Bonfires and Illuminations

Once again it’s time to celebrate our nation’s birthday with “bonfires and illuminations,” as John Adams suggested on July 3, 1776. Today, the bonfires and illuminations of 200 years ago have become community celebrations, parades, sparklers and fireworks – but the reason for celebrating remains the same.

The best description for why we should never stop lighting those sparklers on the Fourth of July was given by Thomas Jefferson in 1826. His words explain why communities all across America should never stop putting on fireworks displays or holding Independence Day celebrations.

He said the celebrations of the Fourth light the world with a signal that can move others to recognize the rights of man and should be a reminder to each of us of the blessings and security of self-government and the free right of reason and opinion. “For ourselves, let the annual return of this day forever refresh our recollections of these rights, and an undiminished devotion to them.”

As writers, the 4th of July is the day we should refresh our recollection of our glorious freedom to write whatever we wish without fear of punishment - a right others around the world do not share.

So, whether you attend Coeur d’Alene’s big fireworks display; march down Maine Street as part of Spirit Lake’s Fourth of July Parade; head out to the Stateline Speedway Demolition Derby for a smashing good time; or choose to stay home to enjoy the spectacle of America’s grandest Independence Day concert on your TV, be sure you take a moment to tell your kids, or just remind yourself, why the Fourth of July is a day of celebration.

Screenwriting: Behind-the-Scenes

Root Bound Wrap Party, June 28, 2013  

A few of the Root Bound crew. From left: Leon Crandell, Larry Honegger, Mary Jane Honegger, 

Joe Dellwo, Rebecca Cook, TV Kippes, Kendra Sherrill, Paul Brand, Julie Rich, Crystal Reiber, 

Joey Stageberg, Kathryn Birdsall, John Gessner, Seth Mead, Bryan Peterson & Camryn Barker

I used to think there was a big difference between writing a screenplay and writing a novel.  But the truth is, the elements of writing a good story are the same in either media.  The biggest difference, as I recently discovered, is what happens with your project once it goes into production. 

First day of shooting - June 1, 2013
Crew readies for boat scene on Spirit Lake.

With a book, the author must first write the book, then find an agent, a publisher, or decide to self-publish.  The author next makes marketing plans – all in all, a fairly isolating process.

Similarly, my first screenplay, Root Bound, a short 17-page project, began as a solitary endeavor.  I spent many hours learning the proper screenwriting format, creating an engaging story, developing believable characters and writing authentic dialogue.  However, once kNIFVES (Northwest Independent Film & Video Entertainment Society) chose it for production, my solitary experience ended and I found myself taking a dip into an exciting world filled with creative, passionate people; each dedicated to their craft and to turning my words into a film.  The process was amazing. 

Second day of shooting - June 2 - Spirit Lake

Make-up artist Kara McCollum puts final touches on

actors Daniel Knight and Kathryn Birdsall.

When watching the Academy Awards, I used to wonder why winners thank so many people – and how they remember all those names.  Now I understand.  There are the producers, those in the directing department, the camera guys, the sound guys and the editors.  Then there are the grips, the gaffers, the production assistants, the costumer, hairdresser and makeup artists; not to mention the locations manager, props master, script supervisor, transportation captain, set designer, casting director and the folks in craft services who feed everybody.  Did I forget the actors?  

Because the production was a work force training project and we were all volunteers, director Rebecca Cook did her best to ensure the shoot was a first-class experience for all.  The tone on set was friendly and welcoming, the food provided was outstanding and the mentors patiently shared their expertise with those of us less experienced.

Director Rebecca Cook gives direction to Actor James Pendleton 
while Script Supervisor Tracey Vaughan keeps track of dialogue.

Paul Brand - Key Grip & Gaffer                 Camryn Barker - Camera Operator

With a cast and crew of over 40, it took us a little over five days to shoot what will become about a 17-minute film.   Several were 12-hour days with a 7:00 a.m. call.  Now that’s dedication!  Shooting on weekends only, we shot on the water and on a deck at Twin Lakes, in a bank conference room in Coeur d’Alene, at a lawnmower race in Spirit Lake and at a production studio in Post Falls.  Together this team spent literally hundreds of hours volunteering their spare time to turn my little story about North Idaho into a reality.  

Third & Fourth days of shooting - June 8 & 9 - Coeur d'Alene

Camera, lighting and sound crew at work.  In foreground from 

left: Joey Stageberg - Director of Photography, Camryn 
Barker - Camera Operator & Michael Notar - 
Line Producer & 1st Assistant Camera.  

