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Story Idea: Owen
Nov. 8th, 2010 02:53 pmTrying to get back into the habit of at least writing on a Mon-Wed-Fri schedule, and drawing a blank as to anything of substance, I choose to reminisce about one of the few ideas I've worked/am working with that is not mine.
The idea, which I've decided to name Owen as it was never given a real title, working or not, was one of my best friends'. At the time he was big on mafia and crime stories, mainly movies like Lucky Number Slevin and Unleashed, and had a thought of a story he wanted to write. The problem being that he, er, has no writing talent. Not really. None. At least he's aware of this fact. But since I did (presumably), he asked that we work together; he would write out his initial idea for a few scenes, send them to me, and I would rewrite them into something more resembling a coherent story.
Now there are/were several problems with this. He wasn't one much to elaborate on ideas, so after receiving his portion, I was having to ask about details he doesn't mention. Also, as this was being written in short bursts, and he not having a totally thought out narration, things were going to happen that I had no idea about and so couldn't fully elaborate to. He would read what I wrote and then use that as the basis of going forward, but that meant that while I could affect how the story moved forward, I couldn't see how exactly it did because I was only doing rewrites and extensions.
But the overall idea was fun, taking what someone else has laid down and expanding it into something more than it is. I imagine this is somewhat what ghostwriting is like, only with less pan-flashed celebrities who think people actually want to know how they got to the point of writing a book about how they got to wherever they are. Somewhat annoying at times, but still fun.
These aren't the whole of what's been written so far, but an example of what I get versus what I make it into. The first, and in bold, is the original part I got from my friend, without any fixing. The following, and not bolded, is my handy work.
***
( Owen 010 )
***
( Owen 101 )
***
And there ya go. The full section of what I've written can be found right here. There's not a whole lot more, mainly just the introduction part. As fun as it was, my friend hasn't yet gotten back to me with any more of the story, and as this isn't my idea I wouldn't know where to go with it.
The idea, which I've decided to name Owen as it was never given a real title, working or not, was one of my best friends'. At the time he was big on mafia and crime stories, mainly movies like Lucky Number Slevin and Unleashed, and had a thought of a story he wanted to write. The problem being that he, er, has no writing talent. Not really. None. At least he's aware of this fact. But since I did (presumably), he asked that we work together; he would write out his initial idea for a few scenes, send them to me, and I would rewrite them into something more resembling a coherent story.
Now there are/were several problems with this. He wasn't one much to elaborate on ideas, so after receiving his portion, I was having to ask about details he doesn't mention. Also, as this was being written in short bursts, and he not having a totally thought out narration, things were going to happen that I had no idea about and so couldn't fully elaborate to. He would read what I wrote and then use that as the basis of going forward, but that meant that while I could affect how the story moved forward, I couldn't see how exactly it did because I was only doing rewrites and extensions.
But the overall idea was fun, taking what someone else has laid down and expanding it into something more than it is. I imagine this is somewhat what ghostwriting is like, only with less pan-flashed celebrities who think people actually want to know how they got to the point of writing a book about how they got to wherever they are. Somewhat annoying at times, but still fun.
These aren't the whole of what's been written so far, but an example of what I get versus what I make it into. The first, and in bold, is the original part I got from my friend, without any fixing. The following, and not bolded, is my handy work.
***
( Owen 010 )
***
( Owen 101 )
***
And there ya go. The full section of what I've written can be found right here. There's not a whole lot more, mainly just the introduction part. As fun as it was, my friend hasn't yet gotten back to me with any more of the story, and as this isn't my idea I wouldn't know where to go with it.