4A: It's a Process

A weird dichotomy about the world is taht at this very moment I'm talking two people through MSN through the process of writing. You'd think that, being me, this is something I'd talk about a lot, but not really. It wasn't until recently I felt I had all that much to say on the topic. But over the past two years my reputation as the guru of writing seems to have increased. Not that it has all that much to do with being a writer. Part of it is just being a pal.

One is writing the Sears play, and one is attempting a heartfelt letter to a friend. The friend in question just happens to have a bit of experience with the Sears festival, and the two writers in question know one another as well. It's funny how insular and thematic the world can be at times.

That's the kind of thing I love writing. Cause and effect, synchronicity, the deeper meanings of coincidences, seemingly unrelated events all adding together to form a larger picture. Really, that's what Half-Past is. I spent a few hours this morning editing it, and while I only got a scene or two together, much of the time was spend putting some finishing touches on scenes that were already cohesive. For instance, the much-needed elevator sound effect for the scene of Doug and Lauren. The intro music which I've been hearing in my head for over 6 months. A spur-of-the-moment soundtrack inclusion that amounts to a funny sfx moment, and an obligatory in-joke that I'm worried many people just won't pick up on, but I'll find it hilarious.

I also had to play around with the brightness and contrast. See, we shot a few scenes with Neabel and Ryan during complete daylight. Then when Doug came to the shoot, it was nearly dusk and the streetlights came on. Then the next night, when we shot the scenes with her and Kyle, we didn't begin until well after nightfall and it is very clearly night. And since the scenes are supposed to occur directly after one another, a la play, there's really no getting around it. I tried my best to monkey with the brightness and contrast to make it look like the sun is setting as Neabel and Ryan speak, but it's just going to look murky and corny, but at least people will see a cohesive effort.

For whatever reason Robert Palmer sounds good right about now. No idea why. I mean, I like the song, Addicted to Love, but I really feel it rockin me out right about now.

After the editing and general lounging, it was back to school, which meant going and actually finding my new classroom (which is easier now that I actually know the campus, even if it was in a part of Sheridan I'd never been / didn't know existed.)

Class was... boring as all hell. Basically just a garrulous* lecture on digital cameras. It was Photojournalism though, so I guess that was to be expected. nothing new, though, and if something doesn't challenge me soon, I'm going to sleepwalk through this semester and just get the regular A's and the C+ from Mitrovica. Of course, that challenge may arrive tomorrow morning in the form of the first e-zine meeting. Who knows how that's going to turn out. Apparently the e-zine is brand new, too, so I have no advance word on what to expect. Yet its lax production schedule comforts me - in the time it takes Roster A to publish 4 newspapers, we'll have done only one e-zine. Pretty swank. And then it's rotation.

*see writer's craft words, beeatch.

Well, it was a reunion of the new gang. The Sheridan crew. Yeah, I guess we sorta are a crew now. It happens when you have all the classes together. It could be worse, I've definitely found a group of people I can get along with, and thus making school less intolerable. The whole scene is starting to gel as I learn more aobut the people I'm dealing with.

On Sunday, I was talking to my aunt Lori about journalism and my writing, and she remarked offhand that I "should have a blog," to which I had no idea how to respond, because I'm going to be honest, I do my best to hide this thing from my family. Well, to be fair, I prefer to keep it hidden from anyone that might possibly be talked about, but I just don't like my family knowing all the intimate goings-on in my head. Anyone who's read this thing can get that. Anyway, I turned the conversation to a condemnation of Mitrovica's insistence that blogs are the future of journalism, and she really agreed with me, they're not. She's the one relative I really feel I can have serious, involved conversations with.

Blogs will not destroy, supplant, or shoulder newspapers or TV aside. To use her very apt analogy, if current events coverage is a meal, what blogs provide are an hors d'oeuvre - or however it's spelled.

Not that I don't enjoy this thing, I just understand its purpose. It's my life in words. not news, not reviews, not anything useful or that contributes to society in any way. And that's how I like it. I come home and write one of these bad boys pretty much every night just as a way of getting it all out there and trying to put it all together. I've caught flack once or twice but there ain't no flies on me. I've also gotten more praise than is probably necessary considering the nature of the beast. I'd give the praise over to Haasim, whose blog is actually interesting to read, because he's got a good sense of humour and what's relevant.

All right, that's the world tonight. If I still have the energy, maybe I'll go write some Metaworld.

Keep on rockin'
Mr. SAW