#amwriting
#androckin’
#nin
The book’s always better than the movie…
Right?
That’s the rule, right?
Books rule over movies.
Always.
Before I got involved with this whole short film thing, I always would get indignant after watching yet another failed movie adaptation of a book I liked. And I would always wonder to myself why in the heck could they never get it write/right.
Until on a whim I decided to try my hand at adapting my short story LEAVE into a screenplay.
Right away I realized that this was going to be no easy feat.
Introspection and contemplation that serve a short story or a novel so well is basically useless in a screenplay where just about everything must be represented as action and dialogue so it can be seen and heard by the audience.
Of course LEAVE as a short story is mostly introspection and contemplation by the protagonist so right off the bat the whole structure would have to change in order to be able to show his shift of character from beginning to end.
To do this, new scenes had to be invented and new characters had to be developed and within the first writing of the story of LEAVE as a screenplay, it was already hugely different from the story of LEAVE the short story. And that was only by my own efforts.
After I showed it to an actor friend for his feedback, from his guidance it went from 33 pages down to fifteen. And yes, to whittle it down that much there had to be a significant change in story and tempo.
But really, the biggest changes to the story didn’t occur until once the screenplay was accepted by a studio and a director was found and she got ahold of it… and then several of the lead actors got ahold of it…
Talk about feedback overload. It took much effort and persuasion to maintain it as a story I recognized.
And, while we are scheduled to begin filming in two months, we haven’t yet cast the lead actor so I can only wonder what changes still might occur to it.
But you know what… the story as it is now as a near fully developed screenplay is really not that far from what it is as a short story.
It is just different.
And much, much better in my opinion.
Still, I guarantee it if you read the short story and then see the film, you will be significantly surprised by the differences that there are between the two.
I just hope you are not significantly disappointed.
But I can pretty much guarantee that you won’t be because we have an awesome crew and the cast is going to be first rate and impressive.
And I can also guarantee that from now on whenever I watch a movie that has been poorly adapted from a book that I like I will certainly be less critical and more understanding of the differences between the two and the winding and somewhat weary course that had to be traveled to get the story to the screen.
Because now I know.
And now I have only one rule regarding movies and books.
Both of them do.
Rule, that is…
Have you heard about our private Facebook Writers & Readers Group?
More Brain Drain Stuff
So… based on your very kind, honest, and funny feedback to my last post, it appears that Cards Against Humanity, while being fun and completely aligned with my temperament, may not be the game best suited for building up my brain muscle.
I know there are several companies out there now that say they have games and apps that will improve one’s cognitive function and may hold diseases like Alzheimer’s at bay. However, those companies were pretty much debunked by a group of neuroscientists with this.
The good news is that there may actually be one game out there that does improve brain function.
From the LA Times:
If you’re intent on keeping dementia at bay, new research suggests you’ll need more than crossword puzzles, aerobic exercise and an active social life. In a study released Sunday, researchers found that older adults who did exercises to shore up the speed at which they processed visual information could cut by nearly half their likelihood of cognitive decline or dementia over a 10-year period…
The data that the LA Times is reporting from was presented at the Alzheimer’s Assn.’s International Conference.
The study the data was drawn from was conducted by the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute on Aging.
The game used in the study found to be effective is called Double Decision.
Of course you have to become a paid subscriber to play the game. If you pay monthly, it costs $14.00. If you pay annually, it costs $8.00.
A monthly membership to Golds Gym costs around $25.00 a month.
I am not yet sure if I am going to subscribe to play the game but I am sure, based upon your feedback and my research, that muscles, brains or otherwise, are expensive to build and maintain.
My Chemo Brain Counter-Offensive
So… yeah. I’ve been having some chemo brain issues for quite a while now and I’m in search of interesting ways to build up my brain muscle to counter these “cognitive disorder” side-effects, as my neurologist so neatly calls them.
I’ve never been a board game – or any game for that matter – kind of guy, but I’ve read and I’ve heard anecdotal evidence that board games do help with one’s focus and clarity issues.
With this anecdotal evidence as my impetus, of course I went to Amazon, the event horizon of the internet, and searched around for what the best board game for my particular interests would be.
And I found this:
As you can see, it tags itself as “A party game for horrible people.” And while I don’t feel that I’m all that horrible, after reading a few of the many thousands of reviews, it does seem like a game that would appeal to my interests.
Does that make me so horrible?
That was rhetorical.
Anyway…
Which brings me to the point of this pointy post…
Research, with you being my source information.
Have you played the game? And if so, what do you think of it? Is it fun? Challenging? Stoopid? Do you feel you have a stronger brain because of your playing it?
And don’t worry, just because you played the game doesn’t mean I will judge you as a horrible person.
Necessarily…
I will, however, admire your courage for admitting it.
If you’re not familiar with the game, you can learn more about it here.
Poetry Is My Balm
Many of the haiku and other poems in Short Verses & Other Curses were written as a therapeutic balm in response to my cancer. I don’t know why or how I survived all that nonsense but I suspect writing the poems helped at least a little.
Recent events make it seem to me that my country is suffering such a life-threatening and cancerous disease so I was naturally drawn to some of the poems I wrote for the collection. To some degree they helped again, if only as a temporary distraction from present reality.
