High Stakes
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/High-Stakes/145217621090?ref=ts
L'Empire De La Mort
http://www.facebook.com/pages/manage/#!/pages/LEMPIRE-DE-LA-MORT/266006578233
Parable
http://www.facebook.com/pages/manage/#!/pages/Parable/376395887081
Dragon Mountain
http://www.facebook.com/pages/manage/#!/pages/Dragon-Mountain/216925399549
Superstar Transfer
http://www.facebook.com/pages/manage/#!/pages/Superstar-Transfer/377885820601
Cain v/s Able
http://www.facebook.com/pages/manage/#!/pages/CAIN-VS-ABEL/128100057215860
Alice Wishlist
http://www.facebook.com/pages/manage/#!/pages/Alice-Wishlist/302470605161
Project Guardian (pilot episode)
http://www.facebook.com/pages/manage/#!/pages/Project-Guardian-Pilot-Episode-Sci-Fi/229834467839?ref=sgm
What So Proudly We Hailed by Jim Howard (book)
http://www.facebook.com/pages/manage/#!/pages/What-So-Proudly-We-Hailed/108410569199500?ref=sgm
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Writing: An Act of Worship
By Kelly Lowe
(originally published online; CMA, November 2009)
Last month fellow writer and friend, James Howard, sent me the following email.
I went online and was checking out my Amazon site for my book Glimpses of My Friend the King and was surprised to see what some of them are selling for! Remember a few years ago one that was selling in England for 50 pounds? Well, I’ve topped that! One is listed for $64! (They must think I’m dead!) It’s probably just a mix-up, but it’s still fun to see. (Too bad I don’t get royalties for sales of used books!)
By the way, I still need readers of Glimpses to go to Amazon and write a quick review for me. You will have to sign in, but it’s easy to do. And I’ll tell you what, the first 15 people who write a review will get a cruise ship buy-one-get- one-free coupon - good until the end of the year! That’s pretty good for doing something that would take 15 minutes at the most! If I could offer you more I would, for crying out loud! C’mon, people! It’s not just for me; it’s for the cause of Christ! Let’s lift Him up to the world. They need Him! (Now I’m getting worked up!) The link is below!
Thanks! God bless you all! With much love, James/Jim/Butch
http://www.amazon.com/Glimpses-Friend-King-James-Howard/dp/1594572763/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1256773666&sr=8-1
Since sending that email, our small writer’s group has met a couple of times. At our last meeting James shared something from his own walk with the Lord as a writer that, I think, sums it all up. I’m going to paraphrase with his permission.
Jim shared with us that he has really been struggling with the purpose of his writing. If not for publication so that others may come to a new understanding of our Savior then why? Why spend so much time writing, editing, praying about and worrying over it? What is the point?
He was away with his family and had come to a low point in this struggle to understand the purpose of his work. His wife was in another room painting while he quietly prayed asking God, “Why?” His wife entered the room as he was praying and said that the Lord had prompted her to tell him that ‘Writing is an act of worship. This is how you worship your King.’ How beautiful, to have a God who takes our every moment, our every effort to His heart.
How wonderful, to worship God through our writing.
(originally published online; CMA, November 2009)
Last month fellow writer and friend, James Howard, sent me the following email.
I went online and was checking out my Amazon site for my book Glimpses of My Friend the King and was surprised to see what some of them are selling for! Remember a few years ago one that was selling in England for 50 pounds? Well, I’ve topped that! One is listed for $64! (They must think I’m dead!) It’s probably just a mix-up, but it’s still fun to see. (Too bad I don’t get royalties for sales of used books!)
By the way, I still need readers of Glimpses to go to Amazon and write a quick review for me. You will have to sign in, but it’s easy to do. And I’ll tell you what, the first 15 people who write a review will get a cruise ship buy-one-get- one-free coupon - good until the end of the year! That’s pretty good for doing something that would take 15 minutes at the most! If I could offer you more I would, for crying out loud! C’mon, people! It’s not just for me; it’s for the cause of Christ! Let’s lift Him up to the world. They need Him! (Now I’m getting worked up!) The link is below!
Thanks! God bless you all! With much love, James/Jim/Butch
http://www.amazon.com/Glimpses-Friend-King-James-Howard/dp/1594572763/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1256773666&sr=8-1
Since sending that email, our small writer’s group has met a couple of times. At our last meeting James shared something from his own walk with the Lord as a writer that, I think, sums it all up. I’m going to paraphrase with his permission.
Jim shared with us that he has really been struggling with the purpose of his writing. If not for publication so that others may come to a new understanding of our Savior then why? Why spend so much time writing, editing, praying about and worrying over it? What is the point?
He was away with his family and had come to a low point in this struggle to understand the purpose of his work. His wife was in another room painting while he quietly prayed asking God, “Why?” His wife entered the room as he was praying and said that the Lord had prompted her to tell him that ‘Writing is an act of worship. This is how you worship your King.’ How beautiful, to have a God who takes our every moment, our every effort to His heart.
How wonderful, to worship God through our writing.
Trending: E-Books; (September 2009)
AMAZON - the online retail giant, has done more than any other company to turn the sale of digital books into a strong and growing business with the 2007 launch of the Kindle electronic reader. Having sold an estimated 1.7 million of the handheld devices in the U.S., Amazon is now preparing to ship millions more. New Kindles will come complete with a key feature that allows users to wirelessly download e-books from Amazon in more than 100 countries.
