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Writing

Some Useful and Interesting Things For A Friday

Posted on February 22, 2013

Hey, it’s Friday. Congrats, you made it through another week! I’ve had a fun week (more on that below) but, as usual, I’m glad it’s Friday and the week is over.

Although, knowing me as I do, I’m pretty sure I won’t be taking the whole weekend off or anything. Much too much to do, especially with the new project and knowing we’re going to be moving again in a few months.

But that’s later. Now, sit back, relax and enjoy another edition of Useful and Interesting Things.

• My pal Matt Raub and I are back doing a podcast for The Flickcast. I’m very happy about it and you can listen to the brand new episode which kicks off season two right here.

• Confused about who’s who and who’s related to who in the Star Wars universe? Perhaps this handy chart will help.

• I know, you’re still sometimes having trouble with well-known punctuation like the comma “,” or the semi-colon “;” but that hasn’t stopped some enterprising individuals from coming up with 8 new punctuation marks to surprise and delight you.

• Feeling anxious or nervous? Lifehacker has you covered on how to beat it. No, alcohol or other controlled substances are not involved, sorry.

• If you make coffee at home and ever do a Pour-Over, you need a Hario V60 Power Kettle. They rock and I’m using one pretty much every day.

• Angry, sad, happy, undecided, indifferent about the end of Downton Abbey season three? Perhaps these tidbits about season four will help you feel better/worse/whatever?

Finally, a here’s a little video I like to call Lego Michael Jackson. Coincidentally that’s pretty much what the person who made the video calls it too.

Plus, in case you haven’t seen it, here’s a little bit of Alison Brie and her freestyle rap skills. This video is here mostly so I can put a photo of her at the top of this post. Yes, she’s eating ice cream, so?

What, you don’t like ice cream or something?

[vimeo 60169112 w=525 h=395]

Still More Useful and Interesting Things

Posted on February 14, 2013

As life returns to normal (or at least my version of it) I realize it’s been several days since I last put some useful and interesting things up here.

So, with that in mind, here’s some more for you:

• Have trouble getting people to do what you want? Maybe this technique can help.

• For the screenwriting nerds out there, John August and his team have come up with a new version of the venerable Courier font, called Courier Prime, to use when writing your scripts. I’ve switched to it and it’s quite nice.

• If you have a girlfriend who would love this as a gift, marry her. If you already did, kudos to you and it makes a nice Valentine’s Day gift too.

• Here’s a complete collection of Mac OS X install disks. I think I still have all of mine too. Yep, Mac nerd right here.

• Have and iPad? Want to use said iPad in the kitchen or other place where it might get wet? You want one of these.

• I like talented people doing cool things, so I like this. Granted, I know Brian so I may be a bit biased. But still, it’s pretty cool. BTW, you should also read his book. It’s very funny.

• Last, but not least, Tom Witkin’s Poster app for iOS is for posting to a WordPress site and is very awesome. It’s become my new favorite and I now use it pretty much every day. Check it out.

All Work and No Play . . .

Posted on January 16, 2013

For those interested, and I think I see one or two of you way in the back, I’ve started a new writing project. This is in addition to the several other things I’m currently working on.

Yes, I like to keep busy. Someone once told me, or it may be an actual “thing” people say, “Once you slow down, you die.”

I’m not ready to die just yet.

So, that brings me to the new writing project. It’s a bit different from what I normally write, so it’s challenging on that level. A large part of the challenge also has to do with the fact that, even after all these years, I’m not really sure if I’m any good.

I suspect I’m not alone here. I would bet most “creative” people, at one time or another, feel their work just doesn’t measure up. Or, that it just plain sucks. Or they’ve been told by others their work sucks.

It’s just the nature of the thing. But even if you or some other people do think your work (or my work) sucks, who cares? I don’t. Well, not that much anyway.

The reality is I’m not doing it for you. I’m doing it for me. I’m doing it because I don’t have any other choice. The words, images and such are in there, and they need to come out. So, I let them come out and whatever will be, will be.

