Hey everyone!

Here is another awesome pep talk from our amazing Script Frenzy Program Director, Jen! Get ready for some top-notch inspiration. . .

"Man cannot discover new oceans unless
he has the courage to lose sight of the shore."
~Andre Gide

The Script Frenzy voyage has commenced! We've raised the anchor, sailed from the harbor, and are now somewhere out on that vast, churning sea of script. Some Frenzies have already achieved staggering page counts.

Hello Scriptwriters. (Now that it’s Week Two, I feel like I can call you that.) I hope the bright new glow of your imaginations guides you through this second week. You’ll need it to get you from your first act (or acts) through to the midpoint. Yes, the midpoint. By the end of the week we’ll be halfway done!

If you feel like your creativity light is dimming even just a little bit there are a few things that might help:

1. Plan to perform your script: I did this over the weekend and it’s totally given me a second wind! It doesn’t have to

I don't know about you guys, but I am loving Week One. We're getting to know all our characters crazy quirks, writing exciting beginnings filled with "CUT TOs" and "FADE INs," and getting used to the sugar that is pumping helpfully through our veins.

If you are just joining us or are feeling a little behind, don't worry. The only thing you have to do during Script Frenzy is write. Just sit down, pull out your pen and paper, turn your computer on, and start typing. You will be surprised on how easily your imagination opens up.

If that doesn't work, try chocolate!

Happy Week One,

Tavia

Hi Everyone,

I hope you're all enjoying Day Two of Script Frenzy. I sure am. My writing partner and I got to the magical page ten last night (well "we" got to page seven, and then after I went home to play Zelda on my Wii, she got to page ten.) Thank you, Sarah!

Anyway, I wanted to let you know that FrenzyMail is working. Go to "My Script Frenzy" and look over to the left-hand menu bar. Once you click on "FrenzyMail" you can send a message to another Script Frenzy Participant—just enter their username, type a message, and send.

Also, it looks like the page-count goal-setting box has disappeared from your profiles. Not to worry. We will get this fixed up right away.

If you notice anything else that seems a little broken on the site, or you just want to say “hi,” FrenzyMail me. My username is Tavia Stewart! I will be looking forward to hearing from you!

Can’t wait to write tonight,
Tavia

I saw that Jen, our Script Frenzy Program Director, had posted some awesome encouragement over on the adult Script Frenzy website, and I wanted to share these wonderful words with you all on your first day of the Frenzy!

-----

Dear Script Frenzy participant,

Tonight—as the second-hand waves goodbye to March and hello to April—a couple wonderful things are going to happen:

1. You will become a writer on a very scary deadline.
2. The Script Frenzy page counter will turn on. Log in and click the My Script Frenzy tab > Edit > Writer Info. Input your page count in the Page Count field. For now, the process works on the honor system. Toward the end of April we’ll have a supercomputer page-o-meter in place for official winner validation. You will also see a place to input a script excerpt.

And so it begins.

This is my second year as a Script Frenzy participant. Last

Throughout today, scriptwriters in time-zones all around the world are jumping into the Frenzy! By tomorrow, we’ll all be in it together—writing dialogue, weaving plots, and eating nausea-inducing amounts of candy.

I always thank my procrastination fairies that I live in the Pacific Time Zone at the beginning of Script Frenzy! If you’re anything like my writing partner and I, you might need one more precious night to develop your characters and outline your plot. Last night, we spent the evening over bubble tea and the Scriptwriting Workbook, getting to know our protagonist and main supporting character. Tonight, it will be coffee cake, our antagonist, the conflict, the plot, and the “Hollywood Formula Worksheet.” It is going to be a long night to say the least!

Even if you started your script already, know that you can open those workbooks at any time. They are really helpful when you get stuck. If you are wondering what your characters are going to do next, it might be helpful to get to know them better. If you have no idea how to get from the

THIS JUST IN: The forums are working! The forums are working! So get in there and start posting about your scripts-to-be. I can't wait to see you there!

