J.R. SPAULDING, JR.
Where do you live (City, State, or Country)?
Detroit, Michigan Your script stood out among hundreds of others. What was the inspiration for your story and why did you write a script instead of a short story or a novel? This script has been a long time brewing. In 2000 my father died of pancreatic cancer. His nickname also happened to be Stoneface. I built around that core for the story. I tried writing prose when I was younger. Even wrote a novel. I had an agent for awhile, but no success. I gave that up and started writing stage plays; this is my first screenplay. My strength has always been in my dialogue, so I feel like I’m more suited to this format. How long did it take you to write your script...and what is your writing process? Do you outline...use index cards...white board...or just start with FADE IN? I’d say, all told, it takes me somewhere just under a year to pump out a script. I only write for a few hours a day, usually in the morning before I go to work, when the house is dark and quiet. I let the story evolve organically, but I’m a mathematical assasin when it comes to structure: scene and sequenqe length, plot points, character arc. If the story doesn’t fall into place to create the proper formulaic structure, I let loose the English teacher in me to slash away. Also, I’m not one of those write-then-edit kind of guys. I’m constantly going back and re-shaping it as I go. What is your ultimate ambition as a writer? To be rich and famous? To rule the world? Maybe. But I guess I’d be satisfied to see my work on screen. I’d love to walk into a movie theatre someday with my wife and kids, a few close friends, and watch my story unfold in a theatre with people who have no idea who I am. Was your entry at The Wiki Screenplay Contest a full script or “the first ten pages”? Why did you make that choice? Full script. I’m still new at this, and while I understand the importance of the first ten pages, at this point in my nascent career I need to gauge my progress and standing on the piece in its entirety. What’s your all-time favorite movie or television show...and why? Lord of the Rings. I’m an English teacher and I’ve always been a complete Tolkien nerd (which is also why I hated all The Hobbit movies). Or Gone with the Wind. I know it’s come under scrutiny of late, and I respect that, but it’s a special film to me because I watched it for the first time with my dad, at his suggestion, when I was a teenager. Just the two of us. It was a cool bonding experience. What advice do you have for writers hoping to win a contest or place as a finalist as you have? Write. Write. Write. Keep writing. Take every nugget of success – no matter how small – and treat it as if someone just handed you a gold bar. Amp up the positive and mute the negative. And for godsake, have some frickin’ fun while you’re doing it. What else are you working on that the world needs to know about? I’m working on a zombie movie, from the perspective of the zombie. Logline: After dying from the bite of a diseased insect, a mild-mannered nursing assistant slowly transforms into a zombie and discovers that living as the undead might not be so bad. |
