Checkpoint 2

Here’s the deal:

I didn’t like where my original play was going after re-editing the stuff that I had from this summer and writing new scenes, so I decided to put that one to the side. After mulling over other topics that I thought I could write about, I came up with the idea of a love story about a pathological liar and her relationship problems. This required research into the issue of pathological lying, which was very interesting. I really liked/like where my idea was/is going, but seeing as I got a really late start (like came up with the idea on Saturday) I’m kind of behind. I still like the idea from my original play, but I think the problem was figuring out exactly how the plot was going to work. I think once I do figure it out, I’ll be able to pick back up on that play, but for now I’m really excited about the current one. I think that figuring out the entire plot from the beginning was a good move and I’m glad I have something to stick to, rather than just writing scenes and hoping they’d all go together (like I was in play #1).

Act I

Scene 1- Becca and Mark’s first date. They’re in a bar and are just having polite conversation. Mark excuses himself for a minute and Becca starts talking to the bartender. She makes up a different version of a story she told Mark and this is when we first realize that something is up.

Scene 2- After they leave the bar, they go back to Becca’s apartment. Mark goes inside for a cup of coffee. They talk and get closer and we see that Becca is indeed kind of weird, but Mark is too blind and into her to see it.

Scene 3- Mark leaves Becca’s and immediately calls his brother. We hear Mark’s half of the conversation, but it’s all pretty much just him raving about how wonderful Becca is. At the same time we see Becca. She talks to herself a bit, soliloquy style.
Scene 4- Becca and Marks’s third date. It’s a double with Mark’s brother and his fiancé. Doug, the brother, is a funny guy and through him we see Becca form a deep connection with Mark. Becca gushes over the way Doug proposed to his fiancé and describes her perfect proposal.

Act II-

Scene 1- The engagement. Mark and Becca have been together about three months and it’s a really good fit. There’s this big proposal scene in a restaurant and Becca gets upset with Mark for making it such a big deal.

Scene 2- Outside the restaurant Becca realizes how lucky she is that Mark wants to marry her and there is a big lovey cute scene. Any awkwardness that Mark had felt about the proposal is wiped away and once again he is blind to her lies.

Scene 3- Everything is perfect. Mark and Becca are out shopping and they run into an old friend of Becca’s. Through a conversation with her, Mark starts to realize how much he’s being lied to.

Act III-

Scene 1- Later the same day in Becca and Mark’s apartment, yes they’re living together, Becca makes up an elaborate story about what happened to his shaving cream. He gets fed up. He and Becca start fighting and when Mark accuses her of being a liar, she automatically gets defensive and starts turning everything around on Mark. Mark calls off the wedding.

Act IV-

Scene1- We see a very depressed Becca. She is at work, but isn’t doing anything productive. At the same time we see Mark crashed at his brother’s place and attempting to date again.

Scene 2- Comic relief. Two pathological liars together in a waiting room.

Scene 3- Becca with her shrink. Together they analyze a past relationship and Becca comes to grips with her problem.

Act V-

Scene 1- Becca’s attempt to be honest. In the grocery store one day, she runs into Doug’s now wife. She talks to her about Mark and how he has been and is completely honest.

Scene 2- Doug’s wife goes home and tells Mark about what happened. Mark is still heartbroken and skeptical, so he doesn’t believe her.

Scene 3- Becca is back at the doctor’s. She eventually gets up the confidence in herself to go talk to Mark.

Scene 4- Becca and Mark talk. I haven’t decided what their resolution is yet.

What I have written jumps around a lot and some of it needs to be extended or isn’t the whole scene, but I’ll get to it. Hey, that’s just how I write.

And I realize that the around nine pages that I have written of my current script makes it look like I have not fulfilled my checkpoint and you could look at it that way, or you could look at it that I now have TWO plays in the works and the combination of pages I have for both plays exceeds that number I said I would have written for this checkpoint. It's not like I've been doing nothing, I just switched it up a little. If you want to see said pages from the first play, I can show you, but they are on the back burner until I finish this play or I come up with better plot justification. And I am very excited about the new play, so making up the 10 pages that I didn't write this checkpoint will be easy and will be added to the 20 I will do for December. I also realize that I may have put too much pressure on myself for this month, but from here on out I will be less pressured.

So pretty much this is a round about way of saying I suck at planning but now I'm finished planning and I can just write.

Look here for my play
Look for my first attempt at a play here

Checkpoint 1

PLAY

I did the checkpoint, but I don’t think I like it. It seems really angsty to me and I don’t want to write angst. I want to write drama. Angst bad. Drama good. I’ve been really distracted lately, so coming up with a good plot line has been difficult. Once I get locked down what I want to happen in the play, writing it will be a breeze. If it comes down to it, I might just have to start writing and see where it takes me. I don’t know.

