Do you ever wish your story could be turned into a screenplay?

[lovecraft68]

I suppose that's why, even though it's a tempting fantasy, I never really wanted to be a filmmaker or even a screenwriter. I'd have trouble collaborating with all those other people, and the chances to actually make a film and have it distributed are few and far between. Of course, the chances of making any money as a "regular" writer aren't very good either, but at least I can do it whenever my "mind's eye" comes up with an idea. And several thousand people on Lit will likely at least view it, if not actually read the whole thing.

oops, replying to wrong person
um...hey, how are you?

 

[SimonDoom]

Definitely. I play my stories as movies in my head as I write them, so it's fun to imagine it actually happening. I don't know if there's any market for these stories in film form, though.

 

[lovecraft68]

OP, you've started a "parade/promote your stories" ego trip thread - probably unintentionally!

For sure, most of us imagine our stories in a visual sense - the "mind's eye", so to speak. To that extent, like you I also have a hankering - doomed for the reasons you mention - to actually see my ideas acted out. Somehow though I can't help but feel that the transition from text to the moving image would leave something valuable behind. In my humble opinion, very few books have been done justice by films that they have inspired.

Isn't this entire forum an ego trip of self promotion? As for your point about the transition, depends on the genre.

If you're talking pure erotica, just go to pornhub where you'll find your plot already done a 100 times.
But the story I mentioned has sex scenes, but also a schizophrenic female serial killer who is targeting adulterous men, the detectives after her including one who is a womanizer which makes him her chosen prey, and several gory murders a couple of knock down drag out fight scenes. It has plenty to work in visual form.

An indy film can be made for 3-5k usually raised on kickstarters and go fund me providing you don't need flashy effects, mine wouldn't

On the other hand my series about a fire controlling which with a crow familiar who kills people would require real effects and a big budget.

Movies like this are the equal to self publishing as an author. Small budget, you make and distribute your own DVD's at shows etc...

Its on my bucket list to see it done, just haven't met the right person yet. I'll drop 5k of my own money into it and see if the director can match it in a fund raiser.

 

[lovecraft68]

Definitely. I play my stories as movies in my head as I write them, so it's fun to imagine it actually happening. I don't know if there's any market for these stories in film form, though.

I'll go you one better. I enjoy watching clips of scenes from movies on You tube, even if its a movie I'd never watch in its entirety it can have cool scenes.

But I envision how if my work was ever made into a series or movie seeing clips of it with the same type of clip titles. "Abigail kills the Devil's Lieutenant" Medusa vs Bakulu, season two finale

My wife calls this visioning and its a form of law of attraction, keep seeing it, you can make it real

Cute thought and all, but most likely never a reality

 

[SimonDoom]

Anybody know erotic video sites that take screenplays for short erotic video? It might be fun to try that.

 

[lovecraft68]

Anybody know erotic video sites that take screenplays for short erotic video? It might be fun to try that.

Nubile Films advertised here a couple years ago, and it turned out to be legit. Maybe you could try contacting them. Pretty easy money, most of their scenes don't even have dialogue, people just start out in a room, someone else comes in and they start making out.

 

[SteelPoint]

Isn't this entire forum an ego trip of self promotion? As for your point about the transition, depends on the genre.

If you're talking pure erotica, just go to pornhub where you'll find your plot already done a 100 times.
But the story I mentioned has sex scenes, but also a schizophrenic female serial killer who is targeting adulterous men, the detectives after her including one who is a womanizer which makes him her chosen prey, and several gory murders a couple of knock down drag out fight scenes. It has plenty to work in visual form.

An indy film can be made for 3-5k usually raised on kickstarters and go fund me providing you don't need flashy effects, mine wouldn't

On the other hand my series about a fire controlling which with a crow familiar who kills people would require real effects and a big budget.

Movies like this are the equal to self publishing as an author. Small budget, you make and distribute your own DVD's at shows etc...

Its on my bucket list to see it done, just haven't met the right person yet. I'll drop 5k of my own money into it and see if the director can match it in a fund raiser.