 Each scene presented its own challenges which the crew met with patience and professionalism – never once letting the challenge of the next shot get them down despite enduring everything Mother Nature threw at us: a cold day, a rainy day and one sweltering day.

It was quite an adventure.  In fact, just hearing the actors speak their dialogue was an adventure for me.  I was mesmerized the first time I heard each line.  Thrilled.  The second time, I scrutinized each and every word, listening for continuity and fluid conversation.  After that, I lost interest in the words and just became one of the crew, working on locations, props, set design and/or as a hard working production assistant (go-fer).

Actors James Pendleton & Ron Ford on monitor.  

Each week Rebecca invited me and a few others to watch the dailies, the scenes shot the previous weekend.  As we reviewed each shot, she would record any problems she saw and make a note of her favorite take to help speed up the editing process.  I said little, tongue-tied with awe at the scenes coming to life on the screen and the perfectionism to which the scenes I wrote were being subjected.

 We held a “wrap” party after our final shoot and still have the world premiere and the film festivals to look forward to once the editing is complete and the music is added - two important steps before Root Bound is finished.  Our editor Seth Mead is already hard at work and Aaron Birdsall (our sound mixer) has agreed to write original music for the film.  More hard working volunteers!

Fifth day of shooting - Spirit Lake
The crew sets up on Maine Street during
the Big-Back In Lawnmower Race.

The experience was overwhelming at times for this writer who is used to a lot of quiet time sitting at my desk … but I loved it.  I met actors and professionals who believed in my story, worked with a lot of talented people and made a bunch of new friends.  It just doesn’t get any better … unless we got paid, of course.  C’est la vie!

Watch for Root Bound to be released around September 1, 2013. We plan on having showings in the North Idaho area and the film will be entered in multiple film festivals including the Sandpoint Film Festival in November and SPIFF (Spokane International Film Festival) early next year. Hopefully my fellow WNI bloggers will join me for the Sandpoint premiere on November 2, 2013.  See you there!

Main character Brad Carlton (James Pendleton) races his lawnmower,
(#7) Ida-Mow, during the Big Back-In Lawnmower Race.  As scripted ... he won.

Root Bound 

A kNIFVES Production

Production Team

 Executive Producer - Robynn  Sleep

Line Producer/1^st Assistant Camera - Michael Notar

Screenwriter/Locations Coordinator - Mary Jane Honegger

Director - Rebecca Cook

Director of Photography - Joseph Stageberg

Gaffer/Key Grip - Paul Brand

First Assistant Director - Kendra Sherrill

Camera Operator – Camryn Barker

Script Supervisor - Tracey Vaughan

Sound Mixer/Composer - Aaron Birdsall

Sound Assistant - JohnGessner

Sound Assistant – Myles Milliman

Script Supervisor – Tracey Vaughan

Wardrobe Assistant - Mica Pointer

Hair/Make-up Designer - Kara McCollum

Props Master - Bob Johnson

Transportation Captain – Larry Honegger

Casting Director - Crystal Reiber

Second Camera Operator - JoeDellwo

Editor - Seth Mead

Craft Services - Arianna Arends

Apprentice Director - Dee Dee Ferenez

Production Assistant /Grip - TV Kippes

Production Assistant /Post - Leon Crandell

Production Assistant - Bryan Peterson

Production Assistant - Caden Butera

Art & Marketing - Joshua Nicholson

Graphic Design - Melody Daines 

EPK Production Coordinator - Julie Rich

EPK Filming – Jonah Vigil

EPK Filming - Rachelle Price

EPK Filming - Stephen Byrum

EPK Filming - Leo

 Actors

James Pendleton – Brad Spencer

Daniel Knight – Pete Spencer

Kathryn Birdsall – Liz Spencer

Aaron Kimling - Jake

Ron Ford – Ted

Damon Mentzer - Nathan

Evan Clements - Steve

Kimberly Tolson - Jessie

Crystal Reiber – Amanda Carlton

Bryan Peterson - Crew Member #1

 

 

   

How to Write Humor according to North Idaho's own Patrick McManus

by Ana Parker Goodwin

Do any of you write humor? I am probably one of the worst humor writers on the planet, but I'm learning. So here I am, practicing what I preached in my last blog: Write about something you know nothing about and doesn't excite you.

When I was a kid I grew up with a father and his family who had escaped Communist Russia during the Stalin purges. We very rarely laughed.  My father, the head of our household, saw nothing to laugh about. As a matter of fact on my wedding day he became very annoyed that Ron and I were being silly and joking with each other. "Now be serious, Anna," he said. "Getting married is nothing to laugh about." Actually it was probably one of the reasons I fell in love with my husband. He laughed a lot and could find the humor in almost anything. And so in the years we have been together I have learned to laugh.

