50 Pages

14 April 2010 | Filed Under Script Frenzy 

If you will look to your right, you will see that I have officially written fifty pages for Script Frenzy. That’s fifty percent! I am half way there!

In honor of this milestone, I would like to share with you what I have learned so far during Screnzy, on both scripting and noveling.

1. In show business, scripting is only a small part of the process. Thankfully.

When writing, you don’t have to make sure you cover all the bases. With a movie or play, there are tons of people besides you working on the project. You don’t have to worry about designing sets, you don’t have to worry about blocking, you don’t have to worry about costume and make-up. You don’t even have to choreograph fights or dances. You only need to write out the dialogue and any action that helps it make sense.

2. Noveling is very slow-going.

Noveling is hard. No joke. I’ve seen many people on the Screnzy forums in agreement: it is harder to get to 50,000 novel words than 100 script pages. I enjoy the challenge of the former, but it’s not for everyone. It’s easy to get stymied and frustrated, and is probably why most people never finish their dream novels.

3. Characters rule all.

When I create scenes in my head, they play out like a movie, but with inner monologues. I used to think that writing those scenes down in the slower-narrative-added process was throwing my scenes off track. But Screnzy has taught me that no, it pretty much happens instantaneously. It doesn’t matter what I’m writing, my characters will always take me in a different direction than I intended.

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  • Welcome

    new haircut

    Hi, I'm Jenn, new grad student and old YA fantasy writer. I've long dreamed of being a novelist, and I bet you have too. I hope you find my blog helpful, inspiring, and maybe just a little bit fun. (But not too much fun. Writing is serious business, you know.)

    You can follow me on Twitter or Facebook, or email me at:
    jennifer.a.johnson7 at gmail dot com

  • Official Progress


    4/21 segments

    A narrator hijacks a cliche fantasy story, much to the chagrin of its characters.

    Status: Second revision



    1,639/70,000 words
    A young noblewoman with strange powers must choose: her king or her soul.

    Status: First draft



    1,087/70,000 words
    When a girl's heart is stolen, she's plunged into a world of magic and shadows - but can she get her heart back before she loses it completely?

    Status: First draft





  • All writing, unless otherwise specified, is the property of
    Jennifer Johnson © 2010