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Roisin Dubh 1
After a delay on the Róisin Dubh comic book we’re getting close to a release of the first issue. It’s a three-issue mini-series, and this is the cover of the first chapter of the story, drawn by Stephen Byrne. Stephen Byrne is doing all the lettering and covers, as well as the interior art for issue 2 and 3. We’re at the stage of adjusting the niggling little details of the first issue before it gets signed off and sent to the printers. All going well the first issue should be on the shelves by the end of the month. I finished the last draft of the last script on…
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artistic inspiration
My mind is currently full of research and ideas for my next graphic novel project, which I’m writing at the moment. Whenever I do a period piece I soak up as many images from the era as possible. Most of the 1920s was a truly inspiring time – change was in the air, and the young people in particular embraced it. It absolutely was the beginning of what could be termed modern life. I’ve been looking at a lot of the artwork from the 20s, including magazine covers, and I’m entranced. The above image is the February 1921 cover of French Vogue, drawn by Helen Dryden. I love the sense…
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Skins 5
A few years back I watched a chunk of episodes from the 1st series of British teenage drama Skins late one night. I had previously decided based on the trailers that I wouldn’t care for it, and was quite surprised at the quality of the writing, acting and the character development. I then watched Season 2, and thought it was extremely strong with compelling storylines. In particular I thought the episode where Cassie goes to New York after the death of Chris to be quite sublime: a poignant expression of the reaction to shock and trauma, as well as a lovely, and unexpected, take on the city and its inhabitants.…
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An old ploy from a new trick
Last week a new film development process called Amazon Studios was announced, which Amazon is touting as the cool, modern way to make movies: Movies have been developed pretty much the same way since talkies were considered cutting-edge. But here at Amazon Studios, we believe 21st-century technology creates opportunities to make and share movies and scripts more easily than ever. We invite you to: Win money. Amazon Studios will award a combined $2.7 million in our first year’s worth of monthly and annual contests for the best scripts and movies. There is no charge to participate. Learn more. Get noticed. Your work will be shared with a global community of…
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review
Last night I received feedback on my script from my screenwriting group, which contained plenty of useful advice and tips. I had gone in with a somewhat resigned attitude, expecting the worst. It was cheering to hear that many of them thought the script was a fast read, despite being a character-focused piece, and that they were surprised that it was a first draft. Still, there’s plenty of work to do. I think I’ll need an agent to flog this script, after I’ve polished it to a higher standard. It’s unlikely to attract a big budget, and it needs someone to push it so it will attract the right champion…
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for the love
Since the New Year my writing has been going well. I’m almost afraid to type these words, as if it will cause the mysterious writing Genie that is my current companion and comic sidekick to disappear in a puff of multi-coloured smoke with a final sarcastic bon mot. This is ridiculous, of course, but yet I hesitate to tell people that I’m writing, meeting deadlines, ideas are flowing, and projects are being fleshed out. I should be celebrating this fact. Yet, sometimes I live in the fear that it will vanish. So part of what’s keeping me on track is the desire to tap into this creative spurt and to…
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the inner tuning fork
I feel rather remiss at neglecting this blog lately. In January, because I was writing a series of daily exercises, I was posting every day. Now that I’m back to my more erratic schedule, it feels like I’m being lax. So much of my life at the moment is about reading, writing, and watching films that there is little time to cram in my observations about this, and keep up with the daily grind of mundane tasks and jobs I have to accomplish. My thoughts about this process are no more important than any other person. I find it useful to discuss some of these issues as it forces me…
