Shifting reality in a set of short stories.
Gal Podjarny has released a free collection of three short stories. They look at moments in people's lives where little changes in reality make major changes to them.
I found them very easy to read and to keep my attention. Well worth getting. My favourite of the three is The Banker, a moving story about the value of time.
So, get your free taster of what is to come from this talented writer. I am really looking forward to reading more of Gal’s work.
Find Gal here.  And she is on Amazon here.

The first film I saw in the cinema was Bambi. I was so traumatised by (spoiler) his @@@@@'s death that I had nightmares for months. Result. I was banned from going to the cinema again.
Well, until Oliver! came out. I told Mum that I was the only one in the class that hadn't seen it so she relented. Boy, was I a good liar at that age. It was an extra treat because Dad used to drive us through the Tyne Tunnel to get there. Coool!!! Anyway, no nightmares so Cinema was allowed.

Then I discovered the Saturday Night Movies. These usually consisted of old B movies, usually SF and Horror.
The Day of the Triffids was going to be on. I had seen the trailer and soooo wanted to watch it. I wouldn’t have a nightmare, honest.
No said Mum. Yes said Dad. But there was a deal. I had to go up to bed with Sis and come down again when she had fallen asleep. Sometimes I fell asleep too. Grrr. Then, if I had a nightmare I was not allowed any more.
So I crept down and sat between then on the sofa to watch it. I was mesmerised and horrified. Did I have nightmares? Oh yes!!!!! Did I tell them? Oh no!!!!!
I loved those old moves. The ones that relied more on suspense than gore. That led your imagination up the garden path to very dark places.

Over the years I would devour books, those old Pan short story anthologies and the classics. Loved them. Also got some disturbing responses from English teachers about my short stories involving caves turning into stomachs that melted the explorers, about following the body of a dead mouse down a stream from spring to ocean. Thankfully my teachers thought the stories were great.

Then Alien came out. I was not old enough to see it but I sooo wanted to. I bought the novelisation of the film (well the early script) as soon as it came out then sat under the blanket with a torch. Too terrified to stop reading. I don’t think I slept that night but it was soo good. The bit that really terrified me was with Dallas in the Air ducts. I think that was even scarier than the film.
Eventually Dad got a tax rebate and he bought us a VHS video recorder. This opened up a wider world of horror for me. But first Alien.
Oh yeah. I watched in in the dark and was hooked. Never seen it in the cinema sadly. Just at THAT scene Dad snuck in behind my chair and tapped me on the shoulder. I SCREAMED!!!!!
Mum also got hooked and, no longer having to deal with a traumatised little girl, she stopped objecting. Note, it was my mental state she cared about, not all that video nasty palaver.

My first proper date with Hubby was to see Aliens in the cinema when it came out. Being in a large room with everyone jumping in the air and screaming at the same points made it very special. Less embarrassing when I shrieked at the “it’s in the room” scene.
Our kids grew up hearing quotes from the film at very odd, to them, occasions.

Alien 3 then came out. I had to watch it on video because life did not give me time for cinema trips. Did I like it? Actually I did. Maybe because of its darker tone. Maybe because, being UK, the actors were not a bunch of bald blokes that all looked the same. They were actors I had seen in TV and film for years. Real masters of their field.
Was it as good as the previous two? Well no. But what a high target to aim for. But the concept was great. Trapped with no weapons and, well, Aliens!!!! I feel that some stuff cut from the cinema release would have strengthened it. Like more on the Dragon storyline. This was in the book. But that chase sequence in the tunnels had me on the edge of my seat.
As for the ending. I am not sure either option would have satisfied everyone. But for me the chest bursting had the edge. One last kick from the beast. One last fuck you from Ripley.

Then there were rumours of a fourth film. Alien Resurrection. Out it came. Not great reviews. Yes the digital effects were clunky. Yes it was hard to really latch onto the characters. But the Ripley reincarnation was a nice character mutation. There was a disabled protagonist who really was allowed to pull his weight and there was more digging into the ethics of developing the ultimate weapon.
The Ripley baby was gross. I am not sure it was a good route to take. Aliens were threatening but beautiful for their design and motivation. The baby was just a muddle of form and motivation. The only thing that really got me with it was in its death scene. When it reached out and pleaded to its mother in fear and betrayal. That hit so hard I tend to skip it in rewatches. I just feel more could have been done with the baby. It took the easy shock’em route.

I embrace my Weird.

Yesterday Roadmap hosted a chat with Pete Corona who is the Director of Original Series with Netflix. This was a free event and not recorded but many of us took notes.

First, Roadmap is a lovely organisation that helps writers get into the industry. That does not mean they ask for your script and then tout it around for a huge fee. Far from it. Instead, they help point you in the right direction, coach on your career path and give opportunities for you to present yourself.

You can find them here and they are a lovely bunch who are happy to answer questions. They are good guys. Oh and get them on twitter too at @roadmapwriters.