E-READERS - have been around for more than a decade, but haven’t been popular due in part to high cost and the reluctance of book publishers to sell digital versions of their best-selling titles. But just as digital music has become mainstream media by Apple's iPod and iTunes, Amazon's Kindle and its online bookstore, with more than 350,000 titles, are proving there's a mass market for e-books. Total industry revenue from digital book downloads has risen 149% this year, according to the AAP. E-reader sales are expected to reach 3 million by Dec. 31 of this year. An estimated one million devices could be sold during the upcoming holiday season alone. In 2010, sales are projected to double.
PRICE WAR - between Wal-Mart and Amazon accelerated mid-October when Wal-Mart shaved another cent off its already rock-bottom prices for hardcover editions of some of the coming holiday season’s biggest potential best sellers, offering them online for $8.99. Skip to next paragraphPublishers, booksellers, agents and authors, are concerned that the battle will take prices for certain titles so low that it could cause fundamental damage to the industry and limit the ability of future authors to write or publish new works.
LIBRARIES ACROSS THE US - Eager to attract technologically-savvy patrons and capitalize on the growing popularity of e-readers, public libraries across the country are expanding collections of books that reside on servers rather than on shelves. “People still think of libraries as old dusty books on shelves, and it’s a perception we’re always trying to fight,” said Michael Colford, director of information technology at the Boston Public Library. “If we don’t provide this material for them, they are just going to stop using the library altogether.” About 5,400 public libraries now offer e-books, as well as audio book downloads. The online collections are still small. The New York Public Library, for example, has about 18,300 e-books, compared with 860,500 in circulating print titles, and purchases of digital books represents less than 1 percent of the library’s overall acquisition budget. Circulation is, however, expanding quickly. Skip to next paragraph Publishers, of course, are nervous about allowing too much of their intellectual property to be offered free.
E-READERS - have been around for more than a decade, but haven’t been popular due in part to high cost and the reluctance of book publishers to sell digital versions of their best-selling titles. But just as digital music has become mainstream media by Apple's iPod and iTunes, Amazon's Kindle and its online bookstore, with more than 350,000 titles, are proving there's a mass market for e-books. Total industry revenue from digital book downloads has risen 149% this year, according to the AAP. E-reader sales are expected to reach 3 million by Dec. 31 of this year. An estimated one million devices could be sold during the upcoming holiday season alone. In 2010, sales are projected to double.
PRICE WAR - between Wal-Mart and Amazon accelerated mid-October when Wal-Mart shaved another cent off its already rock-bottom prices for hardcover editions of some of the coming holiday season’s biggest potential best sellers, offering them online for $8.99. Skip to next paragraphPublishers, booksellers, agents and authors, are concerned that the battle will take prices for certain titles so low that it could cause fundamental damage to the industry and limit the ability of future authors to write or publish new works.
LIBRARIES ACROSS THE US - Eager to attract technologically-savvy patrons and capitalize on the growing popularity of e-readers, public libraries across the country are expanding collections of books that reside on servers rather than on shelves. “People still think of libraries as old dusty books on shelves, and it’s a perception we’re always trying to fight,” said Michael Colford, director of information technology at the Boston Public Library. “If we don’t provide this material for them, they are just going to stop using the library altogether.” About 5,400 public libraries now offer e-books, as well as audio book downloads. The online collections are still small. The New York Public Library, for example, has about 18,300 e-books, compared with 860,500 in circulating print titles, and purchases of digital books represents less than 1 percent of the library’s overall acquisition budget. Circulation is, however, expanding quickly. Skip to next paragraph Publishers, of course, are nervous about allowing too much of their intellectual property to be offered free.
Script Tip: Capitalization within Action
By Kelly A. Lowe
(originally published online; CMA, September 2009)
The first time a character’s name shows up in an action sequence, it should appear in ALL CAPS. Action is written in present tense. In the script, it should look something like this:
Oswald groans and pops a handful of painkillers. He walks across the room to the table and picks up the ray-gun. He looks at it thoughtfully, then turns and heads toward the door.
(originally published online; CMA, September 2009)
The first time a character’s name shows up in an action sequence, it should appear in ALL CAPS. Action is written in present tense. In the script, it should look something like this:
Oswald groans and pops a handful of painkillers. He walks across the room to the table and picks up the ray-gun. He looks at it thoughtfully, then turns and heads toward the door.
Script Tip: Slugline
By Kelly A. Lowe
(originally published online; CMA, October 2009)
This month’s screenplay term is “slugline”. Slugline is another word for scene heading. Appearing at the beginning of a scene, sluglines tell us where the action takes place. For instance:
EXT. LIBRARY - MIDNIGHT
The following three elements make up a slugline:
“INT.” means interior or indoor locations and “EXT.” means exterior or outdoor locations.
The name of the location; LIBRARY is our example.
The time of day or night; this can be a generalization such as “NIGHT” or more specific as in “LATE AFTERNOON”, “SUNSET”, or “6:32a.m.”