When I wrote my mystery/thriller book Justice Forbidden I deliberately snuck in some humor even though the plot is serious. And in the next fiction book that I am presently writing in the Justice series, I am adding even more humor. Why?

If we didn't have humor in our lives when things got tough, where would we be? Probably even more anxious and depressed. The thing is, that the world is pretty stressed out right now and many people are reacting with anxiety and anger. That's okay. People have automatic emotions when they listen to the news and for each person the emotion may be different. But don't forget. We all have choices about how we will respond and act. Can you see the problem from a different perspective? Can you turn the picture upside down or at angles and see the funny aspect of it? Comedians have a great way of doing just that. If you can laugh at a situation it will help you cope with what is going on.  

Patrick McManus, who lives here in North Idaho, is one of the great humorists in this country today. I hope all of you have read some of his books. My favorite of the books I read was Never Sniff a Gift Fish. Most of his stories are about his adventures in the woods, rivers, and lakes in the Sandpoint area, just north of Coeur d'Alene. The last book before he stopped writing in 2000, is one he wrote to teach humor writing. The Deer on a Bicycle: Excursions into the Writing of Humor. In his book he included several tips. So if you are interested in writing humor, here are a couple:  

1. Never write real-life humor. I would probably say don't write real life humor if the audience you are trying to reach cannot identify easily with what has happened. Probably Johnny falling off the canoe was hilarious to the family because they knew him, and knew his particular personality, but most of your readers will say, "HUH?"  

2. Write about your bad experiences, not your good ones. Write about your failures, your fears, and situations others have experienced as well and say, "Yeah, that's me," or "That's what happened to my dad, alright."

3. Write about personality quirks. My  character, Evelyn Frampton, in Justice Forbidden, is an elderly, eccentric, but very loving neighbor who runs around helping Faythe capture the murderer by hitting the presumed criminal over the head with a wine bottle. She also gets rid of  her dandelions by slurping up puffballs with the vacuum cleaner. Also create two characters who play well off each other like Lucy and her friend in the ancient but very funny show, "I Love Lucy."

4. Use exaggeration but not so much that it seems completely implausible.  You must be able to imagine the situation and see how funny it would look. Of course if you earlier read the title of Patrick McManus' book, The Deer on the Bicycle, you might say, "A deer on a bicycle? That's crazy."  But you can see it in your mind and it would probably make you laugh. Most people are willing to suspend reality for a while if not too absurd. Another one of his stories is called, "A Bear in the Attic," and it's hilarious. I am finding this technique to be one of my favorites to create humor for my books.

5. Say or do the opposite of what someone would expect you to say or do. Although McManus does not mention this technique, I have found that the element of surprise in humor is very effective. I have heard many people use it, including me, and it works really well as long as it is funny and not hurtful to someone. Of course that's true for all humor. Using four letter words over and over for shock value looses it's effect, and for me just turns into shock.

The more I read and learn about writing humor, and practice it in my writing, the more fun it's becoming.  And yes, I'm getting better at it.

If you have any other great ideas and comments about writing humor to help the rest of us schmucks, let us know.

Challenge yourself: Write About Something you don't Like

By Ana Parker Goodwin

Just like most writers I've been told that the best way to find topics to write about is to make a list of all the things you know best and that excite you: your work, a special hobby, interest, or experience you survived. Or if you have several children, you might want to write tips to parents about child rearing. And to a large degree these teachers were right.

I recently talked to a man who, after a nasty divorce, raised his five children by himself. He is writing some articles about his personal experiences and adventures with the children as they grew up. He is writing about a topic he knows well. Most of us have heard few personal accounts of men raising children alone and we are interested in hearing about the rapid changes occurring in our culture today. Will single parent men be considered and accepted to be as capable as women at raising children in our near future?

I, myself, have followed the advice of my teachers and peers. Both in fiction and in nonfiction, I write about topics that I know well and am passionate about. Mostly I've stuck to psychology, because learning how the mind and brain work is absolutely fascinating. What amazing creatures we are! Most people have no idea how powerful their mind is. On my blog site I write a lot about the stress of past traumas and how to deal with it. Why? Because I gained so much knowledge in that area while working as a psychotherapist and I want to pass it on to others who need it.