Second, these are my notes so are centred on the parts that were of particular interest to me and any points that particularly stuck in my memory. If you attended and think I missed something or misremembered, then please feel free to add comment.

Right. Onwards.

Pete, I hope he doesn’t mind me calling him that, is a very chilled and friendly bloke. It was a joy to listen to him talk and I would imagine pitching to him would also be chilled and friendly. Ok. That is my fan bit done. Now for the info.

Onwards again

Phew. That was a long post. Hope you find something useful in it all. Go to the Roadmap site and sign up to avoid missing these sessions and other good stuff.

In Summary
Netflix gives the writer a lot of freedom to tell the story the way they want.
Show them your voice and vision. Not a slick script.

Being Christmas I have been a busy bee making cakes and mincemeat and puddings. However I have still had time to get some writing done.
One success has been getting a story into Santa's Bedtime Book Of Adventure Stories.
You can hear the stories free, one being read each night by Santa, or pay for a 1-2-1 chat with Santa here. Or buy the book here for the UK and here for the US.

Hi Everybody! How are you keeping?
I’m fine thanks but have been doing a lot of writing. Of course. I also had my first go at making a short film. Well I say me but it was a team.
We spent last weekend doing the 36 hour challenge. Make a 5minute film in 36 hours with a max crew of four (actors are extra), no budget and using only smartphones and zoom. The result was Leap which premiered last Saturday.
“Tell me more,” you say. Of course I will.
The challenge was part of the Screen and Story Festival. A virtual 2 day festival that showcased some of the best short films around. Wow were they good films. I laughed, I cried, I cheered, I felt terror for the characters. They showed what can be done with the short form film both in narrative and creativity. Really impressed and know what I have to aspire to.
Anyway, the festival. Where did it begin. Well sit comfortably and I will tell you a story.
Many years ago the London Screenwriting Festival was created. An annual event where writers from all over the world can gather with kindred spirits and learn, share and just know that we are not alone. It is a rollercoaster event that is utterly exhausting but so worth it. If you have not heard of it then WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN!!!! Click on the link above to find out more.
Of course with this thing going on, you know, this Covid 19 thingy, the festival could not physically take place. So what did they do? Did they feel sorry for themselves? No they didn’t. They set up, in record time and with a steep learning curve, London SWF Online. Instead of a weekend of flat out goodness they managed a MONTH of it. There were talks, zoom interviews, challenges (I wrote a script from scratch in 28 days), virtual gatherings. It was magic and I made lots of new friends in a way I could not have managed at the rollercoaster that is the physical festival.
At the end of the month, though the festival is still ticking along, we all wanted to keep that camaraderie and support going. So, some of the attendees set up the Global Film Industry Café. Not just for writers but for all in the film industry. We have guest speakers. We have pitch practices. We have cold reads, see Cold Reading Circle run by my mate Wendy Jones. We just regularly gather and support each other.
Anyway, some of them decided to do an extra festival in record time, and I mean record. The Screen and Story Festival. The theme was Connections and they got flooded with wonderful films and I don’t envy them the task they had of paring them down. Even with that, the one day turned into two.
So, as part of the festival, they set up the 36hr Challenge. Some of us formed our own crews. In other cases they helped people fined each other. At 9am on the Saturday morning (or middle of the night for some as this was global) we sat before our computers ready to find out what our theme and colour were. These had to be incorporated into the script, not just a token addition.
The Theme was Connections and the colour was Orange and we were off.
Note that teams were scattered all over the planet, as were the actors. This involved lots of ingenuity and creativity to pull off and the seven teams did brilliantly.
Anyway, being my first attempt, I made the crew a family affair. I was Producer/Director/Writer. My son Matt was Director of Photography. My daughter in law Eve was Sound/Art/Make-up. My daughter Hannah was Editor. They left me alone to get the script and shooting schedule sorted and by lunchtime we were ready to start filming.
Two of the actors were remote from us, Jane Fallon and Rae Stevens. We gave them directions on what to do with the phone, the script and notes and virtual rehearsal then left them to do their bit. The other actors were local, Evie Frost, John Woodward and me. We used social distancing and filmed outside in a FREEZING wind which meant some improvising with the sound recording. How to hide a phone close enough to catch the sound but out of shot and out of the wind.
John also played the music for us. A wonderful musician. I am so lucky there are many creatives in our village. OK back to the plot.
By Sunday lunchtime we had all the footage and sound together and passed them on for editing. That was when my editor informed me that some had to be completely reshot. AAAAAAHHH!!! Off we went to do that while she carried on working on the rest.
With only an hour to go we uploaded the finished result to Vimeo and submitted the link and paperwork and then crashed. We were utterly exhausted but so pleased we got it done.
There is another challenge coming soon so get on board. It is fun.
Oh, and the film? Watch it here.

See it on youtube here.