I love writing and have written epic treatments for my epic's, that always star some variation of someone I'd like to be, and even if they put the biggest names in the biz into the role (Tom Cruise, etc.) It would piss me off and make me near insane with anger that I couldn't play one of my male hero's!
Also the fact I haven't "come to power" yet , you know that stage you get to after you've had a hit with your cheap to make "American Graffiti" which then lets them say, "Okay kid, you can make this weird one with the wookie's (that deep down you know is THE EPIC MUTHA'!) and for me would be where I say, yes we do that one now, I co-direct, star, etc.
So my request for help is based on this question
Q: HOW do I find something to write about that I love enough to keep me motivated end to end, that doesn't in my minds eye star "me", but that I love just as much as my epics that always star me or some computer gen'd version of me, that would most likely be a come to power hit for me?
Here were my first answers PLEASE add some more for me:
1. Something involving a female star (female superhero?)
2. Something involving an animal (Picturing myself as that animated animal,)
3. Something commercial (mentally pre-starring someone I really dig like Hopkins, or Mckellan) thought of in top spot.
4. Identify things that mean the most to you, (music, human respect, nature) and build themes upon them.?)
Other ideas how I could find the love to make my "come to power" hits, so that I could "be in power" to protect my epics?
Thank you!
UMO
P.S. If you are one of the doubters who just wants to reply with "Look kid, you'll be F'n lucky if they do anything for you, get real, your thinking to big, negative this, that etc...", Might I recommend an Anthony Robbins book to you, or perhaps one by Barbara Sher?
Others with some actual "here's what you could do" advice PLEASE I'm begging you, lay it down for me!
-UMO
As for your current heroes, I think we all write about characters who are what we'd like to be to a certain extent. I do. One thing I did with a main character in my current novel is give her a pretty bad flaw. This makes her more human.
And just generally, don't try so hard to make the character be what you'd like to be. You're setting up an impossible standard that can only drive you nuts. Try to get to know your hero more like a friend and less like you.
Then, set aside the work for a while before you get feedback on it. If its been six months and you've been working on something else maybe you won't feel quite as married to it.
Well, that's all I've got.
Very cool, thank you. I look forward to more.
-UMO
And if you haven't already, go get OSC's "Characters and Viewpoints" book. Read it. Create a character that would be different from you or your desired hero types. Write some short stories using different characters and see how it works.
As for the character as self issue, really spend some time developing you characters as their own people. Don’t you ever wonder how other people see the world? Characters are a way to explore that. Certainly, there will be a bit of you in any character, because they are your creation, but they aren’t you. Spend some time giving them their own history, explore how they would feel about different ideas and situations. As they develop an individuality of their own, I would think you would be able to distance yourself from them more.
Usually, you don’t want your characters to be you. You’re too close to yourself to always see all the intertwining of history and personality, and you may not feel the need to really explore those things for your reader since they are so familiar to you, which is what can really flesh out a character. Plus, it could make it too easy to turn a story into wish-fulfillment. Unpleasant things need to happen to characters to keep conflict high so a story remains engaging. Most people really don’t want unpleasant things happening to them.
OSC’s Character and Viewpoint is a great book. For more character ideas, Nancy Kress’s Dynamic Characters is also a good read. Damon Knight's Creating Short Fiction is also goo, although I don't remember its character advice specifically.
[This message has been edited by GZ (edited December 10, 2003).]
Darkstorm, is that book out of print? I have been looking for weeks and can't find that book anywhere!
[This message has been edited by GZ (edited December 11, 2003).]
eg http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0898799279/202-9903376-6731060
Maybe its only available in USA :-(
At least there are second hand copies listed :-)