Superfreaks/ACRA: Superfreaks Season 2 Trade Etherback #1 (Collecting #'s 1-5)

[Martin Phipps]

On May 22, 1:51 pm, Tom Russell <milos_par... at yahoo.com> wrote:

> And I think the problem is, if I can carry Martin's television
> metaphor a bit further-- it's that Superfreaks is being produced with
> syndication in mind.  Series produced for syndication-- or with an eye
> towards it-- whether they be sitcoms or dramas-- often have 20+
> episodes per season.  In a batch of 20-24 episodes, you'll have two or
> three really great ones, a handful of decent ones, and a lot of
> clunkers.

Oh, no no no, I'd need over seventy "episodes" to qualify for
syndication and I don't think I have that in me: I might be barely
able to finish Season 2 by this time next year.  (I have a cool idea
for #11 that I might start working on this weekend.)

> Now, Martin-- I know that you write, just as I do, because you enjoy
> writing.  It's casual and fun.  (Your stance against editing is well
> documented.)  And nothing I'm going to say is going to change that,
> nor would I want to.

It's not a stance against editing (ie correcting mistakes) but a
stance against rewriting.  I find it difficult to imagine a story
taking place different from the way it already happened in my head.
And as the meaning of dialogue depends on the situation in which it is
said, it is not a trivial matter of moving scenes around: perfectly
good dialogue will sound stilted in the wrong context.

I spend more time rewriting courtroom scenes because people prepare
what they are going to say so dialogue in courtroom scenes _always_
sounds a bit stilted (and deliberately so) compared to casual dialogue
(which is unrehearsed).  If cops are questioning a suspect and his
answers sound rehearsed then it is a good indication that he is guilty
(both in a story and in real life).

Martin