2012 Golden Globe Picks

It’s common knowledge that the Golden Globes are the most artificial awards in Hollywood, but with that aside, here are some of my picks.

BEST MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA

The Descendants

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA

Rooney Mara (by far) – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA

Michael Fassbender  – Shame

BEST MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICAL

Midnight in Paris

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICAL

Charlize Theron  – Young Adult

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICAL

Owen Wilson  – Midnight in Paris

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE

Viggo Mortensen  – A Dangerous Method

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE

Jessica Chastain – The Help

BEST DIRECTOR – MOTION PICTURE

Woody Allen – Midnight in Paris

BEST SCREENPLAY – MOTION PICTURE

Woody Allen – Midnight in Paris

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE – MOTION PICTURE

Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross  – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

BEST TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA

American Horror Story

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA

Mireille Enos  – The Killing

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES – DRAMA

Damian Lewis – Homeland

BEST MINI-SERIES

Mildred Pierce – HBO

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MINI-SERIES

Kate Winslet  – Mildred Pierce

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MINI-SERIES

William Hurt  – Too Big to Fail

BEST PERFORMANCE BY A SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A MINI-SERIES

Jessica Lange – American Horror Story

BEST PERFORMANCE BY A SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A MINI-SERIES

Tim Robbins  – Cinema Verite

The Secrets of Action Screenwriting Review

I’m a big fan of Bill Martell’s Blue Books and recently bought The Secrets of Action Screenwriting. The Blue Books typically sell for $2.99 on Amazon, but Secrets cost $9.99 and I was reluctant at first to pay that much for it. I’m glad I did, and this is the best of his Blue Books so far in my opinion. I’ll buy the new ones at $9.99 when they’re available without blinking.

Bill Martell is a working screenwriter with a ton or produced work under his belt, so he’s no wannabe telling you how to write. I really respect working writers that share their knowledge with others, and Bill is one of those. Secrets is useful and above all practical.  It isn’t filled with useless motivational platitudes and pontificating, ineffective elucidations on writing (aka, no big words or fancy advice). He uses plain language (example: “bullshit” is sprinkled throughout) and offers realistic guidance and tips you can use, right now.

I’m a novelist, not a screenwriter, but I always write a screenplay before I write a novel.  I spend a couple months on an outline, write a beat sheet, then write a screenplay before I set a word of the novel to paper. Know what I discovered after reading Secrets? My beat sheets could be a lot better- by 100 percent. I now follow Bill’s method he so clearly portrays in the book.

If you buy The Secrets of Action Screenwriting, I recommend going right to the Finishing Touches section near the end of the book. Bill presents thirty questions and items to consider before unleashing your work, and this applies to novels as well as screenplays. If there’s a concept or item that you’re unfamiliar with, such as a payback line, plot seed, rug pulls or villain’s plan, you can easily refer to the section that describes the concept in detail.

As a working writer on a continuous learning path, I put Bill Martell’s Blue Books at the top of my list.