Feedback

I'm about halfway through my second screenwriting class. In it, I posted the first act of "Protocol" and have received mostly enthusiastic, positive reviews. I'm still waiting for the instructor's notes. The comments were all very accurate. I haven't given enough detail. Or, at least, some questions came up that have answers much later on in the story. A big part of the reason you submit this stuff to others is because you're so close to the work you can't be objective about its content. Several comments reminded me that I know a whole heck of a lot more about what's going on than anyone else and there are a lot of subtle details that haven't been revealed to the reader/viewer. I need to be mindful of that.

An exposition scene that I originally had in an earlier draft had since been pulled in order to get to the reveal of the protagonist's goal by the end of page 10. There were things in that scene that visually provided some important information. Reading the comments, I realized they would not have had the issues they had if I'd left that scene in. The trick now is editing it back in and still meet that ten page mark. If I pull the opening grabber that I had moved there to get people's attention immediately, my first 10 pages won't have much of interest. It's already a pretty fast-paced opening. It's going to take some work to squeeze more into it. I've got some ideas how to do it, but I can't add without taking something out.

In the meantime, I've already enrolled in my third class, starting Feb 13th. And I've added some incentive (aka pressure) to the sidebar - a countdown encouraging me to finish a screenplay by the end of the year. I'm going to say that's as good as done. I'm also going to say that maybe I'll try to finish two this year, but the key to all that is staying focused and motivated - two things I'm finding difficult. Hopefully the classes will keep the pages coming out. I'm due to submit up to 30 more pages of Protocol the end of this month. That would take me to about the midpoint of the script. I think that's doable. Let's make it so.