Collage art has popularly been associated with punk, since Jamie Reid tore out the eyes section of a picture of the Queen and gave her image some quick body piercing with some safety pins, two icons come together. It is the bringing together the radically disparate that has always been a hallmark of most collage art, from the early Berlin Dada experiments, and Max Ernst's proto-surrealist offerings, to the mediums re-emergence in the mid seventies with a largely musical movement that was just as incongruous at times, and every bit as savage as the knives of the mediums two great innovators, John Heartfield, and Hannah Hoch. Indeed, punk was thought of by some of the art students who participaed in its early form as the new dada.
But collage art, or montage art, whichever you wish to call it, has really been associated with punk by one band in particular, the Dead Kennedys. Their association with artwork didn't just end at the cover, bring home one of their records, and out would fall a booklet of artwork with masterpieces, just as cutting and savage and satirical as the lyrics they illustrated, courtesy of a partnership with collage masetro, Winston Smith, and the Kennedys' then singer, and leader, Jello Biafra.
Collage art suits the needs of some of the more political punk bands out there, and so it should. Be used more often for these purposes, punk needs to get out out of its narrow band of being purely a musical movement, it was started by artists, they should regain their place.
Article written by Jonathon Baker
Jonathon BakerLevel: BasicJonathon Baker is a Collage and Montage artist with many collaborations with magazines, bands and books to his name, he is also his own webmaster, ... ...
Jonathon Baker
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Read All About It - 21st Century Book Clubs
As the emergence of the Kindle and other portable e-books really begin to scare the humble paperback, and whilst more publishing houses fall to the popularity of digital media, it is a wonder that book clubs (or book discussion clubs, as they are known in the US) still exist. But they do. In fact, the 21st Century and the progression of internet technologies seem to have been very good for this wholesome tradition.
Of course, the Kindle doesn't look at all likely to have any adverse effects on book clubs. On the contrary, it could be set to enrich them even further by making obscure and expensive texts more easily available. This is a plus-side that echoes the, rarely-discussed, advantages that the internet has had in regards to the consumption of literature. Aside from online shops such as Amazon and eBay, user-generated sites offering book reviews help readers make a more informed decision after just a few clicks.
Traditionally book clubs were quite simple affairs. Usually set-up by a zealous gaggle of fiction enthusiasts, they are typically held in private homes (sometimes rotating between members), at libraries, or in other community meeting places such as pubs and town halls. Aside from deciding where and when to meet, one of the only other variable to consider was whether the club would be a single-title club or a multi-title club - with the former meaning that all members read the same book before each meet-up, and the latter meaning members discuss their own current reads.
As it has done for communities in general, the internet has rejuvenated book discussion environments and has reinvented the way book-lovers can find, and interact with, other like-minded litera-maniacs. Thanks to the web, geography is now no object for book clubs. They can be conducted in a synchronous or asynchronous manner online, offline or a combination of both.
Yet, even for those who are eager to establish a traditional 'tea and biscuits' type club, having a website or blog is fast becoming considered a book club essential. This way all members can log on at anytime to see updates, be reminded of what to be reading, and see what has been read in the past etc. But for those who are eager to embrace the future shape of book clubs, social media such as Facebook groups and more recently, Twitter, have changed things even more - the latter giving users the ability to offer opinions on their reads whenever they want to, and to engage in conversation with other readers whenever they like.
Article written by T Roberts
Of course, the Kindle doesn't look at all likely to have any adverse effects on book clubs. On the contrary, it could be set to enrich them even further by making obscure and expensive texts more easily available. This is a plus-side that echoes the, rarely-discussed, advantages that the internet has had in regards to the consumption of literature. Aside from online shops such as Amazon and eBay, user-generated sites offering book reviews help readers make a more informed decision after just a few clicks.
Traditionally book clubs were quite simple affairs. Usually set-up by a zealous gaggle of fiction enthusiasts, they are typically held in private homes (sometimes rotating between members), at libraries, or in other community meeting places such as pubs and town halls. Aside from deciding where and when to meet, one of the only other variable to consider was whether the club would be a single-title club or a multi-title club - with the former meaning that all members read the same book before each meet-up, and the latter meaning members discuss their own current reads.
