Pinky Miranda Productions

Revision is painful, but necessary. After all, writing is rewriting!

This is my method to editing: taking it paragraph by paragraph.

Below is a paragraph from my in-progress novel, “The Black Box”:

Gym was my least favorite class, and as I stared out of the steely windows into the soggy sky, I found myself beginning to daydream instead of listening to the lecture. I just had never found myself clicking with anyone in my class. Mainly it was because I couldn’t participate in any game days, because of my “knee condition” and was only allowed by my parents to work on the treadmills and in the fitness center. You think parents would be encouraging their kids to participate in sports, but mine weren’t as bright. They discouraged any competitive sport, saying that it was a ‘waste of my time’ and only bred ‘proud, arrogant cheaters’. The injury excuse was one that was obviously a lie, yet my teacher didn’t say anything about it. Strangely enough, my doctor continued with the facade along with everyone else in charge of my life, so I had no say in the matter.

Ugh. I’m shuddering while I’m reading that. There’s a lot of problems, and to list a few:

• Gym was my least favorite class, and as I stared out of the steely windows into the soggy sky, I found myself beginning to daydream instead of listening to the lecture.
  • This sentence accomplishes little, except for maybe abusing words when shorter phrases would do. From the setting description, we get the weather and a tiny bit of the setting. But really, it’s pointless. The reader thinks, oh, so there’s steel windows and it’s raining. So what? The main character hates gym and is daydreaming. So what? That doesn’t tell us much about the character. And it’s telling us, not showing us!
• I just had never found myself clicking with anyone in my class. Mainly it was because I couldn’t participate in any game days, because of my “knee condition” and was only allowed by my parents to work on the treadmills and in the fitness center.
  
  • This sentence is better. We get a more insightful view on the ‘whys’, although the subject changes abruptly in the middle of the sentence. From the underlined point on, the thought is detached and we needed a transition there.
• You think parents would be encouraging their kids to participate in sports, but mine weren’t as bright. They discouraged any competitive sport, saying that it was a ‘waste of my time’ and only bred ‘proud, arrogant cheaters’. The injury excuse was one that was obviously a lie, yet my teacher didn’t say anything about it. Strangely enough, my doctor continued with the facade along with everyone else in charge of my life, so I had no say in the matter.
  • There’s a bunch of extra words in here that don’t improve the writing, and some foggy phrases that could be replaced with some more concise words or could be rearranged.
  • There’s also problems with the past and present tenses, such as “had no say in the matter” can be changed to “have no say in the matter” and “my doctor continued” to “continues” among several more.

So now to rewrite the paragraph:

Walking into the dimly lit damp room for the lecture, I was reminded of how much I abhorred this class. It was one thing to be isolated from most of the normal activities like running on the track because of my “knee condition”, but the lazy people in my class were not exactly friendly.

I get asked all the time why I don’t play sports. I look athletic, sure, but my brilliant parents discourage any kind of competitive sport, saying that it is a ‘waste of my time’ and only bred ‘arrogant cheaters’. The injury excuse was obviously a lie, yet my teacher didn’t comment. Strangely enough, my doctor continues with the facade along with everyone else in charge of my life, so I have no say in the matter.

Ahh. Much better.

-Rika

This video is about the ’static’ that surrounds our daily lives. It follows a cat in an empty house and how everything seems to glow with energy, how every ordinary item sings with life.

Static

Note the black and white jelly beans and the yogurt bottle mentioned in other entries and pages. (See! I told you that all my metaphors had a purpose, however useless they may seem!)

–Disclaimer–

The song Viva La Vida is owned by Coldplay, not me. I am simply using their song in my video for no commercial purpose. This is just for fun.

-Rika

I know, I know, I haven’t been posting regularly.

That’s because I’m writing a novel in 100 days, and I’ve been focusing on my writing recently. (oh, you expected some standard excuse that all bloggers give? Psh, I think you forget whose blog you’re reading.)

But today I’m going to list the TOP FIVE websites that are a must for all screenwriters:

1. StumbleUpon. Seriously, this thing is a major inspiration generator. It’s a browser add on that gives you a button that you press and it magically teleports you to awesome websites- a perfect way to get inpiration. I’ve learned how to build invisible shelving and found a lot of inspiring pictures.
2. Character chart. My characters sometimes can be bland; so this character chart is perfect. Eleven printable pages of questions that are guaranteed to get you characters that feel real.
3. Royalty Free Music. You don’t think it’s a necessity for screenwriters? It is! It’s amazing how some simple trailer-style music can get you in the mood to write an action sequence or a car chase.
4. Yahoo! Answers. Where else can you hear about people’s problems and then use them in a story without them knowing? This is a story database in itself, and just flipping through random topics like ‘What’s your prized possession?’ you can really get some great stories to incorporate into your own writing.
5. The best search engine out there. Really, this search engine beats google- you just have to visit it yourself to see what I mean.

~Rika

Whether you’re creating a music video or a short film, the music playing the background is more important than you think.

Quick tips:

• In the background of dialog, insert subtle music that doesn’t draw attention away from the dialog and to itself
• Sometimes blaring orchestral tunes aren’t the best choice for action sequences- subtlety is a beautiful thing. Just a simple low chorus or woodwind ensemble can highlight the action.
• Keep a theme throughout: find a mood you’re presenting and stick to that. Music that jumps all over the place tone-wise isn’t the best idea. Everything should have a relating element.

I take hours to decide on what music I want to include- sometimes I even create my own music if I still haven’t found the right piece.