It's called "Author's Hangout". Make of that what you will but I don't see anything that says it's primarily an invitation to ego-stroke. To me, it also similarly doesn't look like the OP was making such an invitation via this thread but rather simply asking whether other writers on here had that desire/feeling. It makes me chuckle to see how many people have leapt to the other conclusion. Sort of shows their actual agenda.

 

[PennameWombat]

I have a few acquaintances who are involved in TV/movies. One has directed a few well-received documentaries and has had small roles in small and big-budget movies. He wrote his own script, and used kickstarter (I contributed) and pulled in a couple of partners to fund it and essentially had creative control. It was… not all that good. They took it to a few small festivals, but failed to get a distribution deal. (The plot centered on a professional humiliatrix, so possibly might’ve fit as an adaptation from a story here.)

Would I object if someone asked to adapt one of my stories here? Probably not. But no, I don’t wish for it nor expect it, nor would I put in any effort to do such myself. Having witnessed the above-described effort as well as another case where I spent time discussing some of the differences between writing for the page and for the screen with a minor-league screenwriter convinced me whatever trivial skills I have in the former, I ain’t got the latter.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

Definitely. I play my stories as movies in my head as I write them, so it's fun to imagine it actually happening. I don't know if there's any market for these stories in film form, though.

Yep, me too.

And a screenplay would probably have a lot more dialog than most of the stories on here, or they would have to make the narrative a voice over, or a lot of camera cuts from different points of view. And some of the stories here at lit have absolutely no dialog, what you would get is a 2 minute clip of two people fucking.

 

[gunhilltrain]

I have a few acquaintances who are involved in TV/movies. One has directed a few well-received documentaries and has had small roles in small and big-budget movies. He wrote his own script, and used kickstarter (I contributed) and pulled in a couple of partners to fund it and essentially had creative control. It was… not all that good. They took it to a few small festivals, but failed to get a distribution deal. (The plot centered on a professional humiliatrix, so possibly might’ve fit as an adaptation from a story here.)

Would I object if someone asked to adapt one of my stories here? Probably not. But no, I don’t wish for it nor expect it, nor would I put in any effort to do such myself. Having witnessed the above-described effort as well as another case where I spent time discussing some of the differences between writing for the page and for the screen with a minor-league screenwriter convinced me whatever trivial skills I have in the former, I ain’t got the latter.

Even if only ten percent of the population aspires towards some kind of creative endeavor (music, filmmaking, writing, whatever), that's still millions of people in the United States. The market is just not big enough for most of them to make any money. Up here, there may be people who dream of getting a deal for a rap album or whatever, but when it comes to paying the bills, most of them are going to be working at Dollar General or doing delivery gigs for Uber Eats.

The saddest ones are those who used to be successful but aged out of it or used up their best ideas. I love this scene in Sunset Boulevard where Norma has become too old for acting but she tries to get Joe to help her break into screenwriting.

It's also pretty obvious that Joe and Norma have, ah, something going on with each other, but in 1950 it had to be suggested, not depicted.

 

[Magineer]

Yep, me too.

And a screenplay would probably have a lot more dialog than most of the stories on here, or they would have to make the narrative a voice over, or a lot of camera cuts from different points of view. And some of the stories here at lit have absolutely no dialog, what you would get is a 2 minute clip of two people fucking.

Oh how true. Never mind however much dialogue... simple descriptions of fucking, minus plot, character descriptions and back stories etc., are sadly pretty well par for the course hereabouts. The term 'story' is strained well beyond breaking point in vastly more than the charitable 'some' which you use. Yes, those 'authors' will find a ready market for their wares in the porn industry.

No, I was simply wondering how often the idea occurs to writers here that a particular plot with a particular set of characters would make a good visual entertainment. Not all do, that's a given. I know some of mine would be better than others in that regard. Someone earlier used the word 'cinematic' and maybe that would be the correct term..?

 

[SimonDoom]

There's a part of me that thinks there is an untapped market out there for quality, explicit erotic films or short films. There are a few websites and producers out there that make something like that. The thing I have mind is like the short erotic film by Tinto Brass, Ultimo Metro. It's about a young man waiting for a subway train who watches a gorgeous woman strip for him on the other side of the tracks. There's no dialogue, that I can recall, but it has a story, eroticism, tension, and some humor. It's well filmed. It's incredibly sexy. You can find it on the Internet. It feels to me like a Literotica story turned into a short film.