Sluglines should always be expressed in ALL CAPS; “INT.” or “EXT.”,
followed by “LOCATION”, a hyphen, then “TIME”. Every once in a while you will need to give a more specific explanation of the location. For this, you may add a sublocation. It should look like this:
EXT. LIBRARY - BASEMENT - MIDNIGHT
Remember, to use a slugline every time your character changes locations.
(originally published online; CMA, October 2009)
This month’s screenplay term is “slugline”. Slugline is another word for scene heading. Appearing at the beginning of a scene, sluglines tell us where the action takes place. For instance:
EXT. LIBRARY - MIDNIGHT
The following three elements make up a slugline:
“INT.” means interior or indoor locations and “EXT.” means exterior or outdoor locations.
The name of the location; LIBRARY is our example.
The time of day or night; this can be a generalization such as “NIGHT” or more specific as in “LATE AFTERNOON”, “SUNSET”, or “6:32a.m.”
Sluglines should always be expressed in ALL CAPS; “INT.” or “EXT.”,
followed by “LOCATION”, a hyphen, then “TIME”. Every once in a while you will need to give a more specific explanation of the location. For this, you may add a sublocation. It should look like this:
EXT. LIBRARY - BASEMENT - MIDNIGHT
Remember, to use a slugline every time your character changes locations.
On Screen: Film Success
By Kirk Lowe
(originally published online; CMA, September 2009)
The following is an informal study of motion picture success over time comparing the Top 25 All-Time U.S. Box Office Figures. It might surprise you to know that the most successful genres on this list are Fantasy, Sci-Fi, and Superhero.
Of the top 25 grossing U.S. movies of all time, 18 fall into these genres. The Fantasy genre garnered the most films in the inventory with seven, followed by Sci-Fi with six, and finally, Superhero with five.
The Fantasy genre is headlined by Shrek 2 (#4 all-time) and includes all three of the Lord of the Rings (#11, 15 and 25 all-time respectively) movies. The films in this genre contain fantastic creatures like dragons, ogres, and orcs. They transport viewers to other worlds full of intrigue, relatable yet uncommon conflict, and out-of-the-ordinary situations. They’re visually appealing and display high levels of artistic beauty in costume and setting.
The Sci-Fi genre is headlined by, of course, the original Star Wars (ranked #3) and contains the Transformers movies as well as Star Wars Episodes I and III. This genre has some of the same qualities as the Fantasy genre, but with a somewhat more technological bent. They are highlighted by contemporary or futuristic elements as opposed to the Fantasy genre films, which are typically historical, gothic, or classic in nature and setting.
The Superhero genre is headlined by The Dark Knight (#2 all-time), and includes all three recent Spider-Man movies, as well as Iron Man (2008). This genre is classic good v/s evil, hero v/s villain, crime and vice v/s justice. The Superhero movies delve into personal morality and psychological analysis. They make audiences consider, “What would I do in this situation?” They may stir the questions, “Can I be a hero?” or, “Am I a villain?”
These top-three genres also outperform the others in total combined-gross box office by three-to-one. The total combined box office for the Fantasy, Sci-Fi, and Superhero genres comes to nearly 7 billion dollars, while the sum of all the rest is around 2.6 billion. Think about that difference for a minute.
In sum, the sometimes-maligned genres of Fantasy, Sci-Fi, and Superhero are reported to be the most financially successful. I’m not saying that if you feel a slump in your writing you should jump genres … just consider whether you can maintain the integrity of your story after adding a few elves. Hey, it worked for Narnia.
(originally published online; CMA, September 2009)
The following is an informal study of motion picture success over time comparing the Top 25 All-Time U.S. Box Office Figures. It might surprise you to know that the most successful genres on this list are Fantasy, Sci-Fi, and Superhero.
Of the top 25 grossing U.S. movies of all time, 18 fall into these genres. The Fantasy genre garnered the most films in the inventory with seven, followed by Sci-Fi with six, and finally, Superhero with five.
The Fantasy genre is headlined by Shrek 2 (#4 all-time) and includes all three of the Lord of the Rings (#11, 15 and 25 all-time respectively) movies. The films in this genre contain fantastic creatures like dragons, ogres, and orcs. They transport viewers to other worlds full of intrigue, relatable yet uncommon conflict, and out-of-the-ordinary situations. They’re visually appealing and display high levels of artistic beauty in costume and setting.
The Sci-Fi genre is headlined by, of course, the original Star Wars (ranked #3) and contains the Transformers movies as well as Star Wars Episodes I and III. This genre has some of the same qualities as the Fantasy genre, but with a somewhat more technological bent. They are highlighted by contemporary or futuristic elements as opposed to the Fantasy genre films, which are typically historical, gothic, or classic in nature and setting.
The Superhero genre is headlined by The Dark Knight (#2 all-time), and includes all three recent Spider-Man movies, as well as Iron Man (2008). This genre is classic good v/s evil, hero v/s villain, crime and vice v/s justice. The Superhero movies delve into personal morality and psychological analysis. They make audiences consider, “What would I do in this situation?” They may stir the questions, “Can I be a hero?” or, “Am I a villain?”
These top-three genres also outperform the others in total combined-gross box office by three-to-one. The total combined box office for the Fantasy, Sci-Fi, and Superhero genres comes to nearly 7 billion dollars, while the sum of all the rest is around 2.6 billion. Think about that difference for a minute.