As it has done for communities in general, the internet has rejuvenated book discussion environments and has reinvented the way book-lovers can find, and interact with, other like-minded litera-maniacs. Thanks to the web, geography is now no object for book clubs. They can be conducted in a synchronous or asynchronous manner online, offline or a combination of both.
Yet, even for those who are eager to establish a traditional 'tea and biscuits' type club, having a website or blog is fast becoming considered a book club essential. This way all members can log on at anytime to see updates, be reminded of what to be reading, and see what has been read in the past etc. But for those who are eager to embrace the future shape of book clubs, social media such as Facebook groups and more recently, Twitter, have changed things even more - the latter giving users the ability to offer opinions on their reads whenever they want to, and to engage in conversation with other readers whenever they like.
Article written by T Roberts
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
The Mystery of Stone Ship ((in English and Spanish)(from the Satipo Jungles, Peru))
(A Legend out of the Jungles of Satipo)
English Version
(Advance) It's a very old rock structure, brown, with a sandy like texture to it, about the size of a 17th Century Ship, it resides in the middle of the Perene Rio, in the Central Jungles of Peru, called Satipo. Deep within the jungle nearby this rock structure, lived a tribe of natives, the 'Ashaninka,' derived from the earlier natives called the 'Arawak' ...I have visited an Ashaninka tribe myself; they are a warm hearted peaceful people, very creative in the arts. And so now for the Legend...:
Throughout the bloody and frightfully sixteen-hundreds, the so called Colonists (Colonos), with their slave ships, sought out the Ashaninka natives, for slaves, sold them to the highest bidder, in the Lima, and Huancayo markets, and in other parts of Peru, along with other cities of South America. The Colonists jammed an absolutely peaceful people into the guts of the ship; it was absolutely body to body. The officers were very cold and dehumanizing. The aftermath of these years took a toll; the Colonists had rapped the land like fire in dry grass-of its masses, putting them into slavery. These natives: insulted, frightened, none of them to return to their tribes. And the Colonists kept their recurrent surge up, keeping the slave-flesh, in the hole of the ship, with stale, deadly breath and putrid surroundings, many died on the journey to the markets, thrown over the stern of the ship for the fish and vultures to eat, once dead.
On a given day, something took place, that would mold into a legend, something, every Colonist would ponder on thereafter, and ship captains would forever take into account, when they'd sailed down the Rio Perene by what would be named-forevermore the 'The Rock of Stone Ship.'
It was an atrociously hot day. The rain had stopped; the captain had anchored his ship in the middle of the river, scouts lowered a small vessel into the waters, turned the boat towards an orchard like opening of the jungle, they were to search for tribal members, and return to the ship with the information, where they were now, how many of them were useful as slaves. In the meantime the Captain and his crew remained waiting onboard.
In those days, the chief of the Ashaninka kept a look out for the ships. They knew what the Colonists were contemplating, and of course the ship was taller than anything in sight and filled a good portion of the center of the river, and it was of course a symbolical threat once seen. And on this hot summer's day, it was seen by the chief, and his bodyguards.
The path the chief and his bodyguards were on came out on to the top of a hill; there they prayed that none of their kind would be kidnapped into slavery this day.
The scouts from the ship looked about spent quite a lot of their time trying to find stragglers, or the tribe itself, but they saw nothing, nothing but massive trees which shaded them from the hot sun, and would condemn them as they rested and fell to sleep, and when they awoke and went back to inform their captain of their fruitless search, they noticed suddenly the ship was gone. Refusing to believe the ship and its crew, and its captain could have left so anonymously, they moved about, but the only thing they found was a rock island mound in the middle of the river, that wasn't there before, it resided where the ship had been anchored.
It was a brown structure, likened to the ship itself in design and some details, as if it was melted down from wood to soft stone, somewhat circular dimensions, the rock island being the same size of the ship, which was now covered with large ants, running about.
The Chief, now looking down from the top of the hill, could see the newly formed mound, and the three scouts standing on it, in disarray, he said nothing, just bowed his head.