March is here, sign-ups are open, and we are proud to introduce our shiny new Script Frenzy Young Writers Program website! There are quite a few old and new site features that we don’t want you to miss. Below you will find a site tour that will cover just about everything our site has to offer young writers and educators. If you are a newcomer, make sure to visit the About section, and our FAQs to get caught up on who we are, what we do, and all you need to know in order to participate as a young scriptwriter or educator in Script Frenzy this April!

A Tour of the Script Frenzy YWP Website

1. The Countdown: Scriptwriting Boot Camp: Learning everything you need to know about scriptwriting and formatting just got easier! Join us in the new and improved four-week Boot Camp where we will help you decide what

As you can see on the margins of that large ticket hanging over our heads, we've made a big change to Script Frenzy. We're moving the event to April! We are also changing the event from a word-count challenge to a page-count challenge.

We decided to move to April so more kids and teens could take part with their classrooms. We're going with a page count from now on because we got feedback from scriptwriters last year saying that the one thing they would change about the event was having the end-goal be in pages, which is the industry standard. To which we say: Your wish is our command.

We're transitioning out of NaNoWriMo and into Script Frenzy, so you'll be seeing some changes around the site these next couple months including new curriculum for teachers and scriptwriting workbooks for kids and teens.

Sign-ups for this event will open on March 1, 2008. After signing up you will have access to the forums, and if you are a teacher, to the Teacher's Lounge. We all look forward to rocking April together. In the meantime check out all the cool resources on our site. Especially everything under the Writer’s Resources tab.

Tavia

Hello World Premiere Script Frenzy Participants!

June is over. July is over. August is here, and that means summer is almost over. But before you start shopping for school supplies and hip new outfits and cell phone accessories, we would love for you to think back to the magical month of June—when beach parties, chores, and showers were sacrificed for increased word count—to fill out a brief survey about your Script Frenzy experience.

The folks at Script Frenzy have tried to make Script Frenzy’s first year a great one. Please take a few moments to fill out this questionnaire to help us make next year's event even better. It's really easy to participate. Click on your survey to get started. Click "Next" to progress. If you'd like to leave the survey at any time, just click "Exit this survey". Your answers will be saved.

Thanks so much for making the Young Writers Program a great resource for young scriptwriters. We can’t wait to see you again next year!

In the mean time, don’t forget to keep writing! Just like playing a sport, it’s a lot easier to get into the flow of things when the season begins if you have been practicing in the off-season. Whether you’re revising your script, beginning a new one, or just writing in a journal a little bit each day, you’ll be thankful you did it when the time comes to really exercise those writing muscles during next year's event.

Warm regards,
Tavia Stewart

Have your ears been burning? Because I've been talking about you. I've been telling everyone I meet about the 162,000 action-packed words drafted to date by the playwrights and screenwriters of the Young Writers Program. And how you guys are totally my idols.

I'm Chris, by the way. I run the nonprofit that runs Script Frenzy. And I just wanted to drop by the Beat for a second to extend a high-five to all of you still typing furiously, and let you know that I'm with you. I have about 7,000 more words left to write on my screenplay before the month ends. It's going to hurt, but I keep looking at those 162,000 words you guys have written and think: Okay, if the YWP can pull it off at that level, if they can rock it that hard, then I can get my 7,000 words written, no problem.

Because in just four short days, we're going to be looking back on the very first Script Frenzy as a historical event. A time when we all stood eyeball-to-eyeball with an oversized creative challenge, and gave it everything we had.

And speaking of challenges—I wanted to offer a friendly dare to everyone in YWP. If you guys can get your collective word count from 162,000 up to 175,000 before the clock strikes midnight on June 30th, I'll personally mail a Script Frenzy sticker to any YWP participant who wants one.

Yep. And it's an awesome sticker.

I'll be watching that collective word-count block there to the right. If it breaks 175,000, I'll be back to let you know how to claim your sticker. Good luck, everyone!

Chris

« first ‹ previous 1 2 3 4 5 next › last »