I doubt if these poems have any healing power potent enough for all the ills sickening my nation; however, it is out of love and desperation that I shall share them with you now.
For the next day or so, please feel free to download the collection. If any of the poems move you in any way, I ask that you share your thoughts here in the comment section. If you have any other poetry that you believe will help relieve a troubled soul, I ask that you also share those with us as well.
You may download the collection by clicking on its book cover.
Peace.
Thank you to all who downloaded a copy of the book and especially to those who left me such kind, encouraging comments. They mean very much to me.
No Point In Asking
When I first began articulating this post in my head, it was framed around the question, “When will it all end?”
But after just a few seconds of contemplation around it I quickly realized that question is quite ridiculous.
Obviously, we are no where near a point in which we can even begin speculating about the end to all this madness.
And after last night’s shootings, I am quite sure we are actually at a new beginning.
A tragic new beginning with an ancient foundation of seemingly immovable hate.
Not just for the other’s race, or the other’s politics, or the other’s finances, but a hate from where all other hate stems.
A hate for ourselves.
We Americans are like the spoiled, bully rich kid who, because he’s always had everything given to him, it is impossible for him to see that everything is all there is.
He wants more and if he can’t have it he is going to whine and kick and piss in his pants and make it a living hell for anyone and everyone around him.
We Americans have it all.
But it’s not enough.
Guns in our society are a problem. But they are not the problem.
We are the problem.
And we know it.
And we hate ourselves for it.
#lookwithin
#stopthehate
#startthelove
#blacklivesmatter
So here’s my conundrum… update #3
Okay… of course we knew Hillary Clinton wasn’t going to get indicted. And I don’t think Bill meeting with the Attorney General to ensure she didn’t get indicted really mattered. Elites don’t get indicted. Period.
And, who knows, maybe a typical Intelligence Community peon being investigated for the same crime wouldn’t get indicted either.
But we all know the IC peon would at least lose his or her access to classified material and/or his or her clearance, which would mean that he or she would be out of a job.
Hillary, of course, won’t lose her access, her clearance, or her candidacy for the president.
What a farce.
#elitelivesmatter…most
I and Me Confusing You and Yours
Still confused about the whole “me” or “I” thing, I see.
Listen, just slapping “I” in every sentence where there is a need for a pronoun for you isn’t going to make you seem smarter, my friend.
It will make you seem just the opposite to those who know the rules…
So what is the rule when it comes to “me” versus “I” usage?
Grammatically speaking, when you are the subject of a sentence, use “I.” When you are the object of a sentence, use “me.”
Yeah, I know… so what that means for you and me in plain English/American:
Simply take out the other name(s), noun(s), or pronoun(s) listed in the sentence with you and use whichever pronoun for you (I or me) you would normally use in the same sentence without them.
For instance:
A copy was given to Rick, Steve, and (me/I).
Copy is the subject. The people are the objects.
Without Rick and Steve in the sentence we would easily know to say:
A copy was given to me.
So, the correct sentence would read:
A copy was given to Rick, Steve, and me.
Another example:
Betty, Jane, and (me/I) are going to the library.
The three people are the subjects.
Without Betty and Jane, we of course would say:
I am going to the library.
So, the correct sentence would read:
Betty, Jane, and I are going to the library.
Piece of cake, right?
Of course it is. But that means you’ll have think (to do the grammar math) first before you speak so that may continue to cause you/us some problems.
Anyway…
Follow this simple grammar hack and you and me will get along just fine, my friend.
😉
me
Ashtabula
I’ve never heard of Canadian folk singer David Francey before yesterday but apparently he has heard of my boyhood hometown of Ashtabula, as he sings about it in this lovely song of his.
I also learned yesterday that his tour will bring him to my Southern Pennsylvania manhood hometown in October. How cool is that?
Very.
So here’s my conundrum… update #2
So, as I discussed at length in the first post in this series, I had vowed to never vote for a family member of any former president.
However, with John Kasich dropping out of the Republican Primary race (to hell), I no longer have any choice but to vote for the Democratic nominee, who, of course, will be Hillary Clinton.
For I will never, ever vote for the Donald Trump de Drumpf.
I saw a report the other day showing that 30% of Bernie Sanders supporters vowed they will never vote for Hillary Clinton.
I assume them to mean, then, that if Clinton wins the nomination, they will not vote at all in the general election because my mind simply cannot comprehend someone who is such an avid supporter of Socialist Sanders voting for the Orange Megalomaniacal Menace.
But make no mistake about it, not voting in the general election is essentially voting for Trump.
So, even if you are as disappointed as I am in that Trump and Clinton are the best my country can offer up for presidential candidates, I passionately urge you to plug your nose, close your eyes, wipe your tears and vote for Clinton by all means.
You will only feel dirty for at least the four years she is president.
It is better to feel compromised than to be culpable for completely destroying our country (a destruction begun with Dubya) with a Trump presidency.
I really believe that if Trump becomes president my country will become forever alien to its historic ideals.
Speaking of Dubya, I would say I am proud of him for announcing he will not support Trump.
However, as badly and distasteful as Trump was toward both his presidency and his brother’s candidacy, he had no choice but to not support him.
Sigh…
What a sad state of affairs we find ourselves in, America…
#nevertrump