Monday, February 10, 2014

Dear Daniel



Dear Daniel,

The results of the First Look Project  are to be announced this Saturday. I know it seems like such silliness. Such whimsy, but I hope I win. It means a chance at my Bella Morte becoming a television series. That would be special. That would make the journey so worth it.
By now everyone who reads this knows my journey. But the reality is I still live at home with my parents. In August of 2012 I made the conscious decision to do so. So that I could travel to conventions, sit on panels, and sell my books as well.

In September of 2012 I decided to turn back to screenwriting after a four year hiatus from it.
Not anything serious, just for the whimsy of it. Because I hadn’t ever adapted anything. But one
month from the print book debut of Bounty Hunter Missy and I were writing the screenplay that would serve as our breakthrough win at the 2013 Fright Night Film Festival.

The only real crappy thing was there was no real recognition except for the mention of it on their FB page. Of course I cried anyway. It’s not every day one’s work is picked as the best of anything and everyone who entered the festival contest is no doubt wishing they had been selected as the best.

But last year it was as if I was writing as if on fire. Hearing Kevin Smith’s Burn In Hell’s message loud and clear—why not, I took the message to heart. And when Missy came to me to rewrite You’re the Reason, although I did so with reservations I moved forward on it anyway.

2013 was the year that I worked so hard I did not come up for air. In February I wrote the first in a four part novella, City of the Damned. From March to May I co-wrote two screenplays, You’re the Reason and adapted City of the Damned, and 2 books Gemini’s Legacy and co-wrote When Doves Cry. In May I wrote the first draft of Bella Morte.

From June to July I prepared for Fandom Fest. Made a splash there, had fun there, won there. And in July began writing CORNBREAD. In September finished Cornbread and discovered the Nashville Film Festival Screenwriting Competition thanks to Missy. And entered You’re the Reason, Bounty Hunter, and City of the Damned.

And decided to write a pilot for their teleplay competition, whimsy at its best seeing I had never written one and wanted to desperately. So I decided to base one off of Bella Morte.

I wrote pilot that kicked ass. I didn’t know if it would win. So many factors go into winning. Who reads it, what their personal tastes are, but I knew it was a great script I could just feel it in my bones. So then I wrote television series treatment with the help of three men. Each of them giving me invaluable advice.

The treatment now sings like a operatic ingénue. So on huge amount of whimsy I entered it in the first look competition. A competition that could see mine and Missy’s dreams of having a show on television come true. So yeah, I’m a little excited.

I also encouraged my friend Pamela Turner to enter. If I can’t win, I hope she does. But it’s whimsy, as Kevin Smith would say. And right now I’m on book 3 of the Bella Morte series as I re-wrote the first draft and wrote Bella Morte:Beginnings, my first 70K novel.

So, I’m hoping on the treatment I believe in. For the First Look Project announcement on Saturday.


Sincerely,


Amy McCorkle

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