NICK’S BLOG

Hey Friends!

Cut The Crap and WRITE THAT DAMN SCREENPLAY! is finally published. It’s been a long road to this moment. It is a culmination of nearly two years of work and an intense last six months to make the final push to see this become a reality.

What an amazing journey it has been. From the screenplays that I wrote which kicked off the whole endeavor, to the Great American PitchFest of ’09, to my From Page To Screen Writers Group, and the Rhode Island Film Collaborative‘s writers group, to my screenwriting blog and workshop (of which a some of the book’s content originally came from), to all of the research I have done and the books on screenwriting that I have read, to finally sitting down and hard-core writing this book!

And then that’s when the fun really began: revisions, copyediting, more revisions, formatting, glossary building and indexing, and preflight processing of the book’s files. And then of course the cover design. That involved taking pictures of me and my friends, Krystle, Peter, and Joe all looking stunned as I come up to them like a crazy person and yell, “Cut the crap and write that damn screenplay!” Also, there were many hours of creating the actual Photoshop file that would have all the design elements in there and then printing it out to see if they looked good. And there were many revisions to the book cover. And finally uploading it all to Lulu.com to make it all happen.

Oh, and I totally forgot to mention the battle between me and Microsoft Word. Every step of the way Word would make me crazier than crazy with its glitches and aberrant behaviors, never doing what I asked it to do. But that’s just the “book gods” making sure I suffered enough before they’d give their approval to let me publish this book.

We’ve all gotta pay our dues.

But now it is here. And you can find it on Lulu.com, or click the preview below:

And stay tuned because this is only the beginning!

Next up:

• Getting the book listed on Amazon.com and other bookseller’s databases.
• Publishing the eBook version that will be compatible with the iPad, iPhone4, the Kindle, and other book readers.
• Launching a Facebook fan page dedicated to the book as well as a comprehensive online marketing campaign that hopefully will go viral.
• Implementing a sweeping guerilla marketing campaign in multiple cities.
• YouTube video snippets of me presenting parts of the book.
• And finally speaking engagements where I will be personally teaching students how to Cut The Crap and WRITE THAT DAMN SCREENPLAY!

It’s gonna be a great year. Just you wait and see!!!

Hey everyone. I know that you’re patiently waiting with bated breath for the release of “Cut The Crap and WRITE THAT DAMN SCREENPLAY!”

However, there are a few more logistical things that I have to do in order to release it to the world:

1. Print up a proof of the cover and approve it
2. Print up a proof of the final completed release candidate of the book and approve it
3. Launch it on Lulu.com and get listed on Amazon.com
4. After the hard copy launch prepare the eBook version for the iPad® and iPhone4® as well as all the other eBook readers
5. Have my first book signing after the launch at the new Border’s at Legacy Place in Dedham MA (probably in mid-to-late August)
6. And finally begin the huge task of creating an online marketing campaign to promote the book that will hopefully go viral

All of which I’ll keep everyone posted.

This is the biggest personal creative undertaking of my life and it’s been quite an amazing experience!

Cheers,

Nick

Yeah, so I had to push back the book launch date a week and a half. What can I say? Who ever said writing a book was easy, let alone indexing, making a glossary, formatting, and doing the cover design.

However, it is now 99.5% complete!

I’m wrapping up a few minor tweaks to the index (everything else is done), and Sue is finishing the cover design.

So stay tuned! CUT THE CRAP AND WRITE THAT DAMN SCREENPLAY! is about to hit the world and hit it BIG!

Just got the edits back from my copyeditor. Now begins the grueling process of indexing, formatting, cover design, and publishing. Stay tuned for announcements on the release of the book and launch party!

So has anybody been to The Yardhouse at Legacy Place in Dedham MA?

This place is awesome! I can’t tell you how long I waited for a beer garden like this to open up around here. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll always have an affinity for The Texas Roadhouse (where I get to throw peanut shells on the floor, sit on the saddle on my birthday, and watch the pretty waitresses do the Achy Breaky in the aisle) but it is NOT a beer garden. It does and will continue to have the best babyback ribs in the world. But The Yardhouse blows away all beer halls, except for the Hofbräuhaus in Munich—but that’s another story.