English Version
(Advance) It's a very old rock structure, brown, with a sandy like texture to it, about the size of a 17th Century Ship, it resides in the middle of the Perene Rio, in the Central Jungles of Peru, called Satipo. Deep within the jungle nearby this rock structure, lived a tribe of natives, the 'Ashaninka,' derived from the earlier natives called the 'Arawak' ...I have visited an Ashaninka tribe myself; they are a warm hearted peaceful people, very creative in the arts. And so now for the Legend...:
Throughout the bloody and frightfully sixteen-hundreds, the so called Colonists (Colonos), with their slave ships, sought out the Ashaninka natives, for slaves, sold them to the highest bidder, in the Lima, and Huancayo markets, and in other parts of Peru, along with other cities of South America. The Colonists jammed an absolutely peaceful people into the guts of the ship; it was absolutely body to body. The officers were very cold and dehumanizing. The aftermath of these years took a toll; the Colonists had rapped the land like fire in dry grass-of its masses, putting them into slavery. These natives: insulted, frightened, none of them to return to their tribes. And the Colonists kept their recurrent surge up, keeping the slave-flesh, in the hole of the ship, with stale, deadly breath and putrid surroundings, many died on the journey to the markets, thrown over the stern of the ship for the fish and vultures to eat, once dead.
On a given day, something took place, that would mold into a legend, something, every Colonist would ponder on thereafter, and ship captains would forever take into account, when they'd sailed down the Rio Perene by what would be named-forevermore the 'The Rock of Stone Ship.'
It was an atrociously hot day. The rain had stopped; the captain had anchored his ship in the middle of the river, scouts lowered a small vessel into the waters, turned the boat towards an orchard like opening of the jungle, they were to search for tribal members, and return to the ship with the information, where they were now, how many of them were useful as slaves. In the meantime the Captain and his crew remained waiting onboard.
In those days, the chief of the Ashaninka kept a look out for the ships. They knew what the Colonists were contemplating, and of course the ship was taller than anything in sight and filled a good portion of the center of the river, and it was of course a symbolical threat once seen. And on this hot summer's day, it was seen by the chief, and his bodyguards.
The path the chief and his bodyguards were on came out on to the top of a hill; there they prayed that none of their kind would be kidnapped into slavery this day.
The scouts from the ship looked about spent quite a lot of their time trying to find stragglers, or the tribe itself, but they saw nothing, nothing but massive trees which shaded them from the hot sun, and would condemn them as they rested and fell to sleep, and when they awoke and went back to inform their captain of their fruitless search, they noticed suddenly the ship was gone. Refusing to believe the ship and its crew, and its captain could have left so anonymously, they moved about, but the only thing they found was a rock island mound in the middle of the river, that wasn't there before, it resided where the ship had been anchored.
It was a brown structure, likened to the ship itself in design and some details, as if it was melted down from wood to soft stone, somewhat circular dimensions, the rock island being the same size of the ship, which was now covered with large ants, running about.
The Chief, now looking down from the top of the hill, could see the newly formed mound, and the three scouts standing on it, in disarray, he said nothing, just bowed his head.
Article written by Dennis Siluk Ed.D.
The Atlas Shrugged Movie - Galt's Curse
Will the Atlas Shrugged movie ever get made? That's the question people have been asking for years. But there seems to be a curse, which is supremely ironic for a work that presents the atheistic philosophy, Objectivism.
There's certainly no lack of interest in an Atlas Shrugged movie, especially during these times of looming recession and increasing government takeover of the economy. Sales of this 1957 book started jumping off the shelves in 2008, landing it on bestseller lists ever since.
Images of Tea Party small-government low-tax demonstrations, which started at the beginning of 2009, always display signs with pictures of Ayn Rand (the author) and her famous catchphrase, "Who is John Galt?". So why not make the movie?
John Galt must have cast a curse. He's the book's hero. His main action was to convince the country's best minds to go on strike. From the looks of things, that included Hollywood. His curse is where fiction encounters reality and nothing gets done.
