Two Weeks to Screnzy...

There's around two weeks to go until Script Frenzy begins, and I'm slightly more unsure as to what's happening with my script than I was yesterday. Unfortunately for me, that happens to be rather confused indeed.

By this point in time, I actually have an idea as to what's going to happen in the TV series that I'm attempting to write. That's certainly more than what I had at the start of this month. Allow me to outline my plan, or give you a brief synopsis. Whichever occurs to me first.

OK, synopsis it is, then.

The Gates of Tomorrow
In the middle of Tower Bridge, a net of crackling blue energy opens in broad daylight during the rush hour. In the chaos, the government send in a squad of elite troops. When one crosses the threshold of the portal, a fascinating discovery is made: The portal leads exactly twenty four hours into the future, and vice versa.

The Gate, once deemed safe, is seen as an excellent advance for the nation: Suddenly, thousands are flocking to London to go sightseeing tomorrow. But there are consequences of every action, and London's about to feel the full force of them.

As personal day-to-day time travel becomes an everyday occurrence, problems arise. What happens when you get a serial killer who hasn't tried to kill anyone yet? What happens to people who die today, but are still alive? How can the newspapers keep making money if everyone knows tomorrow's front-line news? Everyone is impacted by the potentially paradoxical outcomes of every action they make, and not everyone thinks the rules of time apply to them.

Enter the Gatekeepers, a special breed of military personnel and expert researchers devoted to keeping the Gate strictly under control. Yet they face problems every day - yesterday, today and tomorrow at the same time, sometimes - and all must vbe overcome. Because, as one person is very fond of saying, paradoxes cannot be allowed. In fact, they can't happen. Because the Gatekeepers are there to stop them.

Over the course of the series, they shall face some very real threats - terrorists trying out a triple-exploding bomb, serial killers to come and even people who know when they're going to die - but there is a greater foe out there, hiding behind the blue veil... He who opened the Gate is coming, and he's got a higher agenda.

Well, that's a brief synopsis. Maybe a little longer than brief, but alright. So that's the basic premise of my Screnzy for 2012, not that I've done Screnzy ever before, but oh well.

I'll definitely be posting about Screnzy in the coming month, so watch out for that.

Until next time, I bid you adieu.

A Solution to Writer's Block?

I was, as per usual, wandering around the world at large yesterday, when I came across a very interesting idea. This idea came in a very small box and contained nine rather unusual die. And, needless to say, I love them.

I'm aware that I haven't really told you what this thing is. Well, let me tell (and show) you.



The above picture shows a boxful of 'Rory's Story Cubes'. The idea behind them is that you roll each cube, therefore revealing a picture or pictogram of some sort on the top face. Then you're supposed to link all nine pictures together in a story of sorts. Supposedly, the Cubes are a toy/game for kids and adults alike. Personally, though, I like to think of them as a tool. A tool for writers.

If you've ever done a spot of writing, whether it be for a short story, novel, screenplay etc., you'll probably be aware that Writer's Block can be a big problem. The apparent inability to gain ideas, find the right words and phrase it all correctly is in many respects very difficult indeed, which is possibly why so many people complain about Writer's Block so often. Most of the time, you just need a bit of time doing something else. But sometimes we ourselves must locate a stimulus to kick start our imaginations. I believe that these 'Story Cubes' can be that stimulus.

The simple randomness of the pictures on each face of each cube, and how they somehow manage to knit together, is a minor miracle in itself. These cubes could so easily be just the right way to bring a fantastic idea into one's head. In fact, they are. I know, 'cause I've used them. Now I have a great idea for a crime/humour novel/short story thing - I'm not all that sure yet as to what it'll become - and I believe I can bring each element presented by the cubes into the story, too. (FYI: I rolled a padlock, a key, a mask/alien face, a house, the Earth, a crescent moon, a fish, a hand and something else which I have, rather conveniently, completely forgotten.)

Sometimes, flash inspiration just happens. In the right environment, it can occur very easily. In this case, it's only a roll of the die away...

Dramatics dispensed with, all you really need to make these things work their magic is a pen, some paper, a bit of imagination and the cubes themselves. And maybe a table. Even then, you can easily dispense with the table, paper and pen if you're willing to accept that you may forget the outcome of the rolls. On my first use, I could tell from the off that I wouldn't be able to make a proper short story containing all the symbols, so I went in for writing an introduction. So far, my idea's still in the design phase, but once I've developed it a little more I should have something pretty good.

Thanks to these little gems, I'm on the road to having another story under my belt. Of course, with inspiration like that available simply with the flick of a wrist and the unclenching of some fingers, I'm going to have to buy a set myself. They are, however, a little on the expensive side. At ten quid, you do expect quality products for your money, and I would have to say that they really are very good. Even so, they are a bit pricey for the discerning writer... But I must have them!

