Script Frenzy - Oh the Thinks you can think up

Today is the 1st April (Just in case you hadn't noticed). As well as being April Fool's Day and Palm Sunday, it is the start of Script Frenzy!

What is Script Frenzy? It's a challenge to write 100 pages of a script (film, TV, graphic novel etc.) in April. Basically, it is a month where aspiring writers, like myself, put random words down on a piece of blank paper in the hopes of filling it up. Some people try and go for something intelligable at the end, but for me (and my appalling writing skills) it's more about making sure that the sentences are at least sentences (i.e. one verb, one noun at least. Though sometimes, I don't even manage that). There isn't really much of a plot, there isn't really much sense. And why most people would think that was a crazy thing to do (Why write a script if it makes no sense?!), actually, some of my best writing, and most fun has come from it.

There are a few reasons for this (One of which is because I'm doing this with my equally crazy friend with the best sense of humour - half the time is spent in hysterics over what she's written!), but the one I want to mention today is linked to a Dr Suess quote I recently read (Because what normal teenager doesn't read Dr Suess books in their free time?!) :

'Oh, the Thinks you can think up, if only you try.'

Under such time pressure, you don't worry too much about how much sense stuff makes. It just goes on the page. And that means that you can think up some truely crazy things that you had never thought about before which is half the fun. Last year, my friend and I, writing a comedy script, ended up with two main characters who start off as villian and hero, and swap roles until the hero-turned-villian is defeated by the milkman (who at one point was tortured using bubbles. Yeah, that's right.). See? A little off-the-wall and all the funnier for it (in our opinion at least). The things we thought up, and just 'cos we tried. (A similar challenge in November, Nanowrimo, involves writing a novel. Even more random things happen there).

The above post made probably no sense, because we've already started writing uncomprehensible stuff. But I suppose the moral of this post is: Do lots of crazy insane creative challenges. You;d be surprised what you come up with!

P.S. For anyone interested in Script Frenzy, you can still sign up now! www.scriptfrenzy.org A month of crazy writing awaits!