You hear that? Time to come out.

A New iPad Writing Update

Posted on January 9, 2013

As previously mentioned, I’ve been trying to write with the iPad as much as possible instead of using the MacBook Air or any other OS X-powered Mac. After a couple weeks of doing this, I’ve got some thoughts to share.

First, and this should not come as a surprise, I love almost everything about the iPad as a device. It’s extremely portable and has amazing battery life, even when used for several hours of work and pretty much continuous syncing of Dropbox via Verizon’s 4G LTE. I can only imagine the portability and battery life are going to get better and better as we see newer versions of the iPad.

As a device used for content consumption, the iPad also excels. If you want to watch a movie or TV program via Netflix or iTunes, the iPad is your best choice. The screen is excellent and the afformetioned battery life can get you though several programs during a long plane ride to Hawaii, or wherever you’re going. It also features an impressive collection of apps devoted to bringing you content.

On that note, the iPad is excellent for reading books via the Kindle or iBooks app or comics using an app like Comixology. I also enjoy checking out news, Twitter, Facebook and my Instagram feed using an app like Flipboard. These kinds of content consumption, and the quality experience they provide, are all pretty much a given.

No Good Trailers Today, Some Writing Tips Instead

Posted on December 18, 2012

Yep, that’s right. No good movie trailers were released today. Or, at least not for movies I’m interested in. So there.

On the other hand, I did get a lot of writing done, so today wasn’t a total loss. In fact, I think I’ve finally figured out some problems with a script I’m working on, which is always a good feeling. Of course, fixing some problems can often lead to finding others . . . And so it goes.

Speaking of writing, screenwriter (among his movies is Big Fish, one of my personal favs) and snazzy iOS app developer John August has a great podcast (co-hosted by Craig Mazin) for all you aspiring screenwriters out there. I’m sure I’m late to the party on this and you’ve all been into the podcast from the beginning, but I’ve listened to almost all of the episodes now and I’ve learned a great deal.

Yes, I can still learn. So can you. Come on, you can do it.

Mr. August offers a lot of other advice at his website as well as several examples of his writing work for your reading pleasure. It’s a great resource and one I recommend highly.

I’m not alone in this, of course, but I’ve always believed one of the best ways to learn to write something like a screenplay is to read a lot of scripts. It helps to read good ones, too, as Mr. August’s are. No, that’s not brown nosing. They’re just very good and I don’t mind saying it.

In truth, I’m a big fan of reading in general. I guess if you’re reading this, you probably are too.

More On the iPad as a Writing Tool

Posted on December 10, 2012

It seems I can’t stop using the iPad now that I’ve realized its true potential as a writing tool. I’m using it for all sorts of writing now, but still primarily for scripts using the Final Draft Writer app.

However, it is also great for other types of writing. In fact, I’m using the WordPress app on the iPad to do this post right now. Fancy that.

After several days I’m pretty convinced the iPad could become my primary writing tool perminantly. Using it really feels good and allows for a more tactile approach to writing that I don’t experience as much when using a laptop or desktop with a traditional keyboard. Other people (with far more readership and insight) seem to feel the same way I do.

One thing, though, I do feel a little bad for my MacBook Air. It looks sorta lonely sitting there unused.

I’m sure it won’t sit idle forever. I’m sure I’ll get back to using it for something soon enough. Until then, it’s the iPad for me all the way.

Writing On the iPad with Final Draft and More

Posted on December 2, 2012

Even though I’ve had an iPad since day one, I haven’t really embraced it as a pure writing tool and it hasn’t completely replaced my laptop for that purpose as I hoped it would. I have used it for some writing, and various other tasks like watching videos or perusing Flipboard, but I still found myself turning to the laptop for any work for The Flickcast or for this site, especially when editing pictures or embedding video were involved.

However, I recently discovered that the iPad is particularly great for writing at least one thing: scripts. I discovered this fact when I finally got around to using the Final Draft Writer app for the iPad that I’ve had installed for some time but basically ignored in favor of its Mac OSX-based brother.

