The Kidnapping Of Kristin Kreuk

Wait. Before you call the FBI:

Just as I write to music, I also write to certain actors, directors, writers, tones, atmospheres, and/or vibes that fit the mood of a particular project. Not specifics, just their gist; the feeling they evoke and inspire. At the time of the first draft of my kidnapping horror thriller, Kristin was doing her incredible, and incredibly undervalued work, on "Smallville." She quickly had become one of my favorite actresses in television or film. Here was the living and breathing embodiment of the tried-and-true trope of "The Girl Next Door" - an actress who was warm, smart, beautiful, likable, lovable and authentic all in equal measure.

She was the perfect person to get kidnapped in my screenplay.

Kristin's spirit-slash-aura became the muse of my main character, but as time went on she became more distant in my mind. Later, I saw the great Katie Stuart in "TAMARA," and thought she'd be a great fit for the lead. (That story can be found in August 2009.) The very talented and lovely Katie loved my script, but after a period of time moved on, and the script went dormant.

Until now.

After doing a page-one polish-slash-rewrite, it's my hope that this project comes full circle and Kristin ends up playing the very lead her persona inspired. As for the wonderful Katie Stuart...I've got a script just for her.

Small Town Romantic Drama Complete

It's still poignant, with universal themes of long lost love, just the right amount of humor, and a lot of heart. I'm proud of how I walked that very fine line between somber and sad, maudlin and morose, pining and whining - much like "Party Of Five" did - to create realistic characters facing emotionally realistic situations. I wrote this to New Age guitarists - mainly David Cullen, Billy McLaughlin, Alex De Grassi and Will Ackerman. (Others are scattered over the Rhapsody playlist.) Their pretty and nostalgic instrumentals set the tone perfectly. Surprisingly, these guys have never scored a film. Maybe this will be their first.

Now, it's time to fine tune the query and get this out to production companies far and wide.

Change Of Plan

I'm all about diligent writing and hard work, but I've decided to extend the polish of the small town romantic drama until the end of the month. This way I'm not killing myself to get it finished; I can take my time, to a certain extent. Writers will polish a project for years if given the opportunity. (Many do; that's why they never sell anything.) Like the Coen Brothers (I think) once said, if you're bored reading your script, and you're just replacing "and's" with comma's, it's time to let it go.

I'm on page 45; almost halfway. I'm making dialogue tighter and scene descriptions shorter. The story is fine - scenes work, the characters feel and act real. This is purely cosmetic.

February Horror And Danielle Savre

I'm winding up the polish of my small town romantic drama. It should be finished by the end of next week.

Next will be the final polish on the November/December '09 horror project. Danielle Savre was fantastic in "BOOGEYMAN 2." She would be great in this. (In the small town romantic drama, too.) A very talented actress.

2010 - The Year It Happens

2009 was a waste of time. I take that back - yes, I wrote new screenplays and polished old ones, but that was it. No e-mailing queries to production companies, or chasing down leads for my manager. Instead, I sat in the comfort of the ivory tower of my study, clacking away on my keyboard, expecting someone to kick in my door and demand I hand over the latest draft of my latest script.

It wasn't arrogance; it was just laziness.

This year, though, I'm determined to sell a screenplay. I'm not talking about just redoubling efforts or reupping my commitment. Those imply I'm just returning to a previous, status-quo level of dedication. This is raising the bar to a whole new level of commitment.

I will be tireless. I will not rest. I will track down leads and send out e-mail queries until I sell a screenplay. Nothing or no one will stop me.

My first project is a polish of a small town romantic drama that will be aimed at the indie and cable market. "Party Of Five" is one of my favorite TV shows of all time. I used its reality-heavy melodrama as a model - everyday people dealing with everyday problems. I plan to finish it out next week, and then start the e-mail query.

The time is now.

November/December Horror Project

I guess my plan of penning a first, rough draft of a screenplay for September, October, November and December is a bust. Lesson learned: the human brain can only be pushed so far before it pushes back.

Instead, for November and Decemeber, I've been working on a rewrite/polish of a horror script. You should always be writing on something. If a new idea isn't striking your fancy, then pull out an older script, polish it, and put it out there. That should always be Plan B.

Even though this horror script is a few years old, the idea is still as fresh as the day I wrote the very first draft.

I'm a fan of the annual After Dark 8 Films To Die For horror film festival. I've only missed one. One of my goals is to get a film made that makes it into one of the line up. The 2006 festival introduced me to two of my favorite horror films of recent years - "THE ABANDONED" and "THE GRAVEDANCERS." (I also liked "DARK RIDE.")

November Short Film

I started November with the hopes of penning a very rough, first draft of a long-gestating cop thriller that had been brewing for quite awhile. I had every intention of sticking with my September, October, November and December plan of writing very rough drafts of scripts that I had previously outlined, or at least had a good idea of the general shape of the story. I guess I needed a break. I couldn't get going on the cop thriller. The inspiration just wasn't there.

Putting that aside, I wasted a week - the first week of November -

trying to figure out what project to do in its place. A friend of mine, Rick Hansberry, has had a couple of his short film scripts made; a third on the way. Since he's had success in this arena, I decided to throw my hat into the ring. I've only penned a couple of short film scripts, and that was several years ago.

I love "The Twilight Zone" and both incarnations of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents." Using those as guiding lights, I wrote two 10-page horror shorts. For someone who usually doesn't write these, they're quite good.