In sum, the sometimes-maligned genres of Fantasy, Sci-Fi, and Superhero are reported to be the most financially successful. I’m not saying that if you feel a slump in your writing you should jump genres … just consider whether you can maintain the integrity of your story after adding a few elves. Hey, it worked for Narnia.
Writing to Promote Your Writing... BLOG
By Kelly A. Lowe
(originally published online; CMA, August 2009)
People want to hear what you have to say…they just don’t know it yet. With attention spans as short as they are these days and information being served up fast from every possible angle you have to be smart, quick, funny, and familiar in an instant to try to gain a new readers’ interest. Blogs allow readers to get a sample of you and of your work in a few hundred words or less. They can be a useful tool for an author to promote their latest published work or a new writer to find followers to support their entry into the industry.
Here are some simple rules to live by when you decide it’s time to start your own wildly entertaining, not-to-be-missed, personal online saga relaying your lifelong dream of becoming a professional full time writer; your blog:
1) First and most importantly, add links to an online location where a sample of your work may be read, links for reviews of your work, and links for where the book may be purchased. You may also support your post with links to web pages that give contextual background information or source data for your writing.2) Remember, this is not your novel. The blog is a venue to promote your novel. Give readers the most information using the least amount of words that you possibly can. Decide on a limit before you begin writing. Two hundred-fifty to three hundred words (ok, we’re all writers here, so five hundred at the outside) should be enough to get your point across and, frankly, if you haven’t captured their attention in the first paragraph they probably won’t read the second one. Very short attention spans abound these days.
3) Consider using a headline for your blog. Keep it short and snappy. A blog headline should be like a hook or a log line; long enough to let them know what you’ve written about but with an angle to keep them reading. If you want to know how it’s done check out any national newspaper. They know something about raising readers’ interests.
4) Bullet points are not just for your resume. They can be useful in a blog, especially if you want to get across more information than you really should in this format. Bullets may be use to break up content into more easily digestible portions.
5) If you choose to go for a longer blog try to add occasional subheadings so that readers can scan your post and read the parts they want to instead of becoming overwhelmed and skipping it altogether.
6) Keep your style consistent. Write in the same voice for your blog that you use in your novel. Readers need to know what to expect. If you feel creative and want to write a blog in the voice of your edgy bloodthirsty Victorian age female pirate character, be sure to let readers know that before they are invested. Once they buy the book, they’ll love your pirate but may not understand why her book is written in a much more passive voice.
7) Don’t forget to edit your post and read it through once before you put it on your blog.
Check out the link below to read Forbes’ reviews on eleven of the most popular blog sites on the web today. http://www.forbes.com/bow/b2c/category.jhtml?id=311
Links to the reviews can be found at the bottom of the article.
(originally published online; CMA, August 2009)
People want to hear what you have to say…they just don’t know it yet. With attention spans as short as they are these days and information being served up fast from every possible angle you have to be smart, quick, funny, and familiar in an instant to try to gain a new readers’ interest. Blogs allow readers to get a sample of you and of your work in a few hundred words or less. They can be a useful tool for an author to promote their latest published work or a new writer to find followers to support their entry into the industry.
Here are some simple rules to live by when you decide it’s time to start your own wildly entertaining, not-to-be-missed, personal online saga relaying your lifelong dream of becoming a professional full time writer; your blog:
1) First and most importantly, add links to an online location where a sample of your work may be read, links for reviews of your work, and links for where the book may be purchased. You may also support your post with links to web pages that give contextual background information or source data for your writing.2) Remember, this is not your novel. The blog is a venue to promote your novel. Give readers the most information using the least amount of words that you possibly can. Decide on a limit before you begin writing. Two hundred-fifty to three hundred words (ok, we’re all writers here, so five hundred at the outside) should be enough to get your point across and, frankly, if you haven’t captured their attention in the first paragraph they probably won’t read the second one. Very short attention spans abound these days.
3) Consider using a headline for your blog. Keep it short and snappy. A blog headline should be like a hook or a log line; long enough to let them know what you’ve written about but with an angle to keep them reading. If you want to know how it’s done check out any national newspaper. They know something about raising readers’ interests.
4) Bullet points are not just for your resume. They can be useful in a blog, especially if you want to get across more information than you really should in this format. Bullets may be use to break up content into more easily digestible portions.
5) If you choose to go for a longer blog try to add occasional subheadings so that readers can scan your post and read the parts they want to instead of becoming overwhelmed and skipping it altogether.
6) Keep your style consistent. Write in the same voice for your blog that you use in your novel. Readers need to know what to expect. If you feel creative and want to write a blog in the voice of your edgy bloodthirsty Victorian age female pirate character, be sure to let readers know that before they are invested. Once they buy the book, they’ll love your pirate but may not understand why her book is written in a much more passive voice.
7) Don’t forget to edit your post and read it through once before you put it on your blog.
Check out the link below to read Forbes’ reviews on eleven of the most popular blog sites on the web today. http://www.forbes.com/bow/b2c/category.jhtml?id=311
Links to the reviews can be found at the bottom of the article.
"Orphan" Controversy
Adapted By Kelly A. Lowe
(originally published online; CMA, August 2009)
Following nationwide protests from adoption advocates after it hit theaters on July 24th, Warner Bros. is now considering adding a pro-adoption message at the end of the DVD version of Orphan, the film.
