Tuesday, March 15, 2011

March Madness Leads to April Frenzy

It’s that time of year again when NCAA basketball fans debate tournament seeds and fill out their selection brackets.

As I jokingly tell my husband, I know why they call it “March Madness.” Because people get mad. The intensity ratchets up several notches. The closer a favorite team gets to the “Final Four,” the more nail biting ensues.

March also precedes that writing mania known as Script Frenzy. Every April, aspiring playwrights, graphic novelists, and screenwriters embark on a goal of writing 100 pages in 30 days. As someone who’s done both NaNoWriMo and Script Frenzy, it’s easier for me to write a screenplay in a month than a 50k –word novel. For one, the rules of screenplay writing are different from novel writing. Nothing goes on the page that doesn’t go on the screen. Yes, the format’s restrictive but in some ways it’s actually more freeing because of the constraints.

Unfortunately, this time I have no idea what my script will be about. Last year I wrote a ghost story and the year before that a crime drama. I’m thinking of writing my basketball murder mystery but that would take more research than I have time for. Not to mention the premise is still pretty weak.

I’m not worried. There’s still a little over two weeks before April 1. Meantime, I’ll continue to work on my novel-in-progress and cheer for the Kentucky Wildcats.   

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