Minimum 350 words reflecting upon your experience of the studio in the context of your own creative practice and final project.
- On deconstructing and analysing the elements which build a world and how it has been crucial to the process of understanding how a story becomes “solid”.
In all my years of constructing narratives, I don’t think enough emphasis has been placed on the specificity of building worlds. Being able to name then unpack the concept of “internal logic” has drawn attention to where the holes in narratives can be and how to fix them for clarity.
At this stage of Queen A, I acknowledge that it still has some loose ends in terms of internal logic and the world of the boarding school. I did end up focusing too much on the characters/their relationships with each other – neglecting the rules of the world (Kookaburra Green College) they inhabited. That’s where my work has fallen flat, I think, but I am keen to keep working on it.
Tonally, I sometimes found myself struggling with writing the screenplay – now I realise it is because the world was not holding its own. The characters’ personalities were developed but there is currently not a sufficient playground for them to develop beyond what I have pre-ordained.
It was challenging to develop a logically sound world that was still very much set in reality, especially since it involved another insular world within our own. The unusual hierarchies of KGC became very hard to maintain if dug a little deeper – and there isn’t very much in the dialogue to support it yet. Struggletown! But I want to keep going with it.
Had I attempted to pursue my Queen A idea without my current knowledge of world, it would be in an even direr condition! I’m thankful to have had the time to explore this important and specific element of creating a narrative. My understanding of crafting a cohesive story has deepened, so much so that I realise how much more work is needed of me to tell stories that can stand on their own.
- On the method of writing through and for a lens (especially when writing the “action”)
I struggled with this and I found my own limitations quite irritating. Firstly there was having to reconfigure my brain in regards to the the length of the scenes and the ability of screen work to have such snap transitions in between them. Then there was the matter of creating and emphasising “visual moments” within the story – the required precision of language and imagery needed to communicate exactly how those moments unfolded in my mind were often frustrating to construct.
There were visual moments in my Queen A Pilot Excerpt which were challenging to write: the “split screen” section between characters messaging each other, and the sassy introduction of the Rich Asians at KGC with their limousines and world-is-my-oyster demeanour. The timing of what the lens focused on and how events unfolded had to be clear if not enticing to the mind’s eye. It was like trying to direct and edit images with your mind but also you couldn’t “direct” too much because you’re the screenwriter…gah!
I admit I’ve never had to (properly) write for the screenplay format so this introduction to has been long-awaited. This storytelling-reconfiguration has not been easy but I am so eager to keep working at and pursuing it.