I'm including a pair of links in this post, one leading to the Amazon.co.uk page and the other to the 'Rory's Story Cubes' site. If I were you, and you happened to be in need of a really fine tool for getting that spark of inspiration, then I'd go in for this. Buy them. They really are brilliant.

Amazon page: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Creativity-Hub-Rorys-Story-Cubes/dp/B003NFJMBM/ref=sr_1_1?s=kids&ie=UTF8&qid=1330536553&sr=1-1

Rory's Story Cubes website: http://www.storycubes.com/

Good luck with getting inspiration, folks. And, as a final remark, I should probably add that I'm not and will hopefully never be a) a salesman or b) an advertiser of any sort. I would also like to say that if you're an English teacher, I'd reccommend them for use in schools.

Get inspired, get the plot straightened out, get that novel written!
   An Intrigued Author

A Grand Opening

Having moved on past the minor crisis of not yet having a name to put to my script, I've now gotten to the actual planning part. Now I am not one of those people who enjoys planning to the excess. (Note that that sentence can have two meanings. I'm implying both.) I generally take it as it comes, letting the creative juices flow. Except I can't really do that here. Not with Screnzy.

The thing about Screnzy, or what I think about Screnzy so far, is that you probably have to plan your story out before going on to write the damn thing. I have no problem with planning, it's just that I... lack in ideas at times. This time round, I'm lacking in a suitable opening for my big TV series.

Now I've already asked about a venue from which to spring a time gate, or temporal portal, and I have had a few responses to that - not that I can name anybody. New to my 'list' of locations is the Arc de Triumph in Paris. I'm also wondering about creating my own monument for my own personal purposes. However, it's not the location that troubles me at present. It's the opening itself.

I can't get hold of a single idea right now, or at least, not an idea that I can see working. Here's what my thought process to date seems to have been:

"Chaos on Tower Bridge. People like chaos, and Tower Bridge is workable. Me like."

"Wait, me no like so much. Tower Bridge isn't quite as accessible as I thought. Plus, the opening-bridge-thing doesn't open as far as I would want it to. Great. Now I have to start over."

"Ooh, what about this? Create my own monument. Then have chaos and running and screaming. But what's the source of this chaos? It would be silly to be scared of blue arcs of electricity leaping from a stone archway, wouldn't it?"

"Include an assassination, maybe. That sounds promising. But who to kill, and why would a temporal gateway open up? Gr, this is harder than I thought...

And the most recent development is that maybe it's not a monument at all, but a sculpture instead in the middle of some odd sculpture garden. I'm getting real annoyed at myself now...

In answer to the ideas swarming my head, I'm putting up a poll. Vote for which idea you think is best, one of either:

• Tower Bridge
• The Gateway Arch
• The Arc de Triumph
• A Sculpture-Arch
• A Nonexistent Monument of My Own Creation

If all readers could partake, that would be much appreciated. This being the biggest design issue facing me right now, I think it's best to ask the wider community.

Going mad,
   A really rather Irate Author

Tower Bridge or the Gateway Arch?

Whistle, whistle, whistle, we're getting closer to Screnzy by the day. 41 days to go. So it seems that it's time to get my act together and write up some ideas.

I already have one or two thoughts on what I shall be writing about. It's probably best if I just hand you my logline on a silver platter. Here you go.

In the near future, Tower Bridge becomes a temporal portal, meaning people can walk forwards or backwards one day in time.

That's really all you need to know.

The idea is one that's been tugging at the back of my mind like a toddler pulls on his mother's skirts - it wants attention, and it wants it now. Of course, this particular toddler isn't hungry or thirsty or requires the latest in teddy bear technology. Instead, it just wants to be written out. Find me a toddler who wishes to be 'wriiten out', and I'll award you a prize. A sur-prize.

So far, that's pretty much all I have. I could substitute London's Tower Bridge for, maybe, St Louis' Gateway Arch, but tell me the truth: Which is the more iconic, cliched of the two? Have a look, see for yourselves.


 

Yeah, you're right. Probably Tower Bridge. However, I do like the prospect of using the Gateway Arch. I would feel less guilty about blowing it sky-high, for one. Plus, it's taller. 630 feet, to be precise. (I'm an expert on the Gateway Arch. Been there, done that, got the bookmark. Literally.) And also, I don't have the problem of placing the damn time gate either. Where exactly do I place a two-dimensional time gate on Tower Bridge? Probably between the road and the supporting beam thingies joining the towers, I guess.

Any of you lot out there have opinions? I would be more than happy to recieve them. That's not to say that I'll take them into account though. Drop an idea in the comments section or send me an email at: pisces.kettle@yahoo.com.

Thank you. Now, what are the pros and cons of each...?

N.B. I did, eventually, get past the 'doubting oneself' stage of selecting an environment, and decided to go for Tower Bridge.