In the meantime, the entertainment company is stressing that Orphan” is a make-believe story that was never intended to offend anyone.
"It is not a depiction of any real-life events or situations and has never been portrayed as anything but an entirely fictional story," Warner Bros. spokesman Scott Rowe told The Associated Press.
The story centers around a couple who adopts a nine-year-old girl after the tragic loss of their unborn child. Though the girl seems like a sweet little girl, strange and terrifying events begin to take place after the couple adopts her.
Objectors are concerned that the film seems to suggest that orphans are damaged goods and that adoption could destroy your life. With all the challenges orphans are facing already, this is not a helpful message.
In response to the movie, the Christian Alliance for Orphans launched the Web site http://www.orphansdeservebetter.org/ , which features a petition urging Warner Bros. to consider adding a pro-adoption message at the end of the film and to donate a portion of box office receipts to aid orphans. Their plea is supported by a coalition of more than 50 orphan advocate and adoption organizations who have recently launched a national grassroots campaign centered around the web site.
Source: Christian Post Reporter (original article by Kevin P. Donovan)
(originally published online; CMA, August 2009)
Following nationwide protests from adoption advocates after it hit theaters on July 24th, Warner Bros. is now considering adding a pro-adoption message at the end of the DVD version of Orphan, the film.
In the meantime, the entertainment company is stressing that Orphan” is a make-believe story that was never intended to offend anyone.
"It is not a depiction of any real-life events or situations and has never been portrayed as anything but an entirely fictional story," Warner Bros. spokesman Scott Rowe told The Associated Press.
The story centers around a couple who adopts a nine-year-old girl after the tragic loss of their unborn child. Though the girl seems like a sweet little girl, strange and terrifying events begin to take place after the couple adopts her.
Objectors are concerned that the film seems to suggest that orphans are damaged goods and that adoption could destroy your life. With all the challenges orphans are facing already, this is not a helpful message.
In response to the movie, the Christian Alliance for Orphans launched the Web site http://www.orphansdeservebetter.org/ , which features a petition urging Warner Bros. to consider adding a pro-adoption message at the end of the film and to donate a portion of box office receipts to aid orphans. Their plea is supported by a coalition of more than 50 orphan advocate and adoption organizations who have recently launched a national grassroots campaign centered around the web site.
Source: Christian Post Reporter (original article by Kevin P. Donovan)
Teen Suicide and Fake Christians
Adapted By Kelly A. Lowe
(originally published online; CMA, August 2009)
Jim Britts, a youth pastor in Denver for ten years, has helped a lot of hurting teens in his time in ministry. Recently Britts teamed up with Outreach, Inc., to get their stories out through film.
To Save A Life (release date 2010) is an indie movie depicting the real-life challenges of teens and their choices. The film opens with the funeral of Roger, a 17-year-old boy who committed suicide after years of feeling neglected from everyone at his school, including his childhood best friend, Jake Taylor, who traded him in as a friend for popularity.
After the death of his friend, Taylor begins wrestling with some difficult life questions and searches for answers in places he never expected, including church.
The film addresses a host of issues, including suicide, peer pressure, divorce, teen pregnancy, abortion and the authenticity of Christians.
To Save A Life is meant to inspire teens to reach out to their peers, who are hurting and lonely. More than any of the adults in their lives, teens themselves have the ability and opportunity to help each other feel accepted, wanted and important and to help them make the right decisions.
Youth organizations are already buzzing about the potential of the film's impact on this generation if used effectively as a ministry tool. Outreach has created youth curriculum kits to help open up a dialogue in churches and tackle issues that may otherwise go unaddressed in many churches.
To Save A Life releases in theaters nationwide in January 2010.
On the Web: http://www.tosavealifemovie.com/
Source: Christian Post Reporter
(originally published online; CMA, August 2009)
Jim Britts, a youth pastor in Denver for ten years, has helped a lot of hurting teens in his time in ministry. Recently Britts teamed up with Outreach, Inc., to get their stories out through film.
To Save A Life (release date 2010) is an indie movie depicting the real-life challenges of teens and their choices. The film opens with the funeral of Roger, a 17-year-old boy who committed suicide after years of feeling neglected from everyone at his school, including his childhood best friend, Jake Taylor, who traded him in as a friend for popularity.
After the death of his friend, Taylor begins wrestling with some difficult life questions and searches for answers in places he never expected, including church.
The film addresses a host of issues, including suicide, peer pressure, divorce, teen pregnancy, abortion and the authenticity of Christians.
To Save A Life is meant to inspire teens to reach out to their peers, who are hurting and lonely. More than any of the adults in their lives, teens themselves have the ability and opportunity to help each other feel accepted, wanted and important and to help them make the right decisions.
Youth organizations are already buzzing about the potential of the film's impact on this generation if used effectively as a ministry tool. Outreach has created youth curriculum kits to help open up a dialogue in churches and tackle issues that may otherwise go unaddressed in many churches.
To Save A Life releases in theaters nationwide in January 2010.
On the Web: http://www.tosavealifemovie.com/
Source: Christian Post Reporter
Christian Fiction's Future: Bonnets, Buggies and Vampires?
