Let it Snow...

I’ve discovered that I’m definitely ADD when it comes to outlining/brainstorming. I get up, walk around, run downstairs, take a nap, go play with the dog, etc., every 15 minutes or so – sometimes every 5 minutes.  But I’m coming back, which is all that matters in the long run.

On one diversion, I spent about 10 minutes getting my $750 Herman Miller chair in JUST the right position so that I can lean back and type. (I bought this chair when I was rewriting the book with my agent for about 9 hours each day after work and it was the best money I’ve ever spent. I love it.)

Anyway – Today I’m doing a little research (The Art and Craft of Playwriting) and playing around with outlines. I’ve begun a list of scenes that are “Needed” “Maybe” or “Not”. This list will change a lot, but it’s important to map out this week and next.

For example – When Bobby Lee attacks Cain on the bus. Not a bad scene (for a book or a movie) but really not realistic for the play. Bobby Lee made a good villain in the book, but for the play, much of that will probably be backstory/off stage. We’ll cover the memory of what traumatized Cain in another scene, but that’s a fairly easy one to know won’t be in the play. The birth scene – Needed. It’ll set the tone and characters, but I may bring in more characters and it may change form. Things like the Dance – Maybe… We’ll have to see once we get more focused on the details of the outline.

Once I determine the locations/scenes to include, I’ll analyze each to determine which interaction is the backbone of the scene and what other threads could be included.  For example - the scene where Trudy tells Miss B that there is "room in the human heart" for more than one love. I think it will be here and I think it'll be substantial, but it may not run as a single scene but be part of a larger scene that includes Cain, Lola, Ida and Leon dealing with Trudy's illness. So the backbone of that scene may be the Trudy/Miss B conversation, but there could be other interactions and interuptions that delay the gratification/suspense, but hopefully still spur the story forward on their own.

And as always, several times today I've thought, "There's no way this can be a play." Oh well, It may not be a good play, but a play it will be - come Hell or high water.

Hopefully, by Feb. 1^st when I start the first draft of Act One, I’ll have each scene outlined in pretty good detail – then let the characters start talking to each other. Much of what they'll say is already in the book, but if this adaptation is like some of the others I’ve done (The Carter Family, Alienation of Affection and Marty Mann) there will be new combinations and revelations as well. I have to say that I do love these people. I'm lucky to get some more time with them.

It’s an absolutely perfect day for writing. I’m sitting up here watching it snow and feeling pretty content. 

And the song for today was Vogue... : ) So life doesn't get much better than that, does it?