Upcoming Projects

Of course, a smart writer (screenwriter or otherwise) never tells you their ideas in detail, maybe not their loglines, and maybe not even their general premise before getting a draft finished. Still, I thought I’d share with you some of what I’ve been attempting to accomplish or want to do in the next few months:

1) In 2010, I wrote “The Making of an Idealist: Pilot”, a college-based political drama about a future Senator’s coming of age. This spec pilot was based on the character of Senator Mike Adams, whom I’ve written novels about. I also alluded to the plot of 2009’s Confirmation, although the specifics and order of events were fairly different.

2) In July 2010, I completed a follow-up episode, “The Making of an Idealist: Plan B”, which focused on the theme of making and living with choices, both big and small. I also had the joy of creating a spit-angry lobbyist and several scenes paralleling collegiate and adult life.

3) In January 2011, I finished a rewrite of that pilot. Now entitled “Beltway Connections”, this political drama focuses instead on the DC-centric adult lives of Adams and his former classmates, with their college memories playing a much smaller and more comedic role.

Upcoming projects include:
4) An action/thriller movie based on dreams (but not at all like Freddy)
5) A spec script for the nerd sitcom The Big Bang Theory
6) My entry in the vampire genre
7) A pilot script for a Dilbert-like sitcom involving a super-serious type and his zanier family and coworkers
8) A feature-length satire loosely based on an online, text-based political simulator
9) A movie adaptation of the Adams novels, but only if I can generate something original and unique to add to that world that doesn’t seem derivative of other thrillers.

I would add a #10 to that list, a spec for my favorite show Chuck, if I thought it was worth my time – but bubble shows, especially veterans like Chuck, don’t give much shelf life to a spec script (unlike TBBT, which just got renewed for 3 more years).

Of course, this is a long list as it is. Six different writing projects in various stages of development. The two sitcom scripts are going to be particularly difficult as I’m not as funny on command as I am in impromptu settings.

To make it worse, I’m also participating in LogLine Friday, a usually weekly contest on Twitter for developing the best pitch for a movie premise. As it is open-ended as to content, it gives me an excuse on Fridays to ponder new story ideas. So like my Amazon Wish List, these upcoming projects will move up and down the list based on their competition and where/when my Muse strikes a fancy about something.

Have an idea on which you need some help? Want to help me with mine? Zap me an email or a tweet.