Adapted By Kelly A. Lowe
(originally published online; CMA, August 2009)
Christian publishers, embracing literary escapism are finding new hope for sales by turning to bonnets and bloodsuckers. Publishing in general has suffered during the recession. Several publishing houses are adding or expanding their fiction lines with both the tame (Amish heroines) and not so tame (Christian vampire lit).
In the lead so far is Amish fiction - romances and family sagas set in contemporary Amish communities. Today’s women may be attracted by the simpler time of the story settings and an admiration for the strong, traditional faith and familial closeness of the Amish community.
Not all of the new Christian fiction is focused on the wholesome stories of days gone by. With caution, some publishers are venturing into some very dark places; tales of vampires and the undead.
Publishers, authors and others gathered in Denver this July for the Annual International Christian Retail Show. The consensus: there's a growing audience for Christian fiction that both comforts and challenges. More than a decade ago, “Left Behind” made Christian fiction accessible to everyone by quickly becoming a New York Times best-seller.
The Christian fiction industry has often has mimicked successful genres: Romance, Sci-fi, Legal Thrillers, with an emphasis on Romance. I meant to say romance twice.
Credit for the rise in interest in the Amish community and stories about them goes to Beverly Lewis, a Colorado author who seemingly invented the genre in 1997 with The Shunning, which was loosely based on her grandmother's experience of leaving her Old Order Mennonite upbringing to marry a Bible college student. The Shunning has sold more than 1 million copies.
Lewis tapped into a fascination with the Amish, who base their morals on a literal interpretation of the Bible and are known for their plain clothes and rejection of modern technology.
“Bonnet fiction,” as it has been referred to, plays to the base of the Christian fiction market: Three in four Christian fiction readers are women, according to current publishing research from the firm R.R. Bowker.
On the darker side of Christian fiction today is Eric Wilson's Jerusalem's Undead trilogy from Thomas Nelson, which follows the exploits of characters who have risen from the dead after being tainted by the blood of Judas, the betrayer of Jesus.
Allen Arnold, senior vice president and publisher for fiction for Nelson, said messages of hope reside even in exploits of the undead.
"It is fantasy, but he weaves it from a biblical perspective and ties it back to the power of blood," Arnold said - the atoning power of Christ's blood.
On Sept. 15, 2009, WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group will release a vampire story, Thirsty, by Christian chick-lit author Tracey Bateman. As expected, the marketing material for Thirsty mentions Twilight, the hit vampire book series and movie that was popular with many evangelicals who embraced the abstinence message of the series.
Bateman's lead vampire in Thirsty, Markus, is a metaphor for demons we all must overcome, said Shannon Marchese, an editor at WaterBrook Multnomah who sought out Bateman for the project. The object of Markus’ obsession, Nina, is a divorced alcoholic dealing with addiction. These are easy characters to relate to as we all know a Nina and, for that matter, a Markus in our lives.
"These are themes that work in the Christian life," Marchese said. "You have to fight to say, 'Am I going to choose unconditional love and redemption or a life of following obsessions, a life with holes in it?"
The challenge now will be seeing whether these dripping fangs leave fans of horror and Christians, who are used to something a little more tame, hungry for more.
Source: AP
(originally published online; CMA, August 2009)
Christian publishers, embracing literary escapism are finding new hope for sales by turning to bonnets and bloodsuckers. Publishing in general has suffered during the recession. Several publishing houses are adding or expanding their fiction lines with both the tame (Amish heroines) and not so tame (Christian vampire lit).
In the lead so far is Amish fiction - romances and family sagas set in contemporary Amish communities. Today’s women may be attracted by the simpler time of the story settings and an admiration for the strong, traditional faith and familial closeness of the Amish community.
Not all of the new Christian fiction is focused on the wholesome stories of days gone by. With caution, some publishers are venturing into some very dark places; tales of vampires and the undead.
Publishers, authors and others gathered in Denver this July for the Annual International Christian Retail Show. The consensus: there's a growing audience for Christian fiction that both comforts and challenges. More than a decade ago, “Left Behind” made Christian fiction accessible to everyone by quickly becoming a New York Times best-seller.
The Christian fiction industry has often has mimicked successful genres: Romance, Sci-fi, Legal Thrillers, with an emphasis on Romance. I meant to say romance twice.
Credit for the rise in interest in the Amish community and stories about them goes to Beverly Lewis, a Colorado author who seemingly invented the genre in 1997 with The Shunning, which was loosely based on her grandmother's experience of leaving her Old Order Mennonite upbringing to marry a Bible college student. The Shunning has sold more than 1 million copies.
Lewis tapped into a fascination with the Amish, who base their morals on a literal interpretation of the Bible and are known for their plain clothes and rejection of modern technology.
“Bonnet fiction,” as it has been referred to, plays to the base of the Christian fiction market: Three in four Christian fiction readers are women, according to current publishing research from the firm R.R. Bowker.
On the darker side of Christian fiction today is Eric Wilson's Jerusalem's Undead trilogy from Thomas Nelson, which follows the exploits of characters who have risen from the dead after being tainted by the blood of Judas, the betrayer of Jesus.
Allen Arnold, senior vice president and publisher for fiction for Nelson, said messages of hope reside even in exploits of the undead.