But recently I said to my husband, "I need a challenge. What if I try something new? What if I write about something I know nothing about and really have never found interesting?" He stared at me and his left eyebrow rose higher than I'd ever seen it rise.

"Okay," he said, and went back to reading his book on plant viruses. In plain English, "I'll believe it when I see it." So now it's a real challenge.

Right now I am checking everything and searching everywhere for ideas. As I go about my day I often ask myself, "What don't I like and what does not interest me?" I notice things I haven't noticed for years. "When do I change the channel on my TV? Am I watching something that triggers me or bores me?" Actually observing everything around me has been more fun than I've had for a long time. I'm checking the news, the neighborhood, people, jobs, hobbies, sports and anything else that doesn't interest me. I'm not fond of movie stars, or arrogant people, or people who I consider to be shallow. I'm not fond of football or car racing, or reading books that don't have a fast moving plot.

This morning I decided to write an article on movie stars, my least favorite topic. But here is something interesting that is happening. The more I research and delve into their lives, the more fascinating they are becoming and the more I like them. I am learning things about the movie industry I never knew and about the sacrifices movie stars have to make to become and remain famous. And suddenly I am realizing that they are very human like the rest of us---not shallow or arrogant--- just people who are hiding behind a thick veil.

Oh, oh! I think I'm back to psychology again.

What would be the topic you might least like to research and write about? Leave a comment.

Write Poetry to Help you Relax and Fall Asleep

We would like to welcome Ana Parker Goodwin to Writing North Idaho as a regular contributor.  Ana is an accomplished author and writer with a delightful sense of humor.  Her voice will be a tremendous asset to our blog and we know you'll enjoy her insight and advice on the art of writing.  Educated as a psychotherapist, Ana is now retired and writing 'How To" books in her field as well as psychological mystery thrillers so she can finally write "happy endings."  Read Ana's full bio on our homepage and learn more about her writing at anaparkergoodwin.com.

by Ana Parker Goodwin

Hey, when I was a kid my teacher used to make us write poetry, and man it had better rhyme. If it didn't it was a sure D-. I was no good at it though it caught my fancy at times, especially when at the age of 11 one of the older boys in the neighborhood, who I thought was absolutely awesome, fell in love with my older sister instead of me. So I wrote poems like, "Life, oh life, is like a knife. It cuts you every day. Da, da, da, da, da, da, da. No matter what I say." And on and on using words with great dramatic effect. Then I found out he was really a mean kid. My depression vanished and I went on to the next guy down the block. More poetry.

Fortunately times have changed. I am no longer madly in love with the boy next door and poems no longer need to rhyme. Seeing as I write mostly nonfiction (e.g, 18 Steps to Cope with Post Trauma Stress (PTS)Before it Becomes a Disorder(PTSD): especially for veterans and families and Sand Play Therapy: A Step by Step Manual for Psychotherapists of Diverse Orientation), I need a break from that heavy stuff at times. So I started writing fiction as well (Justice Forbidden, a mystery about a psychologist who is sued for implanting memories in a client.) Now that was fun!

But the other day after spending hours of writing and researching PTSD, the grandpa clock striking midnight, and my thoughts in a negative rut, I needed a way to relax and to alter my thinking before I tried to go to sleep. And I remembered a woman coming from Seattle to conduct an Idaho Writers League meeting. She taught us how to write poetry. I call it the ABC method. No need to rhyme. The first sentence must start with an A and the next one with a B, etc. through the alphabet. The night of the meeting I was "in the zone" and I created a rather good poem, if I say so myself.

A Zillion Dollar Comics by Carolyn Hiler

So this night, to get my thoughts out of trauma thinking, I decided to have fun with poetry. I wrote three poems, though some of you might not consider them as such. I used the ABC method but each line consisted only of one word and I used only words that came to me instantaneously. "A Battered Cow Drove Effortlessly Forward Going Hundred Inches---." You get the idea. I had a great night with pleasant dreams, ready to get back to my PTSD writing the following day.

Next time you get stuck with what some people call "stinking thinking" or negative thoughts that weigh you down before going to bed, try having fun creating poetry. But don't become obsessive like I have a tendency to do.

Happy dreams to you.

Prologues and Wasted Pages

PROLOGUE

Two households, both alike in dignity,
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
From forth the fatal loins of these two foes
A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life;
Whose misadventured piteous overthrows
Do with their death bury their parents' strife.
The fearful passage of their death-mark'd love,
And the continuance of their parents' rage,
Which, but their children's end, nought could remove,
Is now the two hours' traffic of our stage;
The which if you with patient ears attend,
What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend.