It would be amazing to see some of the stories here turned into movies.

 

[Magineer]

There's a part of me that thinks there is an untapped market out there for quality, explicit erotic films or short films. There are a few websites and producers out there that make something like that. The thing I have mind is like the short erotic film by Tinto Brass, Ultimo Metro. It's about a young man waiting for a subway train who watches a gorgeous woman strip for him on the other side of the tracks. There's no dialogue, that I can recall, but it has a story, eroticism, tension, and some humor. It's well filmed. It's incredibly sexy. You can find it on the Internet. It feels to me like a Literotica story turned into a short film.

It would be amazing to see some of the stories here turned into movies.

With the accent on 'some'! And I'd agree wholeheartedly. Provided there's an actual story or credible plot, I can easily imagine short and powerful erotic tales being given the screen treatment.

Back in the '80s, here in the UK there was a TV series called 'Tales of the Unexpected' in which, in all but name, short stories were acted out - often ones with a dark, comic or strange side. My feeling is that, but for the inevitable 'porn' accusation, this format would just as easily suit erotica and find a ready audience.

David Duchovny and his 'Red Shoe Diaries', mentioned to me by PM, went maybe 50% along the path but obviously feared the Bible Belt reaction to going anywhere near all the way.

 

[SimonDoom]

With the accent on 'some'! And I'd agree wholeheartedly. Provided there's an actual story or credible plot, I can easily imagine short and powerful erotic tales being given the screen treatment.

Back in the '80s, here in the UK there was a TV series called 'Tales of the Unexpected' in which, in all but name, short stories were acted out - often ones with a dark, comic or strange side. My feeling is that, but for the inevitable 'porn' accusation, this format would just as easily suit erotica and find a ready audience.

David Duchovny and his 'Red Shoe Diaries', mentioned to me by PM, went maybe 50% along the path but obviously feared the Bible Belt reaction to going anywhere near all the way.

That's the threshold that still has to be crossed. Film that is explicit (and therefore real) while also being intelligent. Red Shoe Diaries was sexy but soft core. It pulled its punches. I think it would be interesting to see erotic films that were intelligent but didn't pull back, that showed sex the way it is. There's a little bit of it, but I think it's still taboo, in the USA at least.

 

[lovecraft68]

It's called "Author's Hangout". Make of that what you will but I don't see anything that says it's primarily an invitation to ego-stroke. To me, it also similarly doesn't look like the OP was making such an invitation via this thread but rather simply asking whether other writers on here had that desire/feeling. It makes me chuckle to see how many people have leapt to the other conclusion. Sort of shows their actual agenda.

The forum is here to discuss writing. No one is going to talk about writing without mentioning their writing. Is that an ego stroke? Depends how you want to see it. This thread is about whether or not you'd want to see-or have-their work turned into a screen play. How does that conversation carry on without talking about their stories.

I wouldn't call it agenda, I go with base human nature.

 

[SteelPoint]

The forum is here to discuss writing. No one is going to talk about writing without mentioning their writing. Is that an ego stroke? Depends how you want to see it. This thread is about whether or not you'd want to see-or have-their work turned into a screen play. How does that conversation carry on without talking about their stories.

I wouldn't call it agenda, I go with base human nature.

Er... by the exceedingly simple expedient, to which I'd guess the OP was alluding, of talking in general terms? You know: without the pretty blatant referring to specific, named titles? There's no necessity whatsoever to do that in order to make relevant observations on this thread.

I have to sigh and shrug.

I really don't "get" the febrile obsession of many here to have their work appear on these pages and to agonise over the minutiae of its processing and reception. Are their lives really so short-horizoned as to have them believe that anyone out there in the broader world really gives a tinker's curse over Literotica and its contents? It mystifies me.

 

[Brutal_One]

Yes indeed. The screenplay is a different type of writing. But yes I have started the process of converting my novel (at least the first part) into a screenplay.