In short, the Final Draft Writer app is quite intuitive and works extremely well. And, much to my surprise, it’s very usable without an external keyboard. I just type on the screen. That’s a big plus when it means you only need to carry an iPad in your bag which, even compared to my 13″ MacBook Air, is still lighter and much more portable.

Plus, the Final Draft Writer app integrates with Dropbox so I can work on scripts and then save them to the Cloud for later editing on the MacBook Air, desktop or even the iPhone (if I’m really bored in line at the DMV or something). Sorry, no Google Drive integration yet, just Dropbox. And yes, to take advantage of this feature you do need an iPad with a data connection (I have the Verizon 4G LTE version) or, of course, available WiFi.

Still, the combination of the Final Draft Writer app, Dropbox integration, the retina display and long battery life of the iPad and no need for an external keyboard, makes this an excellent alternative to a laptop or desktop. In fact, I’m going to try using the iPad exclusively to work on my various scripts for the next couple weeks and see if I can leave the desktop and laptop behind.

I’ll keep you posted.

And before you ask, no, I’m not writing a script called “The Swans of Brooklyn.” That’s a demo script that comes with the software.

Working for the Weekend

Posted on November 16, 2012

That title goes back a long way. Back to an ’80’s pop band called Loverboy. Yes, I’m making a Loverboy reference. Deal with it.

Hey, they were pretty popular in the ’80’s. I’ll bet if you think about it, or hear some of their songs, you’ll realize you know them and maybe even like them. Sure, they’re Canadian, but you can’t really hold that against them, can you?

I don’t. In fact, I have some good friends that are either from Canada or live in Canada right now. So there. I’m no Canada hater.

In fact, I’ll prove it by posting a video for one of the band’s most famous songs right here. That’s right, it’s “Working for the Weekend.” Did you expect something else? If so, you really haven’t been paying attention.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zL8G5pBZ5CI?rel=0&w=500&h=375]

And, as if that wasn’t enough, here’s some bloopers from Big Bang Theory. Why? Why the heck not? They’re funny.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULHHQiFfK9o?rel=0&w=500&h=281]

I’m not entirely sure what any of this has to do with anything, but if I’m being completely honest here (and I should be, right?) I’m really just stalling instead of working on the script I’m supposed to be writing.

I do that. Stalling, I mean. I’m really good at it. In fact, I’m really, really good at it. Really, really, really good.

Now I’m doing it again. Crap.

I’m hoping Loverboy references and Big Bang bloopers help get the creative blood flowing. Maybe I should have gone a different way?

Personal Deadlines Suck

Posted on October 23, 2012

I’ve never really been a fan of any kind of deadlines. Still, they’re often pretty important to other people (especially if they’re paying you for something and need it by a certain date/time), so I tend to try to stick to them when I have no other choice.

The problem I’m facing now is that I’ve got a deadline, but the only person I need to finish this particular project for is me. I’ve imposed the deadline on myself. And that sucks.

I am the worst offender when it comes to procrastination. In fact, I was going to write this post a few days ago, but I blew it off in favor of something shiny that was most likely a complete waste of my time.

I have to find the motivation myself and finish this project by the deadline I’ve set. It isn’t easy, I gotta tell you. Any freelancers in the house? You know what I mean.

Yep, personal deadlines suck. Now, back to work . . . or something.

Apparently, People Still Make Typewriters

Posted on October 11, 2012

As a writer and a geek/nerd, this makes me happy. It’s only $200.00 and I think I might just pick one up.

Of course, I also know that Brother still makes electric typewriters, so there’s that. Still, there’s something about an old fashioned manual that’s pretty cool. Of course, I still often write by hand with a pencil in a notebook, so what do I know?

Maybe typewriters aren’t the way to go? Maybe these computers are the wave of the future?

Maybe. Even so, I think I still might go ahead and grab a new manual typewriter, just in case.

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