**Note: Sound effects can really emphasize certain things in your movie. Keep that in mind when you’re creating your soundtrack; you don’t want your sounds to be drowned out by screaming trumpets.

More tips to come!

~Rika

When you’re a screenwriter, there are a set of rules you have to follow, yet have all the license in the world to break. Add these rules to your list to fine-tune your scripts.

1. The 15 Minute/5 Second Rule: Depending on the length of your movie, this rule states that your main character cannot perish permanently in the first or last fifteen minutes/five seconds of your movie. Read this further explained in my other post
2. The 2 of 3 Rule: In every 2 of 3 screenplays you write, your villain has to have hair. I’m tired of watching the bald baddies taking over the movie screen. Read more about my pet peeve and this Hollywood blunder in my other post.
3. The ‘Break the Rules’ rule: your movies should push the envelope and all limits of the industry- in other words, break the rules. Even these. Break them like there’s no tomorrow- and then go back and edit your screenplay. You have to know the rules to break them, though.
4. Make it Memorable: the more plot details and character attributes your audience can remember easily is a plus. This is what makes for box office hits. It doesn’t help anyone if everyone forgets the name of your movie as they walk out of the theater.
5. Know your demographic: catering to the teenage and twenty something crowd? Chances are a musical won’t go over so well. (High School Musical is a rare exception- and should not be regarded as a ‘masterpiece’ anyhow) Throw in some suspense and action, and tone it down if your demographic is younger.

These are my very own screenwriting rules. Read ‘em, learn ‘em, break ‘em, and give the credit to me.

Note: Sorry about the long absence, it’s been pretty crazy with all of my writing jobs and I’m having a hard time with regular posts. I’m taking a Media Production class, and as expected my video projects are piled to the ceiling. Enough excuses, just expect the next post to be a little late.

~Rika

Pinky Miranda is just starting off, and in the future I’m planning several things to change about the site:

• More media: I’m going to be posting more video and more pictures as time goes on. Pictures are much more interesting than text, right? Who knows, maybe I’ll get to the point where one post is all video and pictures!
• Reviews: book reviews by me may be in your near future.
• More Rules of Thumb: I’m trying to put together a screenwriting reference section entitled ‘Rules of Thumb’ where I post my very own rules of screenwriting.

I know it’s a very short list, but it is going to be expanding along with the site.

~Rika

When done right, music videos can boost sales of the song dramatically. Remember the Viva La Vida commercial? I think the song’s success was due, in part, to that video. OK Go’s Here It Goes Again music video (on treadmills) brought them fame and glory.

Here’s 10 quick tips on creating memorable, creative music videos:

1. Use color: Have the band wear colorful clothing, decorate the sets with splashes of color, or add color in post.
2. Sync it! Make sure that the video is controlled by the rhythm of the song.
3. Keep it different: try and distance your music video from the rest. A couple creative ideas of the past include a music video in an animated paper doll style and the Pork and Beans music video spotlighting viral Youtube videos from the past.
4. Tell a story: not all videos have to tell a story, but sometimes even a loose plot can add to the video.
5. Chose your sounds: if the filming of your music video takes place in front of a busy street, it may be best to cut out the traffic sounds. Chose selective sounds, like a band member slamming a door, to keep in the final cut, but don’t include everything. Balance is important when it comes to audio- obviously you should work to showcase the song, but a few added noises can help.

~Rika

Writer’s block is always an issue. Here are some quick ways to get inspiration!

• When trying to name your main character, it’s hard to get that really great name that audiences will remember. I suggest using some sort of random name generator that comes up with first and last names based on gender. Flip through baby naming guides, family trees, anything you can get your hands on. Make sure that if you’re writing for a specific time in history that you research popular names- there probably wasn’t very many Brittanys in the medivel era.
• When trying to define your plot, you need to chose certain obstacles to put in your character’s way. Think of your own experiences, or even use a random plot points generator to help give you ideas.
• Flip through inspirational pictures or quotes that you can find on the internet.
• Listen to music.
• Draw from your own experiences

Remember, the process of screen writing is, for the most part, rewriting. Once you get through your rough draft, it’s all down hill from there.

~Rika

Anyone can write and film a sword fight. It takes creativity to film a sword fight that people care about- one that contributes to the storyline.

There are two routes screenwriters take. One kind of person writes “a car chase ensues”, and the other writes every little detail of said car chase.

Planning your action sequence helps the story seem more realistic, helps the character’s motivations become more clear to the audience, and is more entertaining. Every action scene should bring the story further, should help develop the characters.

The whole point of a story is to get you to care about the characters, right? And we care more about the main character being blown up in the car crash than if some average joe was in the same car crash, right? Character development is essential, and there is no better time than an action scene to do that.

With all that said, the action sequence should be a turning point, or a milestone at the least. It’s not the amount of the budget expended that makes it a good scene. It’s how much has changed because of that scene. If nothing changes or is revealed to the audience, then there’s no point!

Make these scenes more meaningful and you’re on your way to a better story.

-Rika

Since when has it been a natural law in the universe that all evildoers in the movies are bald?

Think back to the last movie you watched. For me, that happened to be Ironman, and in that movie there was not one, but TWO bald baddies.

Hollywood must have something against hair loss.

This is proof that no movie is unique, each is just a combination of several different ideas all mushed together and topped off with a Lex Luther or Dr. Evil.

So next time you go watch a movie, take note of the amount of hair on the character’s heads. If they have little to no hair, they’re either bad guys or good guys gone bad. (Like in Ironman with Obadiah Stane- he was bald, so we all knew he was going to turn against Tony Stark!)

-Rika