The Yardhouse is a Southern California based chain that is starting to branch out to other parts of the country. Well, I have a feeling that they are going to do well here in MA. In a story that I wrote called Samuel Adams Boston Lager®: Wine Country Versus Beer Country, I talk about how New England with its well over forty microbreweries is Beer Country as opposed to Napa or Sonoma Valleys being Wine Country. And now we have The Yardhouse to further solidify that position!

The place has 130 beers on tap! Beers from all over the country and abroad. The menu is a huge selection of classic American cuisine that compliments any style of beer that you’re drinking. There are beer samplers (a very economical and enjoyable experience) and foot and a half long beer steins topping out at 32 ounces!

This place is a beer lovers dream!

Also, there are tons of flat screen TVs about showing lots of sporting events (Red Sox, Celtics, Bruins, Patriots—yeah, I’m a New Englander). However, my favorite part of The Yardhouse is the outdoor patio with the open hearth flame. I am the ultimate “al fresco” king. I love eating and drinking outside in the warmer months.

Another great benefit of The Yardhouse’s location is the fact this it is literally steps away from the awesome new Showcase Cinema De Lux. I’ll write more on this sophisticated and elegant entertainment and dining experience later but suffice it to say that if you haven’t experienced the Lux Level of movie-going you haven’t gone to the movies lately!

And a few more steps down from The Yardhouse and the cinema is the killer new Kings Bowling and Entertainment Facility. This place puts all other bowling alleys to shame as it is a virtual night club, lounge, and social gathering emporium all in one.

So when in Dedham MA, come to Legacy Place: drink fine beer at The Yardhouse, see a movie in first class-style at the Cinema De Lux, and then bowl the night away at Kings.

Cheers,

Nick

Well, it is almost time for the release of my new book, CUT THE CRAP AND WRITE THAT DAMN SCREENPLAY!

Kristin, my copyeditor, is just about finished with her work. Once she is done, then the next steps are:

• indexing
• glosssary
• formatting
• cover design

Then the book will be ready to upload to Lulu.com for the final conversion to eBook, ePub (for the iPad), and Print-on-Demand.

I’ve set June 18th as the launch date. The electronic versions will retail for $9.99 and the print version will go for $14.99.

It may take a few weeks to ensure that the book is fully listed on Amazon.com and iBooks but it will be available immediately via Lulu.com.

So stay tuned for periodic updates as we kick off this glorious event!

Cheers,

Nick

Iron Man

I saw the big “I2″ last night. It was a rainy evening and I already had a few beers in me—that won’t detract from the objectivity of this review, trust me.

What did I think of Iron Man 2? I liked it, a lot.

I was half expecting it to be a mundane followup to the first one, and also for it to rock. I’m glad it was the latter. The sweeping changes to the scale and tone of the film definitely worked for me. Jon Favreau is certainly honing his craft. He’s found his vehicle that will ensure his career as a kick-ass director for years to come. Though this is in no small part due to Robert Downey Jr.’s capital performance as Tony Stark/Iron Man.

I’ve got to hand it to Robert Downey Jr., I really believed that his drug and alcohol addiction would be the death of him (and certainly his career). It wasn’t too long ago that this man’s image constantly showed up on police blotters instead of on the screen. He was a lost soul. What a waste for a man who certainly had oodles of talent.

Then he found himself. He transformed himself into a new man that lets his talent and his passion for the art lead the way to a better life for him and the people around him. Not unlike Tony Stark in this iteration of Iron Man. Stark too was a soulless arms dealer with no purpose in life other than self-indulgence. Then having been kidnapped by a radical terrorist group (in the first Iron Man), tortured, and forced to build weapons of mass destruction, he comes to an epiphany. He changes. He becomes Iron Man. And he then fights for peace.

Downey and Stark are perfect for each other.

In I2, we are back a year later as Stark has effectively brought about an era of world peace through the insanely sophisticated technology of his creation. A technology the US government and a sleazy defense contractor (played by the impeccable Sam Rockwell, another virtuoso like Downey) desperately wants. Of course Stark refuses which only ratchets up the tension for him as his enemies plot to acquire his technology and kill him.

