Tag: Story

Production Update #14

27 August 2026

I am pleased to announce that the novelization of the film script is complete. It has been exhaustively edited and uploaded to Amazon KDP. There will be a slight delay before the novel is available for purchase, as I accidentally omitted the production website information at the end. I’ll post an update when the eBook is available.

I also intend to make the book available in print – as both a paperback and hardcover. That will take slightly longer, but they should both be available to purchase by the end of the September.

The novel was edited far more than the film script was, so I’m going to go back and edit the film script to sync it up with all of the revisions made in the novel before we proceed to producing the film.

To celebrate the release of the book, the website is currently undergoing an overhaul. Please bear with me while I get everything cleaned-up and updated.

Production Update #13

26 July 2026

It is with enormous pride and relief that I am able to announce this morning that the final draft of the film script is COMPLETED.

It has been a very long journey. My intention to write this story began approximately 9 years ago in the midst of my post-retirement road trip. For years, I tried to make it a nonfiction account of my experiences and my values, but I was never satisfied with what I wrote. Then, approximately four years ago, a bizarre bit of happenstance inspired a fictional version of the story that I could adapt for the stage.

While it didn’t take too long to produce a first draft, there were significant obstacles, delays, and interruptions that stalled the revision and editing process. And when I had the time to sit down and work on the draft, the challenges were formidable. Transforming a random collection of philosophical beliefs into a coherent and structured argument. Choosing every word deliberately to make the most convincing argument while allowing the characters to remain authentic and natural.

None of it came easy.

The final draft sits at 75 pages and 18,968 words.

The next step – I regret to inform you – is NOT advancing to production. The next step will be to re-write the film script as a novel so that can be published first.

I am cautiously optimistic that I can accomplish this in just a couple months’ worth of weekends. The story is already written. Now I just have to add the descriptive filler that comes with a novel. That shouldn’t take long. I hope to have the novel published by the end of the year.

Production Update #8

27 April 2025

At long last… the second draft of the script is completed. The script now stands at 18,912 words and 76 pages. I’ll have to do some time tests some other day, but it’s safe to say this will be a feature-length film.

For the most part, the second draft is the final draft – locked in. There’s an 1100 word section in Scene 10 that I don’t absolutely love yet. I need to revisit it later with fresh eyes to see if I can’t polish it up a bit further.

I’m kind of embarrassed that it took me about 9 months from the conclusion of the first draft to the conclusion of the second draft. But there have been a number of unique challenges with this script.

Writing a stage adaptation to Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” was so much easier because the source material was already there. I simply had to translate it. In contrast, “Socks” is an original story of my own.

In “Frankenstein”, I kept the 19th century dialect. While some people might consider that a challenge, it actually made my job easier because old English is more formal, a lot like writing political rhetoric – a style of writing I’m particularly good at. With “Socks”, I had to write casual dialogue, peppered with small talk and minor distractions to make it sound more natural. I’m not particularly good at small talk in real life. I prefer to get straight to the point. So teasing out the script in this manner was especially challenging for me.

“Socks” is a persuasive story. The challenge in writing a persuasive story is to avoid beating the audience over the head with your message, but rather to make it subtle. If your audience accepts your argument, you want them to think that they reached that conclusion on their own rather than being dragged there kicking and screaming.

Finally, I’m not a professional writer. I’ve studied Robert McKee. I know good writing when I see it and I know bad writing when I see it. I know the difference between plot and story, the difference between character and characterization. I know the importance of strong character development and the importance of conflict. I have no delusions that I’m producing a work of Shakespeare, but I’m making every effort to ensure that this script – this story – is as strong and as professionally written as I am capable of. That meant not being content with “good enough” but constantly going back over the script again and again to polish it and bang out as many imperfections as I could find. That was a very time-consuming process.

And there’s a lot of me in this script. A lot of my own story is laid open bare in this script, and so now I move on to the next step – allowing a select group of friends to read the script and give me feedback.

Production Update #1

24 April 2024

Today I completed the story outline.

Technically, I began work on a script about two years ago, while I was busy with other projects for the Machickanee Players. But since I was too distracted back then to give it the attention it needed, I decided to start over from scratch with fresh eyes and a fresh perspective. Also, two years ago I was writing a script with the intention of adapting it for the stage, not a feature length film.

With the outline completes, I can begin re-writing the script.