"It is fantasy, but he weaves it from a biblical perspective and ties it back to the power of blood," Arnold said - the atoning power of Christ's blood.
On Sept. 15, 2009, WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group will release a vampire story, Thirsty, by Christian chick-lit author Tracey Bateman. As expected, the marketing material for Thirsty mentions Twilight, the hit vampire book series and movie that was popular with many evangelicals who embraced the abstinence message of the series.
Bateman's lead vampire in Thirsty, Markus, is a metaphor for demons we all must overcome, said Shannon Marchese, an editor at WaterBrook Multnomah who sought out Bateman for the project. The object of Markus’ obsession, Nina, is a divorced alcoholic dealing with addiction. These are easy characters to relate to as we all know a Nina and, for that matter, a Markus in our lives.
"These are themes that work in the Christian life," Marchese said. "You have to fight to say, 'Am I going to choose unconditional love and redemption or a life of following obsessions, a life with holes in it?"
The challenge now will be seeing whether these dripping fangs leave fans of horror and Christians, who are used to something a little more tame, hungry for more.
Source: AP
On Screen: Exploring the Crossover Effect
By Kirk Lowe
(originally published online; CMA, August 2009)
Is it a good idea to take a product from the film or DVD market and try to sell it to the commercial TV market, and vice versa? Can a story that’s a commercial success, make the leap from one format to the other successfully and profitably? The examples discussed here are merely a sampling of the kind of show-turned-movie, movie-becomes-13-episode-TV-contract fantasies and fiascos we have been subjected to by the industry we love to study, and pray to one day be a part of. Let’s take a closer look at Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Film-to-TV), Star Trek (TV-to-Film), The Addams Family (TV-to-Film), and Stargate (Film-to-TV).
Buffy the Vampire Slayer was a horror/comedy film produced by 20th Century Fox in 1992. The film version of Buffy was about a teenage girl who learns that she was destined and designed to fight vampires. The catch was that Buffy was an unlikely heroine. She was a prissy/cheerleader-type, and not a rough-and-tumble vampire fighter.
The film pulled in $16.6 million US dollars in revenue. Measured against a contemporary film in the horror/comedy genre, The Addams Family (1991), the Buffy movie was not very successful. The Addams Family (1991), for example, generated revenue of $113.5 million US dollars. The Addams Family (1991) movie generated nearly ten times the amount of revenue as the vampire slayer did.
Through an undetermined course of events, however, Buffy was translated from the film/DVD market into commercial television. Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The TV Series ran from 1997-2003, using basically the same basic characters and scenario as the movie. The main characters were (no pun intended here) re-vamped to be less campy … more reality-based. That is, the series was as realistic as you can get in a small town in California that’s overrun by the undead. Produced by 20th Century Fox and broadcast via the WB network, Buffy the TV series won 21 awards during its six-year run, and spawned the TV series Angel. By comparison, the movie version of the same was never nominated for any awards.
Reasons for the success of the TV series, in general, in comparison to the film version may include the new cast, completely different than the movie except for one credited actor who did not even appear in the final version of the film, better direction[1], the director of the movie did not direct the TV series[2], and a concentration of more “…melodrama, metaphor, and morality…” and less cliché[3].
The TV series Star Trek and the Addams Family fared much better when they were converted to the Film market. The original Star Trek TV series ran from 1966-1969 after the 1965 pilot. Star Trek has spawned five other TV series with a combined run of 24 years and counting.
The Star Trek franchise has produced eleven motion pictures from 1979 to 2009. The sheer number of movies produced indicates the success of the Star Trek product when converted to the film market.
The Addams Family TV series, produced by ABC, spawned three other TV series and two movies. The Addams Family movies pulled in a combined estimated 160 million dollars in box office profit and garnered four awards. The first movie alone pulled in an estimated 75 million in profit.
Yet another film-to-TV conversion product, Stargate, did well enough at the box office to warrant a TV series spinoff. According to online sources, Stargate SG-1, the TV series, has had ten successful seasons, and has developed a cult-like fan following. Its longevity rivals the successful run of the Buffy TV series. In addition, the MGM-produced show has helped the Sci-Fi channel to its best ever summer ratings. Also, the show has garnered at least one award (Gemini Award for best visual effects).
MGM made plans in 1996 to turn the Stargate property into a TV series. As with the Buffy conversion, different producers were brought in for the TV series. While Dean Devlin produced, Roland Emmerich directed, and both wrote the movie, Jonathan Glassner and Brad Wright were brought in to run the TV series. Also, much like the Buffy conversion, different actors were hired for the TV series. In the TV series, Richard Dean Anderson held the title role, while Kurt Russell held the lead in the movie.
In conclusion, it may be a good idea to switch a film product to a TV product and vice verse if you handle it correctly. The Buffy and Stargate examples here converted well and did better when they were translated from film to TV. Likewise, the Addams Family and Star Trek examples did well when they were converted from TV to film.
If you are offered the opportunity to have your work cross over into a new area of media, it might be a good idea to build a client base first; over many years (or decades) like Star Trek and The Addams Family, for example. Your patience may be rewarded. Fan loyalty plays an important roll in the success or failure of your work, whether on screen or on paper.