Of course much like a lot of writing there is in reality zero chance of it ever being turned into a movie (and besides it would need to be finished).

But yes whilst it is a very different form of writing what I have found is it can help you be a better writer as it mandates that you can covert the story into something that can be filmed so it is a very different prospect as to what can be seen rather than what can be inferred. Also as part of that I picked up a copy of Syd Field’s ‘Screenplay’, arguably the ’bible’ on how to approach the art of writing a screenplay - the tag line to the book is from ‘Concept to Finished Script’.

It’s also a neat idea to take a film you love that is based on a book and get the screenplay for the film. This will give you a better appreciation of the significant difference in writing a novel versus writing a screenplay.

Brutal One

 

[MsNatalie99]

Er... by the exceedingly simple expedient, to which I'd guess the OP was alluding, of talking in general terms? You know: without the pretty blatant referring to specific, named titles? There's no necessity whatsoever to do that in order to make relevant observations on this thread.

I have to sigh and shrug.

I really don't "get" the febrile obsession of many here to have their work appear on these pages and to agonise over the minutiae of its processing and reception. Are their lives really so short-horizoned as to have them believe that anyone out there in the broader world really gives a tinker's curse over Literotica and its contents? It mystifies me.

You don't have to get it. Who cares if it will ever happen. Sometimes It's just fun to think "what if".

 

[gunhilltrain]

Yes indeed. The screenplay is a different type of writing. But yes I have started the process of converting my novel (at least the first part) into a screenplay.

Of course much like a lot of writing there is in reality zero chance of it ever being turned into a movie (and besides it would need to be finished).

But yes whilst it is a very different form of writing what I have found is it can help you be a better writer as it mandates that you can covert the story into something that can be filmed so it is a very different prospect as to what can be seen rather than what can be inferred. Also as part of that I picked up a copy of Syd Field’s ‘Screenplay’, arguably the ’bible’ on how to approach the art of writing a screenplay - the tag line to the book is from ‘Concept to Finished Script’.

It’s also a neat idea to take a film you love that is based on a book and get the screenplay for the film. This will give you a better appreciation of the significant difference in writing a novel versus writing a screenplay.

Brutal One

I'm planning (maybe) to go the other way and convert a screenplay into well, not a novel, but a series which is sort of a novella perhaps. There are a few scenes that are mostly visual but those would be expensive and difficult to film. It's not quite the same to describe them with just words, but I'll have to see how it goes.

As MsNatatlie99 said, it was fun to visualize the screenplay even though I knew it was never going to be filmed. But I think the OP was half-serious, at least, about the story being done in front of a camera.

 

[Magineer]

I'm planning (maybe) to go the other way and convert a screenplay into well, not a novel, but a series which is sort of a novella perhaps. There are a few scenes that are mostly visual but those would be expensive and difficult to film. It's not quite the same to describe them with just words, but I'll have to see how it goes.

As MsNatatlie99 said, it was fun to visualize the screenplay even though I knew it was never going to be filmed. But I think the OP was half-serious, at least, about the story being done in front of a camera.

Certainly I was... but, as said, really only in a wistful way.

Even with good actors and the necessary minimal (as every author here would have it!) adapting of the text to give a screenplay, I'd probably find that something wasn't quite to my liking about the finished result! That's the way that switching to a different medium - not to mention compromising with the views of others - tends to take you. In the final analysis, if you want something that pleases you to every last nth degree, it's probably better that you write it just for yourself.

And that's exactly what I do.

 

[gunhilltrain]

Certainly I was... but, as said, really only in a wistful way.

Even with good actors and the necessary minimal (as every author here would have it!) adapting of the text to give a screenplay, I'd probably find that something wasn't quite to my liking about the finished result! That's the way that switching to a different medium - not to mention compromising with the views of others - tends to take you. In the final analysis, if you want something that pleases you to every last nth degree, it's probably better that you write it just for yourself.

And that's exactly what I do.

There are certainly people who feel they must be in filmmaking. A handful get the chance to write, direct, hire the cast - although usually, they also need a cinematographer, a sound expert, and so forth. It's more likely that people will wind up specializing as a director, a screenwriter, an actor. They may try their hand at something else, but they accept the fact that it's going to be a collaborative process and they can't do it all. Marlon Brando tried directing at least once - I think it was The Missouri Breaks - and found that he didn't like that level of responsibility, the amount of detail he had to deal with.

