by Jim
I want to talk a little bit about action figures once more as I’m an avid collector of them. They’re fun to display, fun to collect, and certainly fun to play with your kids with… unless they’re the $30+ ones with fragile parts… then yeah, just the first two! But what about characters that don’t have action figures, either because they’re just not popular … Read More Custom Action Figures
by Jim
SQUEEEEEEEEE!!! … … … AHEM! Please pardon my mansquee. That was completely unprofessional. So the final trailer has been released… and it… looks… awesome!!!! It really looks like the perfect combination of practical effects and CGI. The Story? I get the feeling that this will be somewhat reminiscent of the Dark Forces story… Why? Because these can’t be a coincidence: Jan Ors: Jyn Erso: … Read More Star Wars Rogue One New Trailer!!
by Jim
I’ve always loved the antihero character archetype. To me, the least interesting character has always been the main hero, the good guy, the knight in shining armor. All too often the good guy is the same basic formula; A naive individual called upon to take up a weapon (either literal or metaphorical) and go on a quest to vanquish evil. Throughout this quest s/he … Read More The Antihero
by Jim
I have two quotes I’d like to share with you today. I’ve been thinking a lot lately about our current political climate in the United States, the Trek Against Trump disgrace, and a lot of my writing. Every time I think about the huge mess that doesn’t seem to have an end in sight, I hearken back to when I was a child and … Read More Memorable Quotes
by Jim
Bullied at school, neglected at home and incredibly lonely, 12-year-old Owen (Kodi Smit-McPhee) spends his days plotting revenge on his tormentors and spends his nights spying on other residents of the apartment complex. His sole friend is Abby (Chloë Grace Moretz), a strange girl who comes out only at nighttime. Both outcasts, the two form a strong bond. When Abby’s caretaker disappears amid a … Read More Let Me In (2010)
by Jim
Okay… I’m going to try to put a stop to this, because my focus on movie writing lately has taken my blog WAY off topic, almost to the point of Hollywood Advocacy, and it needs to stop. So hopefully this will be the end of it. However, there were some things that I needed to get off of my chest about the effects of … Read More Why Does Preachy/Safe Book and Movie Writing Fail So Badly?
by Jim
The answer, of course, is no! No we can’t. Because Star Wars is a major phenomenon, it was the first blockbuster, and we can’t tolerate any mistakes discrepancies, or anything being out of place from how we view Star Wars to be. Sigh… Okay look, I hate to burst everyone’s bubble, but to all of your Star Wars purists (snobs) out there: Star Wars IS … Read More Can’t We All Just Enjoy Star Wars?
by Jim
So… my wife rented this last night and then fell asleep. So I continued watching it alone. I don’t usually do movie reviews, but since this is a fairly recent fantasy film that has gotten a lot of praise… and I mean a LOT, I thought I’d give my take on it. I tend to shy away from remakes, which let’s face it, that’s what … Read More Cinderella 2015
by Jim
Statement: Hollywood is out of original ideas. MYTH!!! I hear this one all the time whenever ANOTHER transformers, or ANOTHER desperate attempt to make a good Fantastic 4 movie comes out. With all the hype and advertising, it seems like Hollywood is completely out of original ideas. These days, everything is based on something, be it a book, another movie, or a real life … Read More Is Hollywood Truly Out of Original Ideas?
+ advice, Fiction, literature, Movies, non-fiction, Reading, Writing
by Jim
Hi Jim, So I noticed that you’ve given quite a bit of advice on publishing books, but what about scripts? I have a screenplay that I would like to get someone to look at, any thoughts? Thanks, Jere Hi Jere, Oh man, well I admit that you’re having me step way outside of my knowledge area, but as I’ve never turned away anyone up … Read More Scripting??
by Jim
Okay I see this in both movie and book form, but I’m going to cover some of the more egregious examples. Why is it so difficult to write kids and teens? In many of the movies or stories we see, kids are well behaved, tiny adults… or even worse. You see this a lot in bad comedies or really weird stories. Perhaps the most standout … Read More Writing Kids and Teens… The Epic Fail!
by Jim
I know that this is a few days late, but I’ve sadly been in a bubble working… On Sunday, we lost one of the greats. A man who is the embodiment of a life where no moment was wasted. A legend and one of my all time heroes… Christopher Lee. Christopher was born in 1922 and his resume includes, but is no where near … Read More No Moment Wasted… A Hero Leaves Us.
James Harringtons Creative Work 