Float My Boat
“Hold on to the rudder of love and don’t be afraid.” —Rumi (paraphrased)
Let me introduce you to my latest screenplay. I hope it floats your boat!
The logline: After a middle-aged downsizing guru volunteers to be a surrogate for her daughter, she falls for a man who gets triggered by the sight of pregnant bellies. Will their creative spin on aversion therapy be a help or a hindrance?
I wrote this screenplay with a lower budget in mind so it could be shot locally and take advantage of the scenic beauty of our Inner Harbour, and the houseboats by Fisherman’s Wharf. Check out the pitch deck on the website for more information and visuals on the characters, plot, and setting. It is a romantic dramedy that deals with some complex issues peppered with humour - which is kind of my brand.
The following is a bit of information on my process, my way of juggling new script ideas while polishing the completed scripts in my portfolio so that I’m always ready for that big question when pitching… “What else do you have?” I have six laurel-winning features and a short proof of concept for an old one I’m reworking: Failure to Commit.
The first thing I do for a new script is open a file on half of a white poster board folded into four sections for Act 1, Act 2a, Act 2b, and Act 3, with some of the Save the Cat beats. When I fold that in half, it opens like a travel map with sections for the title, logline, character names and attributes, and brainstorming areas for settings and plot points. If you don’t have a poster board, a sheet of paper and sticky notes will do to get you started. Yes, it’s old school and very low-tech, but it has worked well for me because it gets me away from the screen.
A few of my story maps, large and small.
After choosing the working title and draft logline for Float My Boat, I searched for character names by meaning: Mara, Zander, and Ursula. At that stage, I tucked the file away and, while I wrote several screenplays and revised others, I occasionally slipped notes into the act sections and let them percolate. A lot.
When I’m stuck, I’ll pull off a sticky - a beat I want to develop - slip it into a notebook, and take it on a walk. It signals my mind to develop the character, scene, or situation, and I either stop at a bench when solutions flow or attend to them when I get home. The notes help me flesh out the scenes, beat by beat, as I write the screenplay in Final Draft on the computer where I also have files for visuals and research.
The pitch deck for this screenplay, and others, is on the website’s main page. Pictures are truly worth more words than I have space to write here.
My next writing adventure is to rewrite Failure to Commit, the screenplay I based Oh, Beth! on as a proof of concept.
Solvitur per scripturam - It is solved by writing.