On the other side is another antagonist, Ivan Vanko, played by Mickey Rourke (another actor who has transformed himself as well). Rourke displays a subtle edginess that belies a truly evil wrath as he is bent on destroying the Stark legacy.

On the “good guy” team is one of my all-time favorite actors Don Cheadle as Stark’s friend Lt. Col. James Rhodes or “Rhodey” for short. He is a definite improvement over his predecessor Terrence Howard who did a good job with the part but was a little flat. Cheadle brings real depth to the character as he does to all of his roles.

Then there’s the enigmatic Nick Fury played by none other than Samuel L. Jackson himself. He’s only in four scenes but brings down the house nonetheless.

Stark and Pepper (Downey and Paltrow)

And of course the ladies are sublime. Gwyneth Paltrow is always a pleasure to see on screen as Pepper Potts. Her precise comedic timing and rapier wit is a perfect compliment to Downey’s puerile eccentricities. They remind me of Bogey and Hepburn in The African Queen.
Finally I have to mention Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff (a.k.a. Black Widow). She is so basass in this movie that I’m surprised it took until now for her to discover this side of her acting talents. Yeah, I’m definitely attracted to her—especially when she beats down like 10 security guards—but that’s not what we’re talking about here.

Anyway great cast, and the fact the Jon Favreau himself is in the movie as Stark’s driver, Happy Hogan, is a nice touch ala Alfred Hitchcock.

The movie is full of action, fights, thrills, spills, hijinks, bawdy romantic banter, and all out balls-to-wall grit that make this a definite four-quadrant flick (that is it appeals to all types of audiences: men, women, under 25, and over 25). The effects are top-notch and the soundtrack rocks. A little slow at times but it rolls along bigger and better than the original.

This is a great summer movie but make sure you stick around to the absolute end AFTER THE CREDITS to catch a glimpse of the teaser for the next Marvel film. I won’t tell you what it is here but trust me you’ll be psyched when you do.

I2 is part of the larger Marvel Universe of films that are interconnected. If you look closely during these films (The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man, the upcoming Thor, and the future Captain America) you will see chestnuts in each of them that refer to the others. All of which are heading towards the big one: The Avengers.

The Marvel Universe just got a little bit bigger with Iron Man 2.

I give it a solid A-

Here’s a glimpse for your enjoyment:

Blake Snyder - Author of SAVE THE CAT!

A long time ago, a buddy of mine (Dan) and I got to talking about how there needs to be a book out there that tells people to get off their asses and write!

Most pretentious books out there seem to profess the opposite. You get a lot of writers talking about writing telling people not to write until they learn the art of writing.

What the hell is that?

To be fair, many of these authors try to offer up some useful advice and strategies to help the writer but more often than not writers end up being confounded by the whole process. Therein lies the rub. When you want to write something so badly and turn to a lofty book on the art for help you end up getting thrown out of the game before they even begin.

What it boils down to is: fear and self-consciousness.

A writer needs to overcome those two emotions first. The way you do that? WRITE!

This is the whole reason for my non-fiction book titled CUT THE CRAP AND WRITE THAT DAMN SCREENPLAY!

Its a no bullshit anti-pretentious book on screenwriting.

What it is really is a motivational book that does not coddle the reader or talk down to them. It is a straight-up work that tells someone who is serious about writing to get serious about writing.

No bitching, no moaning, no problems. Only solutions.

This whole thing came about when I first met the late great Blake Snyder at the 2009 Great American PitchFest. I had read his book, SAVE THE CAT, and had signed up for his masterclass at the PitchFest. Let me tell you right off that I didn’t agree with everything in his book but that was not a show-stopper to me taking his class. I knew that he knew something about the entertainment industry and about screenwriting and I wanted to know what he knew as well.

When I got to the function room dedicated to his class it was already filled with about 50 or 60 people. All of whom were as excited as I to be there. He was a very charismatic and jovial gentleman. The one thing that came across from his character that has resonated with me ever since was his love for teaching other writers how craft their stories.