Becca is a high school sophomore. She’s too young to be in 10th grade, but she’s smart. She’s average at school. She talks to people. But she doesn’t have really close friends there. She has a best friend, Reese. He’s not real (but shhh the audience doesn’t know that yet). He’s actually the main character of a book, Becca’s favorite book. He did some amazing, dangerous, adventurous things (I’m not sure if I want it to be an adventure novel or if I want his life to somewhat parallel the brothers life). He’s pretty cool. He’s her everything. They have a great relationship, as demonstrated in the first act when some bad stuff (first example of my inability to come up with non-angsty high school goings-on) happens to Becca in school. Reese makes everything better. But when the book goes out of print (cause it’s old and no one reads it anymore) Reese disappears. Bye-bye Reese. Becca gets sad, really sad. End Act I. Act II. Welcome back into Becca’s life her drug addict brother, Owen (2nd example of angsty-ness). Becca and Owen have a huge fight, then a big bonding moment. Becca asks Owen to stop using drugs. It’s a no go. The Act begins to follow Owen’s life, rather than Becca’s. Later in the act, after seeing how important it is to Becca, he tries, but ends up dying of an overdose (ohhh angst). At the funeral, we see Reese again. There is no big reuniting scene. He just is there. Becca might not even see him. End play.

Here’s the things:
-I wanted three main characters who aren’t all knowingly intertwined, but they are very much so important to each others stories.
- I wanted an imaginary friend, but we’re not sure if he’s real or not.
- While I was writing the above, I thought that maybe they could be each other’s imaginary friends, but that’s silly.
- I wanted it to be all symbolic and moving and stuff. I thought having Owen’s and Reese’s stories somewhat parallel each other would be cool.
-Originally I thought the book could be obscene and be banned (or burned) but then I felt like I was ripping off our poem from last year.

I’m feeling really badly about this right now.
Jeff just gave me an awesome blog that I need to read and use to help me. http://bethanyharvey.com/blog/posts/2007/07/write-characters-not-mary-sues/



UPDATE ON POEMS- maybe if I have extra time I'll do a chap book

Done(ish)
Paper Airplanes
Prayer Request
Christmas Wish
Tessa

(Re)edit
Ave Maria
Brandon- work
Niall- coda
Sister Jean

Worth it?
Risk Taker
Brandon- art
Andrew- fornicating goats
Paris Hilton
Project Hercules

Ideas
Roman
Gay Love
Sairus- time zones

Ohhh justification

I'm having serious issues coming up with things to justify what my characters do, which makes me uncomfortable with setting up the storyline. I've been thinking a lot about whats going to happen to each of them. I started this play in the summer, but I don't like where it started heading and now I feel like I need to keep the characters but throw the original plot out. So that's what I'm going to do. I worked on poems today. In addition to finally deciding to through out my plot.

Editin' My Pohem

I attempted to work on developing my main characters of my play, but was side tracked by mini-workshop and editing. So that's what I did during class: edited my poem.

The Plan

September- Since September is a short time period to get anything finished. I'll spend two (perhaps two and a half to three) days on getting ready for the slam (and future slams) and then three (or two and a half or two) days doing the storyboard for my play. I have an idea and a couple of scenes written from my playwriting class this summer, but there are a lot of plot flaws that need to be worked out. So that's what I'll be doing for the first checkpoint.

October (12 class days)- For October I plan on having about the first half of the first act written. About 20 pages, I'm guessing. I'll be missing 2 of the 12 classes for Harford Glen, where I'll free write as much as possible and if they finally fixed their computer, posting any good stuff on here. Anyway, I figure that that's about two pages of my play a day in class, which isn't really that much, but I plan on reading news articles and researching ideas I have for poems and writing them, in addition to my play. I'm hoping for two solid poems a month, if not more, but my play will always have to take priority in class. I'll also be editing the play as I go along, so what I turn in at each checkpoint should be a second draft.

December (10 class days)- I plan on having the second half of the first act written (20 pages-ish) and a first revision made by this checkpoint. I'll also have the entire ready to be if not already workshopped. Hopefully two poems, but since it's only ten class days, that might not happen.

January (11 class days)- This month is up in the air for me, plus it'll be a whole lot of hectic. I was originally just going to use it to edit the first act, but it all depends on the pace at which I was able to move in the preceeding months. If I'm on a roll with writing, I might forego editing and just continue onto the second act. If not, I'll do lots of editing and write three poems.

February (10 class days)- Either the first or second half of the second act depending on what happened in January. About twenty pages either way and first revision finished. Plus poems and researching online and doing the all-around Misentity stuff.

March (10 class days)- Either the second half of the second act, about twenty pages and revised, or a complete huge edit of the entire play. Research and poems. Misentity things. Good fun. I'll probably be at Harford Glen one week this month, but I'll get my work finished. I promise. And it'll be good. I promise.

April (12 class days)- I have the feeling I'll be missing a lot of school in the weeks leading up to this deadline because of church trips. This month will be either the overall edit of the entire play or just lots of poem writing. At least four poems. Plus I'll be getting ready to mail out my play to publishers.

May (6 class days, I think)- Sending out the play. Writing poems. Attempting other literary styles. Month of experimentation!