Albert S. Ruddy was twice cursed. He got the first dibs on the screen rights in 1972. Rand even announced the deal back then and she was excited due to Ruddy's success with The Godfather. But she wanted final script approval, which meant she could refuse to allow the film to be released if she didn't like it. That is one Atlas Shrugged movie that didn't happen. More recently, in 1999, Ruddy brokered a four-hour TV miniseries project with Turner Network Television. Then the merger between AOL and Time-Warner killed it.
This wasn't the first TV production to succumb to Galt's Curse, either. Henry and Michael Jaffe put together a deal with NBC in 1978 for an eight-hour Atlas Shrugged miniseries. In 1979, Fred Silverman became president of NBC and one of the first things he did was cancel it. Probably the worst victim of Galt's Curse was Rand herself. She decided to write her own TV miniseries, but she died in 1982 when it was only about one-third finished.
Her heir is her former student, Leonard Peikoff. He sold the Atlas Shrugged movie option to Michael Jaffe and Ed Snider right after she died, but he retained script approval, or script disapproval as it turned out.
Then in 1992, an investor and high-profile poker player, John Aglialoro got the film rights for a cool million. He tried for years to get Peikoff's script approval, but one after another kept being rejected. As it stands, if production does not start by the end of 2010, the Atlas Shrugged movie rights will revert to Peikoff.
Aglialoro, thankfully, now has negotiated full creative control. After the Ruddy and Turner deal fell apart, Howard and Karen Baldwin hooked up with him while at Crusader Entertainment. Crusader fell to Galt's Curse and the Baldwins set up their own shop with Aglialoro in tow.
They recently had a deal with Lionsgate. Angelina Jolie was to be the heroine Dagny Taggart, the free-market individualist railroad executive. But Jolie walked and joined Galt's list of other actresses who wanted to play Dagny like Barbara Stanwyck, Faye Dunaway, Raquel Welch, Farrah Fawcett and Sharon Stone, with Charlize Theron, Julia Roberts and Anne Hathaway waiting in line.
The Baldwins are still hooked with Lionsgate. Heavy-hitting Relativity Media has been circling to jump on board. Randall Wallace, whose credits include Braveheart, Pearl Harbor and other blockbusters, wrote the best screenplay adaptation to date and he's still with them.
So... Can poker-player Aglialoro beat the odds by the end of 2010? What, ultimately, will succumb to Galt's Curse? Will it be the Atlas Shrugged movie for once and for all? The country? The whole world? The curse itself?
Article written by Michael Stuart Kelly
There's certainly no lack of interest in an Atlas Shrugged movie, especially during these times of looming recession and increasing government takeover of the economy. Sales of this 1957 book started jumping off the shelves in 2008, landing it on bestseller lists ever since.
Images of Tea Party small-government low-tax demonstrations, which started at the beginning of 2009, always display signs with pictures of Ayn Rand (the author) and her famous catchphrase, "Who is John Galt?". So why not make the movie?
John Galt must have cast a curse. He's the book's hero. His main action was to convince the country's best minds to go on strike. From the looks of things, that included Hollywood. His curse is where fiction encounters reality and nothing gets done.
Albert S. Ruddy was twice cursed. He got the first dibs on the screen rights in 1972. Rand even announced the deal back then and she was excited due to Ruddy's success with The Godfather. But she wanted final script approval, which meant she could refuse to allow the film to be released if she didn't like it. That is one Atlas Shrugged movie that didn't happen. More recently, in 1999, Ruddy brokered a four-hour TV miniseries project with Turner Network Television. Then the merger between AOL and Time-Warner killed it.
This wasn't the first TV production to succumb to Galt's Curse, either. Henry and Michael Jaffe put together a deal with NBC in 1978 for an eight-hour Atlas Shrugged miniseries. In 1979, Fred Silverman became president of NBC and one of the first things he did was cancel it. Probably the worst victim of Galt's Curse was Rand herself. She decided to write her own TV miniseries, but she died in 1982 when it was only about one-third finished.
Her heir is her former student, Leonard Peikoff. He sold the Atlas Shrugged movie option to Michael Jaffe and Ed Snider right after she died, but he retained script approval, or script disapproval as it turned out.