 

[lovecraft68]

Er... by the exceedingly simple expedient, to which I'd guess the OP was alluding, of talking in general terms? You know: without the pretty blatant referring to specific, named titles? There's no necessity whatsoever to do that in order to make relevant observations on this thread.

I have to sigh and shrug.

I really don't "get" the febrile obsession of many here to have their work appear on these pages and to agonise over the minutiae of its processing and reception. Are their lives really so short-horizoned as to have them believe that anyone out there in the broader world really gives a tinker's curse over Literotica and its contents? It mystifies me.

You don't have any stories here, so you'll have to excuse me for not taking anything you say seriously. Either you don't post stories and you're simply a troll trying to punch out of his below average IQ score by borrowing Auden James word of the day calendar.

Or...you do post stories here, but created this alt because you want to poke people and not have a bomb dropped on your stories. Either way, you're just being argumentative for the sake of doing so.

I will respond to your last post by simply saying WE ARE ON LITEROTICA SO WHY WOULDN'T PEOPLE FOCUS ON LITERTICA IN THEIR POSTS? I mean, wow, that's as crazy as people talking baseball at a baseball game.

Your whole schtick is projecting your own jealousy and feelings of inadequacies on others.

Which might give people here who pay attention an idea of who you are.

 

[other2other1]

I've had a couple of readers comment that my stories could be turned into a movie, I must admit that it does make me blush, but feel proud that someone thought my plot was good enough to jump off the page.

The closest I have gotten is taking my first series and start reworking it into a longer novel format that I am thinking of posting as a story on Amazon, but that will take me a while as I want to get a few other stories and another two series out first. Also, I run four companies, so my writing takes a back seat.

Again the thought that someone would think of turning one of my stories into TV or a movie is kind of a cool thought...

 

[SteelPoint]

You don't have any stories here, so you'll have to excuse me for not taking anything you say seriously. Either you don't post stories and you're simply a troll trying to punch out of his below average IQ score by borrowing Auden James word of the day calendar.

Or...you do post stories here, but created this alt because you want to poke people and not have a bomb dropped on your stories. Either way, you're just being argumentative for the sake of doing so.

I will respond to your last post by simply saying WE ARE ON LITEROTICA SO WHY WOULDN'T PEOPLE FOCUS ON LITERTICA IN THEIR POSTS? I mean, wow, that's as crazy as people talking baseball at a baseball game.

Your whole schtick is projecting your own jealousy and feelings of inadequacies on others.

Which might give people here who pay attention an idea of who you are.

Wow. Sensitive or what? I wasn't looking for confrontation with you nor shall I engage in your puerile shouting and name calling. I'll leave others to form their own judgement as to what that says about you.

I'll simply point to the very obvious third possibility to your tendentious "either... or", which is that it's actually possible to be a writer but choose not to "publish" (excuse me for the suppressed guffaw) on this site... a choice which does not confer "troll" status upon a person, despite your rather silly beliefs. You've been on this site a long time but apparently have yet to take on board the fact that the vast majority of members here do not post stories, whether they write them or not. To put things bluntly, not all of us are that desperate.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

Oh how true. Never mind however much dialogue... simple descriptions of fucking, minus plot, character descriptions and back stories etc., are sadly pretty well par for the course hereabouts. The term 'story' is strained well beyond breaking point in vastly more than the charitable 'some' which you use. Yes, those 'authors' will find a ready market for their wares in the porn industry.

No, I was simply wondering how often the idea occurs to writers here that a particular plot with a particular set of characters would make a good visual entertainment. Not all do, that's a given. I know some of mine would be better than others in that regard. Someone earlier used the word 'cinematic' and maybe that would be the correct term..?

I have a couple of Sci-Fi stories that could be turned into a screenplay. I even dabbled at it a little but I don't have the talent for screenplays. The one I was playing with is over 230,000 words and has, could have, so many spinoffs that a screenwriter would be able to make a career out of it.