tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post8809549131131448362..comments2024-03-18T01:49:03.153-06:00Comments on Blood-Red Pencil: How a Good TV Show Can Help You Write (and Edit) Your Novel - Part OneDanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14471919576687777886noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-40404642649423846222014-05-13T09:27:12.660-06:002014-05-13T09:27:12.660-06:00You are so right about Sorkin, Elspeth. His writin...You are so right about Sorkin, Elspeth. His writing is top notch. Shonell Baconhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04827197354857197637noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-73681934022575320112014-05-13T00:44:54.206-06:002014-05-13T00:44:54.206-06:00Absolutely right, Diana. I've learnt a lot fro...Absolutely right, Diana. I've learnt a lot from TV shows that have "lost" me.Elle Carter Nealhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02266309723919011181noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-81129038567348809692014-05-12T12:59:19.455-06:002014-05-12T12:59:19.455-06:00TV programmes, movies and plays are terrific for d...TV programmes, movies and plays are terrific for demonstrating strong (or weak) dialogues. Even the best actors can't save bad writing. However, they have an advantage novelists don't have - the setting, clothing, etc. are right there, before their audience's eyes. Not to mention the added advantage of music underscoring certain scenes. But for dialogue? Tremendous tool. I worship at the pedestal of Aaron Sorkin. My dialogue doesn't sound like his (unless I'm doing it on purpose) but dang it, that man can write.Elspeth Futcherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10330102545384369360noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-44470458379448412122014-05-12T11:35:08.806-06:002014-05-12T11:35:08.806-06:00We all want that hook these days, Linda. I remembe...We all want that hook these days, Linda. I remember stories I read just ten years ago from some authors who were a bit heavy on the exposition and description early on in their stories and how now they have brought the characters and conflict(s) right from the start.Shonell Baconhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04827197354857197637noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-9326501083609581842014-05-12T11:33:23.619-06:002014-05-12T11:33:23.619-06:00You know something, Christopher, that is SO true. ...You know something, Christopher, that is SO true. Have that theme song in my head now, and it's like the perfect summation of backstory.Shonell Baconhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04827197354857197637noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-83135660492403987452014-05-12T11:32:26.269-06:002014-05-12T11:32:26.269-06:00You know, Terry, I'm not the biggest TV watche...You know, Terry, I'm not the biggest TV watcher myself; I tend to watch more older and a few new shows on Netflix, but I love how a good TV show is paced, and I love trying to mirror that kind of pacing in my fiction.Shonell Baconhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04827197354857197637noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-90821242700946310052014-05-12T11:31:08.496-06:002014-05-12T11:31:08.496-06:00I LOVE this response, Diana. I do the same thing w...I LOVE this response, Diana. I do the same thing with the picking apart of movies and TV shows, books, too.Shonell Baconhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04827197354857197637noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-12276872360767037212014-05-12T11:30:24.097-06:002014-05-12T11:30:24.097-06:00Ha! I love that theme, too, Elle!
Those are some ...Ha! I love that theme, too, Elle!<br /><br />Those are some good questions to think about, for sure.Shonell Baconhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04827197354857197637noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-11863595571780261012014-05-12T10:24:44.784-06:002014-05-12T10:24:44.784-06:00Great discussion about the importance of compellin...Great discussion about the importance of compelling beginnings. Rarely will I read a book that hasn't hooked me from the first page of chapter one. Make me care about the character(s) by inviting into the middle of a conflict or a crisis—and keep me caring all the way to the end (more comments on this after the post on endings). :-) Linda Lanehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16056682992943171805noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-7276863828144739172014-05-12T09:42:08.467-06:002014-05-12T09:42:08.467-06:00My guiding light from television is more like Gill...My guiding light from television is more like Gilligan's Island ... a 60 second theme song provides the entire backstory ... and, boom, we're in the action!Christopher Hudsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03667548312923348614noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-72061256005633055172014-05-12T07:52:20.697-06:002014-05-12T07:52:20.697-06:00I watch so little TV that I don't think about ...I watch so little TV that I don't think about it when I'm writing, but I do think about writing when I'm watching TV -- especially when a show starts with an 'exciting' scene, then the screen flashes a "Three Weeks Earlier" caption, and I wonder why I bother watching, since I now know what everything else will lead up to. However, even Hubster is starting to pick out things like conflict and tension (although he hates 'personal' sub plots), and since we watch everything on DVR, he's learned to anticipate when there's going to be a commercial break (chapter ending)Terry Odellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11610682530545306687noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-42588725197326583442014-05-12T06:58:14.958-06:002014-05-12T06:58:14.958-06:00Although they take different forms and have some d...Although they take different forms and have some differences in format, television, film, and books are all about telling stories that people enjoy and care about. I learned as much from dissecting movies and television shows as examining books. My husband and I pick apart the shows we watched. What did we like? What did we hate? Why did we yell at the screen that the characters were all morons? :) Every story has a heartbeat. I like to dissect them to find the beating heart, the lungs, and the vessels that bring lifegiving force to the rest of the story. I highly recommend dissecting a story you love (in any medium) and look at what drives each beat. You learn as much from failures as successes.Diana Hurwitzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18216220574149672733noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-45097210406837996192014-05-12T06:56:47.681-06:002014-05-12T06:56:47.681-06:00This comment has been removed by the author.Diana Hurwitzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18216220574149672733noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-59458878565503426262014-05-12T00:37:58.226-06:002014-05-12T00:37:58.226-06:00I use techniques gleaned from TV shows all the tim...I use techniques gleaned from TV shows all the time in both writing and editing. Usually the questions I ask myself are "Why am I so invested in this particular character? What are they doing to stimulate that investment?" and "Why do I love this story arc, but hate the other one?" and "I love this theme (the latest one is 'the redemption of evil') - mental note to come up with a story that uses this theme.".Elle Carter Nealhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02266309723919011181noreply@blogger.com