Then in 1992, an investor and high-profile poker player, John Aglialoro got the film rights for a cool million. He tried for years to get Peikoff's script approval, but one after another kept being rejected. As it stands, if production does not start by the end of 2010, the Atlas Shrugged movie rights will revert to Peikoff.
Aglialoro, thankfully, now has negotiated full creative control. After the Ruddy and Turner deal fell apart, Howard and Karen Baldwin hooked up with him while at Crusader Entertainment. Crusader fell to Galt's Curse and the Baldwins set up their own shop with Aglialoro in tow.
They recently had a deal with Lionsgate. Angelina Jolie was to be the heroine Dagny Taggart, the free-market individualist railroad executive. But Jolie walked and joined Galt's list of other actresses who wanted to play Dagny like Barbara Stanwyck, Faye Dunaway, Raquel Welch, Farrah Fawcett and Sharon Stone, with Charlize Theron, Julia Roberts and Anne Hathaway waiting in line.
The Baldwins are still hooked with Lionsgate. Heavy-hitting Relativity Media has been circling to jump on board. Randall Wallace, whose credits include Braveheart, Pearl Harbor and other blockbusters, wrote the best screenplay adaptation to date and he's still with them.
So... Can poker-player Aglialoro beat the odds by the end of 2010? What, ultimately, will succumb to Galt's Curse? Will it be the Atlas Shrugged movie for once and for all? The country? The whole world? The curse itself?
Article written by Michael Stuart Kelly
Handcrafted Artworks - History in the Making
Every artisan who is inspired to create a handcrafted piece of art injects a certain amount of history in every work. Something in his past, a lasting impression, or event left a mark upon his spirit.
It could have been a vivid sunset, the spray of a waterfall casting a rainbow, or an eerie greenish glow in the sky from an approaching hailstorm. Whatever the case, the reason for his choice of color or texture came from within.
His past experiences in life have fashioned his perceptions. The vision from which he draws on these inspirations was shaped in part by things he has seen or felt. Even before language was invented, cavemen were painting and carving on walls depictions of past hunts, or pictures of things that had taken place in their lives.
Did they do this simply to "mark" the history of the occurrence, or was there more to it than this? Man is born with an inner desire to leave something to have others remember him by, after he has left this world.
There is something very personal in handcrafted artwork. Something that says "I was here," I am unique, so I will leave this, for it will be identified with me.
The dazzling array of colors, textures, and beauty seen throughout the world in all of God's creation has captured the minds of men unto its splendors. Years ago, those who lived close enough to where they worked to go and visit them could only see the works of master-craftsmen. To buy one of these works meant a trip.
The advent of the Internet has changed that. Today it is possible to view not only one artisans work online, but multiple artists' collections through online galleries.
Article written by Stephen Monday
It could have been a vivid sunset, the spray of a waterfall casting a rainbow, or an eerie greenish glow in the sky from an approaching hailstorm. Whatever the case, the reason for his choice of color or texture came from within.
His past experiences in life have fashioned his perceptions. The vision from which he draws on these inspirations was shaped in part by things he has seen or felt. Even before language was invented, cavemen were painting and carving on walls depictions of past hunts, or pictures of things that had taken place in their lives.
Did they do this simply to "mark" the history of the occurrence, or was there more to it than this? Man is born with an inner desire to leave something to have others remember him by, after he has left this world.
There is something very personal in handcrafted artwork. Something that says "I was here," I am unique, so I will leave this, for it will be identified with me.
The dazzling array of colors, textures, and beauty seen throughout the world in all of God's creation has captured the minds of men unto its splendors. Years ago, those who lived close enough to where they worked to go and visit them could only see the works of master-craftsmen. To buy one of these works meant a trip.
The advent of the Internet has changed that. Today it is possible to view not only one artisans work online, but multiple artists' collections through online galleries.
Article written by Stephen Monday
Building a Great Magic - The Gathering Deck
For a true enthusiast, there's nothing like the thrill of opening a new Magic: The Gathering booster pack. The smell of the cards, the slick feel of mint-condition cards, the suspense of seeing what cards you get all can be quite a heady experience. But inevitably you realize that buying booster packs is a poor way to get the killer deck you've been dreaming of--or worse yet, been getting slaughtered by at tournaments.