The famous prologue to Romeo and Juliet, tells us all we need to know.  A prologue is, as Shakespeare said, 'where we lay our scene.'

The beginning of any novel, play, short story, or screen play, is so plagued with back story, the stetting of the stage, that it often needs to be cut, and cut, and cut again. At the beginning, when you only have a vague notion of what you want to say, many pages are often spent casting about in the dark. More often than not, those pages need to go into the waste basket. A well written prologue can take the place of three chapters of laying the scene. It is wise to re-write the prologue last, as it must encompass the whole story in a nut shell, as it were. Looking at Shakespeare's brilliant prologue, we know what story we are going to hear. Not only do we know what it will be about, we are excited to watch it play out. That is the essence of a great prologue.

Anna Karenina, Costumes and Textiles

If you know and love a book, if you happen to have read it two or three times, if you have taken more than one college course because you saw the title in the course description, then you may be on the same page with me when it comes to Leo Tolstoy's great masterpiece, Anna Karenina.

My first reading took place in the summer when I was fifteen years old and able to spend several days in August, in a hammock strung between two trees, nestled under the whispering pines of northern Ontario.  Lulled by the sound of water lapping against the shore, I was totally enthralled with Tolstoy's Russia. The characters of Anna and Count Vronsky were so real to me, I felt as if I knew them well. My mind, to this day, can conjure up whole scenes, and if given the task, I do believe, it would be great fun to costume this beautiful drama. After all, it is a story that can be danced and has been done masterfully by the great Bolshoi Ballet.  

Years ago, after giving friends the second draft of a work in progress, the first assessment to come back to me was that I had changed my character's outfits. It is but too true. I amuse myself by dressing my imaginary friends, and they well may get new costumes as time goes on. When I think of the great books brought to the screen, when I first see the trailer and have a look at a tremendous actor inhabiting the role, it just takes my breath away to see them in costume.

If an audience can walk by the life size posters in theaters and know immediately, that a new version of Jane Eyre, or Anna Karenina is about to be released, if the casual viewer can know the story at first glimpse of the costumes, then I say the writer clothed his characters in such a way as to allow us to see them. Even if certain liberties have been taken with the original descriptions, but the feeling is still there, then it just puts me right over the moon.

As writers, we don't often think in terms of costumes; there are so many details to keep in mind that dressing the protagonist, is often seen as an afterthought. Not so. This is your chance to be a designer. If you long to see your work on the silver screen, then think of it in terms of the trailer. If another artist, or actor, can see how to flesh out this role, or how to design the set, or what the color palette should look like, it is a credit to the author. Some writers, such as Tolstoy, had a knowledge of textiles and color and because of this, designers can recreate it.

Tolstoy's novel, Anna Karenina, released in the years 1873-1877, was published serially. Russia was in a time of reform and there was much detail of the amalgamation of agrarian life and the emerging merchant classes. Adultery, and the inherent risks taken regarding social convention make up the theme, but part of what lingers in the mind regarding Anna Karenina, is her appearance and her dress. As it turns out, it played a part in the creative process itself.

Sophia Tolstoy, Leo's wife, kept notes as he was hard at work. This passage tells us a great deal of what was on her husband's mind as he wrote, Anna Karenina.

"I was sitting downstairs in my study, examining the white silk embroidery on the sleeve of my dressing gown, and I thought how beautiful it was. And then I wondered how it occurred to people to invent all these designs and decorations and embroideries, and then I realized there was a whole world of fashion and ideas and hard work that make up women's lives, and women are so fascinated by all of this. And it naturally led my thoughts about the novel to Anna and suddenly this piece of embroidery on my sleeve suggested a whole chapter to me. Anna is cut off from all the joys of this side of a woman's life for she is alone, other women spurn her and she has no one to talk to about all the ordinary, every day things that interest them."

So there it is, captured for posterity and available to all of us, the workings of the great man's mind. Take a look at a work in progress and imagine yourself the costume designer. Think of the color pallet and call to mind some of the best films in terms of color and pattern. Do not limit your writing to black and white; give it all the best elements of great design. If you are writing in another era, spend an afternoon in the library and familiarize the dress patterns down to the actual year. Learn about dyes, weaving techniques, berries and flax, cotton and wool. What do the clothes sound like when they move? Who can forget the image of Scarlet O'Hara's mother, Miss Ellen, rustling as she passed by with the scent of lemon verbena wafting through the hall.

If you set your story in another era, then please do, just for me, include a ball. You would be doing me the distinct honor of imagining the costumes.