He would constantly say, “I love this stuff!”

Blake was amazing, infectious, and inspirational. What I got out of his class was not necessarily the techniques on how to write a successful screenplay. No. What I got out of his class was the burning desire to be the next Blake Snyder. I too wanted to help new writers get started writing. I too wanted to run a writers workshop and class. And I too wanted to write a book on screenwriting.

All of which I have done now thanks to the fine example that Blake had set for me.

Sadly, he passed away not 6 weeks after the 2009 PitchFest on August 4th. He was only 51. A poignant reminder at how fragile and precious life is. We have so little time to realize our dreams—so stop wasting it on stupid bullshit that gets you nowhere!

When I got back from the PitchFest I began to furiously write my most recent screenplay, a Boston-based romantic comedy called OPPORTUNITY KNOCKOUT. Here Blake’s Save The Cat structure worked great for this type of story. Then I began a screenwriters group called the From Page To Screen Writers Group. Put together my self-run, self-developed screenwriting workshop. And out of the development of the materials for that workshop came a book: CUT THE CRAP AND WRITE THAT DAMN SCREENPLAY!

Writing this book has been a marvelous experience! I have labored over it with passion and fire. Writing anything can be a huge undertaking. Sometimes it is the biggest pain in the ass ever. However, when you hold a bound copy of the finished product in your hands you know, you know, that it was all worth it.

My book is due to be out by mid-June. I’ll be posting the Amazon.com links to it on TenthSphere.com, LinkedIn, and Facebook.

If you’ve ever thought about writing but can’t seem to get out of your own way to write, then read my book. And read Blake’s as well.

Then get to your computer and start writing. No bullshit, no excuses. Write goddamn it! Write!

Thank you Blake.

Cheers,

Nick

Hey Fellow Screenwriters,

Well Production Live has finally posted their interview of me at the Filmmaker’s Shindig! I’m really excited about seeing my face on YouTube (and the PL Beta site as well) pitching my Boston-based romantic comedy, “Opportunity Knockout.”

You can view it here:

This was a great experience and is indicative of how you have to be ready to pitch your screenplay anytime and anywhere. I had no idea that they were doing these interviews at the networking event; however, once I knew what was going on I HAD TO GET IN ON IT. My reasoning is simply: if I can’t do it here, then how can I do it out in Hollywood?

So my advice to fledgling writers is know your material and be ready to pitch it because you never know when that golden opportunity will arise and somebody might say, “Great, send it to me.”

And that’s how it’s done!

Cheers,

Nick

Hey Fellow Screenwriters,

Well it looks like the cold weather seems to be diminishing people’s creative spirits as attendance for tonight’s meeting was really low. For about half the meeting it was just Gabe and I talking about his story, “Way Down Under.”

We had an in-depth discussion about how to solve certain writing problems by learning to cut out material and then write a line or two that covers what was cut. Also, we discussed the revision process as it often does take many turns with a writing project. Sometimes you write stuff, then revise it, then cut stuff out, then find you have to put stuff back in but in a different order. I used my screenplay, “Opportunity Knockout,” as an example. It went from 124 pages after draft five when I submitted it to an agent who then told me to cut 14 pages, then from 110 pages I had to add 7 pages back in as I needed to make the story easier for so-called “Story Analysts” to grasp the Three Ss (Subtlety, Subtext, and Symbolism) and hopefully recommend the story to producers.

Gabe is now hard at work writing Act Two of his screenplay.

Later in the meeting we had the appearance of a new member, Ed Dugan. Welcome Ed!

Ed came in with a couple of story ideas that he needed to figure out how to flesh out. Gabe and I thought one if his ideas about an inventor’s mysterious mansion was a good basis for a screenplay.

The three of us starting working out a real story-line and then the usual development flow ensued:

Genre, Logline, Title, 3-Act Structural Breakdown, and a Tagline

Now Ed has a real workable story on his hands that he seems eager to write and vows to have 10 pages of a script ready for next month’s meeting.

Hopefully with spring right around the corner more of you will be able to drop by and share your wonderful ideas and works.

See all of you on Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010!

Cheers,

Nick