Your funds are limited. There's got to be a better way.
There is. Let's look at a few.
Plan Your Deck - This seems obvious, but it really helps. It can be easy to get distracted by all the different cards that come out in the various editions and trying to collect them all. Unless you're a serious collector, don't bother. Take time to learn which cards work well together and support your style of play. Sketch out a list of cards you need to complete the deck you'd like to play
Once you know what cards you are looking for, there are many ways to find them.
Trading - One of the easiest ways to build your deck is to find friends who also play the game. This works especially well if you each have deck ideas that don't overlap. You may be able to trade some of your less-needed cards for some of theirs that fit your plan.
Buying Bulk - Some card stores will give discounts when you buy boxes of booster packs or large orders. If you really, really enjoy the "thrill of the hunt" in opening lots and lots of packs and relying on luck, then by all means, go for it. I've done it before, and it can be almost better than Christmas! This can be especially effective if you need a lot of cards from a specific set and are just getting started collecting them. Still, you can buy twice as many packs as there are rare cards in an expansion and still not get a full set. And if it's a specific card you're looking for it can ultimately be a real letdown.
Find it on eBay - Online auctions can be a great way to find individual cards to complete your deck. Just be careful. Bidding wars can be addictive, and before you know it you've overpaid for your card. It's not important to win at all cost. In fact sometimes you can get a bargain by being patient. Do your homework so you know how much the card is worth, and don't bid more than that. Also, take time to check out the seller's feedback before you bid. Some may misrepresent their merchandise or worse. Also, make sure they aren't selling their cards for cheap only to make it up on shipping and handling charges.
Find a Player Community - Some Magic player forums, such as MTG Salvation.com allow trades and sales on their site. Same rules apply as on eBay: do your homework.
Buy From an Online Store - Connecting Magic players with the cards they want has become a big business. There are many online stores that can help you find the cards you want quickly. There are even sites like FindMagicCards.com that can give you pricing histories for certain cards and a list of sellers and their prices.
There are two ways to approach shopping from online stores. The first is to find the lowest price you can, and sites like FindMagicCards.com can help with that. Just be aware that for each purchase you make you can expect to pay shipping and handling costs. Buying individual cards from numerous places may ultimately cost you more than you save by shopping around. Still, if you just need one or two cards, especially rare ones, you can save money this way.
The other way is to find a single, reputable dealer you trust and buy from them. This can drive your shipping and handling costs down significantly, even if your per-card costs are not always lower. It also can save you a lot of time. Stores are often better on customer service than individuals if something is wrong with your order.
Building your deck can be challenging, but it can also be as much fun as playing it if you know how to go about it.
Article written by Thom Stratton
Your funds are limited. There's got to be a better way.
There is. Let's look at a few.
Plan Your Deck - This seems obvious, but it really helps. It can be easy to get distracted by all the different cards that come out in the various editions and trying to collect them all. Unless you're a serious collector, don't bother. Take time to learn which cards work well together and support your style of play. Sketch out a list of cards you need to complete the deck you'd like to play
Once you know what cards you are looking for, there are many ways to find them.
Trading - One of the easiest ways to build your deck is to find friends who also play the game. This works especially well if you each have deck ideas that don't overlap. You may be able to trade some of your less-needed cards for some of theirs that fit your plan.
Buying Bulk - Some card stores will give discounts when you buy boxes of booster packs or large orders. If you really, really enjoy the "thrill of the hunt" in opening lots and lots of packs and relying on luck, then by all means, go for it. I've done it before, and it can be almost better than Christmas! This can be especially effective if you need a lot of cards from a specific set and are just getting started collecting them. Still, you can buy twice as many packs as there are rare cards in an expansion and still not get a full set. And if it's a specific card you're looking for it can ultimately be a real letdown.
Find it on eBay - Online auctions can be a great way to find individual cards to complete your deck. Just be careful. Bidding wars can be addictive, and before you know it you've overpaid for your card. It's not important to win at all cost. In fact sometimes you can get a bargain by being patient. Do your homework so you know how much the card is worth, and don't bid more than that. Also, take time to check out the seller's feedback before you bid. Some may misrepresent their merchandise or worse. Also, make sure they aren't selling their cards for cheap only to make it up on shipping and handling charges.
