Things are crazy but there is a light at the end of the tunnel! Media Scriptwriting is keeping me busy, but I have finished so many projects in the last couple of weeks. My group project and a powerpoint script are complete and I am almost done with my final project. It feels good to have so much accomplished!

In class today we talked about careers and it really made me think about my future. I have very high goals and I want to be successful in my profession, but right now I don't really know what the future holds. I understand that my field of interest is very competitive. I know that it will be a difficult journey as a communication professional, but I am very excited about the possibilities! We had the opportunity to listen to a friend of Dr. King's and some of the things that were discussed really caught me between the eyes. His main tip for aspiring writers was to know the material. Last summer, I had the chance to write stories for my local radio station. I would attend City Council meetings and then report on what I heard. My first few stories were absolutely terrible because I had no idea what I was writing about. I was too afraid to talk to people and ask questions and my lack of knowledge should in my work. Finally, I hit a brick wall and was forced to begin asking many questions. I started staying after the meetings and would talk to everyone on the board until I understood what was going on. I was then able to break down the news into easy terms that any person in my community could understand. I am hoping to work for my radio station again this summer and now I will not be afraid to ask lots of questions! My experience last summer is a good example of why it is important to know the material.

Wow I have really slacked off with this blogging lately. Everything is flying by and I am just trying to keep up!

Media Scriptwriting has been crazy with so many projects all at once. We did a National Newscast about a week ago and were told to rewrite them for Thursday. I thought that I had done really well on it, but after seeing all the red marks, I was very grateful for the chance to try again. That assignment included 8 short news stories with four of them using sound bites. Once I got started, I found that it was kind of fun to write little "teasers" about a news story. I made the mistake of putting the important facts at the end instead of starting out with them. Hopefully my rewrite will show major improvements!

We also started our group projects. My group decided to do a 2-3 minute short film. Luckily, one of my group members was very creative and able to come up with a simple, but entertaining plot right away. I enjoyed offering my input while working on the storyboard and trying to figure out what camera angles would look best. We are filming on Friday which will be a very exciting and completely new experience!

The next project that is coming up is the final project. This has to be a 10-15 minute script. I'm thinking about doing a children's video. It would probably have a very simple plot, but end with the characters learning some kind of life lesson. I'm not really sure where to start with this one but I am eager to begin!

News!

So this week in Media Scriptwriting we have started writing news stories. I am not really excited to start this. I enjoyed writing commercials because they allow me to be creative. I like coming up with my own topic and having freedom to write how I want to write. I feel like there is less freedom with news stories. There is a list of information that you need to include in a news story. My biggest challenge will be to still be creative when writing these stories. We have received our first assignment. We are to find two newspaper stories and rewrite them using both a hard and soft lead. I read a story and think, "Ok this sounds good," and then I struggle with trying to develop a completely different approach after the original is on my mind. Maybe I'll enjoy this more than I think and it's definitely going to be a skill worth perfecting!

Television Commercials

In media scriptwriting we are learning how to write commercials. I thought that this would be fun, it is, but I had no idea what commercials involve. Unlike radio, you have to think about the visuals (obviously). You have to consider your camera shot along with what is actually taking place on the screen. I don't really know how to describe the process, but writing my first television commercial script last night was very challenging! You have to explain the visuals, but also all the audio. There are also story boards which are small pictures of each scene. I know they aren't supposed to be really artistic and detailed, but I am very visual. I have so many ideas running through my mind and I really wish I could put them on paper! However, I have absolutely no artistic abilities so I have to rely on stick figures to get my ideas across. Tomorrow my partner and I will "pitch" our commercial idea to the class. I guess that will give me a good indication of how I am doing!

Bullies

I still don't understand this blogging stuff. Does anyone know how to post articles on here? I really need to become more computer savvy because I have no idea what I'm doing!

Classes are going well but I'm looking forward to spring break which is right around the corner! I am surprisingly enjoying writing these scripts even though I know I have a lot of improving to do! I wrote my second Cheez-It script and decided to try a dialogue. I created a playground scene with two kids fighting over Cheez-Its. The tag line was, "Don't want your kids to become bullies on the playground? Buy them Cheez-Its today!" I got some very helpful feedback in class and was encouraged to find a different word besides "bully." I understand that bullying could be a sensitive subject, but I feel like other words don't work as well. So my new challenge is to keep my theme while being more conscious of what people may think I'm supporting (violence, bullying, etc.)

Cheez-Its

Ok it took me way too long to figure out how to create a new post!

This week we had to pick a product and create a new campaign for it. I had no idea what that meant or where to start. While sitting at my desk, munching on my favorite snack (Cheez-Its) I decided why not do them? So I have already written a script targeting mothers and trying to convince them that Cheez-It crackers are the best snacks for their children. During my research process I thought that maybe I could compare the nutritional facts of Cheez-Its and another snack, potato chips. While doing this I realized that Cheez-Its were not that much healthier. I then changed my product to reduce fat Cheez-Its just so that I could show a more dramatic difference in the two products. Maybe that's a bad reason to switch entirely but whatever sells right?

Hello Readers!
This is my first blog even though I have never really been into the "blogging" stuff. I am doing this because it is a requirement for my scriptwriting class. It seems weird to write about myself and expect people to actually enjoy reading it, but I'll give it a try! I am a media communications major and media scriptwriting is a required class. I was not excited to take this class because I am not very interested in writing. However, we are only about a week and a half into this semester and I have surprisingly enjoyed it. I like the structure of the class and enjoy not having hour long lectures. I have struggled with writing each script, but I feel really good when I finish one that I'm proud of. I am excited to be a stronger writer. Even if I do not have a desire to write in the future, I know that the skills I learn this semester can be helpful in my future career. Bear with me this semester as I'm trying to figure this all out! It should be an interesting experience :)