When translating from film to TV, you might, as the makers of Buffy and Stargate did, bring in fresh ideas and new people who are used to working in the newly introduced medium. The same ideas you have for a movie may not work once you try to stretch them into a TV series. On the other side of that, some film ideas cannot fit into the 90-minute allotment for screen, and may have to be considered for a much larger project like a television miniseries or a regular seasonal series. With strong, relatable characters and a solid team of creative people, crossovers in the media industry can be successful and bring joy to viewers generation after generation.
[1] Rolling Stone [2] IMDB [3] Sonic Cinema; Startrek.com, Stargatesg1.com, http://www.rollingstone.com.
(originally published online; CMA, August 2009)
Is it a good idea to take a product from the film or DVD market and try to sell it to the commercial TV market, and vice versa? Can a story that’s a commercial success, make the leap from one format to the other successfully and profitably? The examples discussed here are merely a sampling of the kind of show-turned-movie, movie-becomes-13-episode-TV-contract fantasies and fiascos we have been subjected to by the industry we love to study, and pray to one day be a part of. Let’s take a closer look at Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Film-to-TV), Star Trek (TV-to-Film), The Addams Family (TV-to-Film), and Stargate (Film-to-TV).
Buffy the Vampire Slayer was a horror/comedy film produced by 20th Century Fox in 1992. The film version of Buffy was about a teenage girl who learns that she was destined and designed to fight vampires. The catch was that Buffy was an unlikely heroine. She was a prissy/cheerleader-type, and not a rough-and-tumble vampire fighter.
The film pulled in $16.6 million US dollars in revenue. Measured against a contemporary film in the horror/comedy genre, The Addams Family (1991), the Buffy movie was not very successful. The Addams Family (1991), for example, generated revenue of $113.5 million US dollars. The Addams Family (1991) movie generated nearly ten times the amount of revenue as the vampire slayer did.
Through an undetermined course of events, however, Buffy was translated from the film/DVD market into commercial television. Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The TV Series ran from 1997-2003, using basically the same basic characters and scenario as the movie. The main characters were (no pun intended here) re-vamped to be less campy … more reality-based. That is, the series was as realistic as you can get in a small town in California that’s overrun by the undead. Produced by 20th Century Fox and broadcast via the WB network, Buffy the TV series won 21 awards during its six-year run, and spawned the TV series Angel. By comparison, the movie version of the same was never nominated for any awards.
Reasons for the success of the TV series, in general, in comparison to the film version may include the new cast, completely different than the movie except for one credited actor who did not even appear in the final version of the film, better direction[1], the director of the movie did not direct the TV series[2], and a concentration of more “…melodrama, metaphor, and morality…” and less cliché[3].
The TV series Star Trek and the Addams Family fared much better when they were converted to the Film market. The original Star Trek TV series ran from 1966-1969 after the 1965 pilot. Star Trek has spawned five other TV series with a combined run of 24 years and counting.
The Star Trek franchise has produced eleven motion pictures from 1979 to 2009. The sheer number of movies produced indicates the success of the Star Trek product when converted to the film market.
The Addams Family TV series, produced by ABC, spawned three other TV series and two movies. The Addams Family movies pulled in a combined estimated 160 million dollars in box office profit and garnered four awards. The first movie alone pulled in an estimated 75 million in profit.
Yet another film-to-TV conversion product, Stargate, did well enough at the box office to warrant a TV series spinoff. According to online sources, Stargate SG-1, the TV series, has had ten successful seasons, and has developed a cult-like fan following. Its longevity rivals the successful run of the Buffy TV series. In addition, the MGM-produced show has helped the Sci-Fi channel to its best ever summer ratings. Also, the show has garnered at least one award (Gemini Award for best visual effects).
MGM made plans in 1996 to turn the Stargate property into a TV series. As with the Buffy conversion, different producers were brought in for the TV series. While Dean Devlin produced, Roland Emmerich directed, and both wrote the movie, Jonathan Glassner and Brad Wright were brought in to run the TV series. Also, much like the Buffy conversion, different actors were hired for the TV series. In the TV series, Richard Dean Anderson held the title role, while Kurt Russell held the lead in the movie.
In conclusion, it may be a good idea to switch a film product to a TV product and vice verse if you handle it correctly. The Buffy and Stargate examples here converted well and did better when they were translated from film to TV. Likewise, the Addams Family and Star Trek examples did well when they were converted from TV to film.
If you are offered the opportunity to have your work cross over into a new area of media, it might be a good idea to build a client base first; over many years (or decades) like Star Trek and The Addams Family, for example. Your patience may be rewarded. Fan loyalty plays an important roll in the success or failure of your work, whether on screen or on paper.
When translating from film to TV, you might, as the makers of Buffy and Stargate did, bring in fresh ideas and new people who are used to working in the newly introduced medium. The same ideas you have for a movie may not work once you try to stretch them into a TV series. On the other side of that, some film ideas cannot fit into the 90-minute allotment for screen, and may have to be considered for a much larger project like a television miniseries or a regular seasonal series. With strong, relatable characters and a solid team of creative people, crossovers in the media industry can be successful and bring joy to viewers generation after generation.
[1] Rolling Stone [2] IMDB [3] Sonic Cinema; Startrek.com, Stargatesg1.com, http://www.rollingstone.com.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)