Find a Player Community - Some Magic player forums, such as MTG Salvation.com allow trades and sales on their site. Same rules apply as on eBay: do your homework.
Buy From an Online Store - Connecting Magic players with the cards they want has become a big business. There are many online stores that can help you find the cards you want quickly. There are even sites like FindMagicCards.com that can give you pricing histories for certain cards and a list of sellers and their prices.
There are two ways to approach shopping from online stores. The first is to find the lowest price you can, and sites like FindMagicCards.com can help with that. Just be aware that for each purchase you make you can expect to pay shipping and handling costs. Buying individual cards from numerous places may ultimately cost you more than you save by shopping around. Still, if you just need one or two cards, especially rare ones, you can save money this way.
The other way is to find a single, reputable dealer you trust and buy from them. This can drive your shipping and handling costs down significantly, even if your per-card costs are not always lower. It also can save you a lot of time. Stores are often better on customer service than individuals if something is wrong with your order.
Building your deck can be challenging, but it can also be as much fun as playing it if you know how to go about it.
Article written by Thom Stratton
How to Avoid the 'Fatal Coincidence' When Writing a Screenplay
There are a large number of pitfalls you can make as a screenwriter, but few are as glaring and as easy to avoid as the: 'Fatal Coincidence'. I'm not talking about the coincidences that often start a story, like Jason Bourne being found afloat by the fishing vessel at the beginning of the Bourne Identity. After all, if Mr. Bourne hadn't been picked up, there would not have been a story to tell. I'm talking about the ones where you find yourself saying - That's too improbable to happen! You've seen them at the movies or on DVD, unfortunately too many times. People showing up just at the right time, overhearing something just at the right time, or finding a miraculous clue, just at the right time. Some screenplays hide their coincidences and blend them into the story narrative so seamlessly you don't even notice. Here's one that does it really well (Spoiler alert):
In Scott Beattie's screenplay, Derailed, Charles meets his lawyer just before they go to the police to report that he is being blackmailed over his infidelity with Lucinda. But, first Charles decides he must tell Lucinda. Nice guy. Charles goes to the only places he knows where he can find her:
· At Lucinda's office, Charles is told by the receptionist that she is not there. Coincidentally, Lucinda is just walking out of the building. The problem for Charles is that, this Lucinda is not his lover. (So, who is she?).
· Charles then goes to what he thinks is Lucinda's apartment. But, a real estate agent there the apartment was rented to Lucinda and her boyfriend. (What's going on?).
· Finally, Charles desperately looks in another place he knows - the train station where Charles and Lucinda got off the train after they first met.
There, Charles finds Lucinda kissing the guy is man blackmailing Charles! This sequence constitutes an ideal end to Act II and provides the so-called 'Second Commitment to Act' or 'Plot Point B' in the Three Act Structure Model, and starts the 'Road Back' point in the Hero's Journey model.
Let's face it, the chance that Charles would arrive just at the right time to see this event is improbable, but the impact of the plot point revelation dampens our skepticism. We're ready to enter Act III and watch Charles get his revenge. This is the quality that screenwriter Beattie also incorporated into the plot of Collateral.
In contrast, here's a screenplay that isn't so seamless. In Patriot Games, Jack Ryan, now retired from the CIA, is on a working-vacation in London with his family. Just as Ryan sees his wife and daughter across the street, the IRA attack Lord William Holmes, the British Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, right in front of him! Later, when an IRA assassin tries to kill Ryan outside the Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD, Ryan just happens to get a glimpse of the same woman driving away in a Jeep as drove the getaway car after the attack in London. To cap the coincidences off, Ryan's memory of the woman is jogged when he just happens to accidentally go into the woman's restroom instead of the men's, and notice a woman with similar hair to the woman in the two vehicles.
So, how do you avoid 'Fatal Coincidences'?
· Find where they occur in your screenplay by asking yourself: 'Does this really stand a chance of happening?' If a coincidence makes things too easy for the protagonist, then your audience will likely not accept it.
