did not contain the advantages to do the right things and have the right things to make A + B = C. But I still was better than C, and it drove these boys crazy.

So maybe you're having aspirations or delusions of writing a screenplay. You don't have the right formula for success. There are things and advantages that you don't possess, AND someone has made you believe that A + B = C. Well, fuck 'em. These people want to utilize an advantage that has nothing to do with talent. They'll spend their entire lives finding the right formula and trying to manipulate that equation.

Guess what? They'll be looking over their shoulders the entire time, knowing that the formula isn't talent. These are the people who whine about Diablo Cody not following the formula. They don't get that Diablo can fart more talent than they'll be capable of on their greatest day at a keyboard. And I'm pretty sure she secretly enjoys hearing them make excuses for being beaten like the girlboys that I whooped on by one wheel length.

Screw the formulas. Right where you are will do. Don't worry about who flies overhead in a jet, because you've got something interesting to say, characters to create and a story to tell. You should understand that formula to success, but don't think for a fraction of a second that you need the fucking thing. If you're a stripper in Minnesota or a crippled-up guy from Kalamazoo, you can do it with what you have. There's an advantage in doing the best you can without following formulas to a tee, use it.

My first blog entry

Somehow you found your way to my blog. Hopefully I'll have something worthwhile to say eventually. For now, I'll talk a bit about what I won't say.

Several years ago, a fella named Jim Glennon told me that a part of my life would make great material for a screenplay. Being an idiot, I disagreed with Jim. Eventually the bug bit me and I mustered enough self-delusion to dive into the world of screenwriting.

I've managed to punch out a few screenplays and feel the best is yet to come. Not too many years ago, I'd have told you that no amount of urging could bring me to fancy myself a screenwriter. But today, here I is and I be getting better every damn day.

If the day comes when something I create makes it to the big screen, that's when you might want to ask me about what Jim Glennon thought would make such a great movie. Come on over and we'll take a trip to Kinkos to do a bit of photocopying.

It's an ugly tale that I wouldn't want to relive. But who knows? It may be just what Jim Glennon thought several years ago. A great story for a movie, and it started with a windmill.