· Give characters a specific reason for being in the location for the coincidence to occur. Note in Derailedhow Charles had a specific reason and rationale to be at the station (to look for Lucinda at a place he knows she visits) whereas as Ryan was there purely by coincidence.
· Have the character work to be in the situation for the coincidence to occur. The event seems more like preparedness simply meeting opportunity - it had to happen sooner or later. In Derailed, if seems like if Charles looks in enough places, he will eventually run into Lucinda.
· Foreshadow coincidences. Charles had already gone to two already familiar locations and received information that told him something was suspicious about Lucinda's story of who she was. By the third location, we were expecting to see something that answered what Lucinda was up to - and there is was! Make the coincidence seem inevitable.
· Have the coincidence explain something so large that the meaning of the coincidence overshadows the event itself.
Fatal Coincidences really reflect laziness and lack of creativity on behalf of the screenwriter. When you submit your screenplay to an agent or studies, Fatal Coincidences will do exactly that to your script. Avoid them!
Article written by Melvyn Heyes
In Scott Beattie's screenplay, Derailed, Charles meets his lawyer just before they go to the police to report that he is being blackmailed over his infidelity with Lucinda. But, first Charles decides he must tell Lucinda. Nice guy. Charles goes to the only places he knows where he can find her:
· At Lucinda's office, Charles is told by the receptionist that she is not there. Coincidentally, Lucinda is just walking out of the building. The problem for Charles is that, this Lucinda is not his lover. (So, who is she?).
· Charles then goes to what he thinks is Lucinda's apartment. But, a real estate agent there the apartment was rented to Lucinda and her boyfriend. (What's going on?).
· Finally, Charles desperately looks in another place he knows - the train station where Charles and Lucinda got off the train after they first met.
There, Charles finds Lucinda kissing the guy is man blackmailing Charles! This sequence constitutes an ideal end to Act II and provides the so-called 'Second Commitment to Act' or 'Plot Point B' in the Three Act Structure Model, and starts the 'Road Back' point in the Hero's Journey model.
Let's face it, the chance that Charles would arrive just at the right time to see this event is improbable, but the impact of the plot point revelation dampens our skepticism. We're ready to enter Act III and watch Charles get his revenge. This is the quality that screenwriter Beattie also incorporated into the plot of Collateral.
In contrast, here's a screenplay that isn't so seamless. In Patriot Games, Jack Ryan, now retired from the CIA, is on a working-vacation in London with his family. Just as Ryan sees his wife and daughter across the street, the IRA attack Lord William Holmes, the British Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, right in front of him! Later, when an IRA assassin tries to kill Ryan outside the Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD, Ryan just happens to get a glimpse of the same woman driving away in a Jeep as drove the getaway car after the attack in London. To cap the coincidences off, Ryan's memory of the woman is jogged when he just happens to accidentally go into the woman's restroom instead of the men's, and notice a woman with similar hair to the woman in the two vehicles.
So, how do you avoid 'Fatal Coincidences'?
· Find where they occur in your screenplay by asking yourself: 'Does this really stand a chance of happening?' If a coincidence makes things too easy for the protagonist, then your audience will likely not accept it.
· Give characters a specific reason for being in the location for the coincidence to occur. Note in Derailedhow Charles had a specific reason and rationale to be at the station (to look for Lucinda at a place he knows she visits) whereas as Ryan was there purely by coincidence.
· Have the character work to be in the situation for the coincidence to occur. The event seems more like preparedness simply meeting opportunity - it had to happen sooner or later. In Derailed, if seems like if Charles looks in enough places, he will eventually run into Lucinda.
· Foreshadow coincidences. Charles had already gone to two already familiar locations and received information that told him something was suspicious about Lucinda's story of who she was. By the third location, we were expecting to see something that answered what Lucinda was up to - and there is was! Make the coincidence seem inevitable.
· Have the coincidence explain something so large that the meaning of the coincidence overshadows the event itself.
Fatal Coincidences really reflect laziness and lack of creativity on behalf of the screenwriter. When you submit your screenplay to an agent or studies, Fatal Coincidences will do exactly that to your script. Avoid them!
Article written by Melvyn Heyes
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