How a Little Film That Could Inspired Me

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Let’s play a little game. What if I told you that one of the biggest movie hits from the late 1980s started out as a low-budget production (filmed for $5 million and grossed at least $214 million)? Or that the only company that would develop the script had only produced adult films? What about the fact that although this film centered around dancing, the soundtrack was not finalized until the final weeks of shooting, and the final dance scene almost had to be choreographed without the proper music?

If you guessed the movie “Dirty Dancing,” then you guessed right. However, I thought I was an expert on this film until I watched the Netflix docuseries called “The Movies that Made Us,” and they featured the movie in one of the episodes. While the production of the docuseries is a little cheesy (think the occasional animated graphics and interesting editing of the interviews) I learned a lot about this classic. This is truly one of those films that almost didn’t get made. The story was near and dear to screenwriter Eleanor Bergstein’s heart because she grew up going to a resort in the Catskills with her family each summer like the character of Frances “Baby” Houseman. She eventually teamed up with female producer Linda Gottlieb, who had an in at MGM. However, the powers to be at MGM kept changing, and the project eventually got put in limbo, and then released. Vestron Pictures purchased it, but up until that point the company had only been producing adult films. Yep, “Dirty Dancing” was their first feature-length film. (Cue the jokes here.)

The obstacles to making this movie go on and on. Slashed production budget, location issues, two romantic leads that didn’t really care for each other and fought a lot (did you know Sarah Jessica Parker and Billy Zane almost played Baby and Johnny?), a music supervisor that had to be fired, Patrick Swayze busting his knee on that scene where he jumped up in the air on a log, etc. And then one movie executive who was brought in to view the final cut advised the entire team to “burn the negative” and collect the insurance.

As I watched the show, I couldn’t help shake my head. How many times have we as writers worked to create a project that we loved with all our heart and souls but no one else could get? How many agent rejections have we received because the story wasn’t “on trend?” The screenwriter, producer and director (and the people at Vestron Pictures) were determined to see this project through, even if it was a miserable failure. And guess what, it wasn’t. Learning all this history behind the movie made me laugh, cry and nod my head in agreement. It lit a fire under me to dig out those old projects that are sitting on my hard-drive, or in stacks of typed-pages on my bookshelves. Because, darn it, if this little movie could become the blockbuster that it did, I can create something special, too.

And so can you.

Renee Roberson is an award-winning writer and magazine editor who is ready to start shopping her contemporary young adult novel around again. Learn more about her at FinishedPages.

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4 comments Dirty Dancing, netflix, The Movies that Made Us, writing advice, writing inspiration

Why I Loved "Stranger Things"

Streaming services can be both a source of inspiration and information for writers, but also a way for us to procrastinate at our finest! This past fall, after finishing a large project, I told myself I was finally going to binge the Netflix original series “Stranger Things,” since people had been talking about it for a few years and I was starting to get a case of FOMO (fear of missing out). The funny thing is, while a lot of my kids’ peers had been watching the series, neither my son nor daughter could really get into it. (Sometimes I feel like I’m the only teenager in the house, and I’m 43). My son would actually wander into the room while watching the show (usually at the scariest parts) and quickly scoot back out.

There was so much to love about the show. The first season begins with the disappearance of Will Byers, after he and his friends spend a chill evening together playing Dungeons and Dragons. An unexplained disappearance in a small town that also has its fair share of supernatural events centered around a national lab performing experiments for the United States Department of Energy? That was enough to hook me, a person who didn't miss an episode of “The X-Files” back in the day. I won’t give any spoilers, but the second and third seasons continued with the “mysterious happenings” theme. The featured actors that starred in movies that came out when I was a teenager were a big selling point (Winona Ryder, Matthew Modine, Paul Reiser, Sean Astin, Cary Elwes, to name a few). The show had different threads that appealed to both my husband and I (mystery and suspense for me, science fiction for him, and everything 1980s nostalgia for both of us). It also had cleverly woven in humorous throughout, like the clip below about one of the characters coming out as a “nerd.”

I connected with so many of the characters in the show, from the telekinetic “Eleven” with her kickass abilities to her childlike innocence, to Nancy, the teenager torn between her popular high school boyfriend and the brooding older brother of the missing boy. I also love to write about teenage characters, and I found it interesting that the creators of the show originally pitched "Stranger Things" to around 15 different cable networks, who all rejected it because of the emphasis it had on the child/teen characters in the midst of a paranormal mystery. They wanted it to either be a children’s show or a show solely focused on the police chief focusing on the paranormal events, not both. Netflix finally stepped up and bought the first season for an undisclosed amount. This gives me hope for a lot of my own work, which also centers around teenagers and paranormal events/mysteries.

Who else has watched “Stranger Things?” Did you develop the affection for it that I did? I’m excited for Season Four, which is currently in production.

Renee Roberson is an award-winning writer and magazine editor who lives in North Carolina. Learn more about her at FinishedPages.com.

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3 comments 1980s nostalgia, netflix, Renee Roberson, Stranger Things, TV show development, writing inspiration

Making Time For Time Off

One recent Friday, I made plans for a lunch date with friends and it was an hour’s drive to the restaurant so I knew it would be a long day away from work. One of my friends remarked that it must be hard, working at home. Yep, I agreed, it is hard. But not because writing is hard (though, ahem, it’s harder than it looks). Rather, having the self-discipline to work when you’re the boss is not always a walk in the park. Particularly when it’s a gorgeous spring day and you want to take a walk in the park instead of working…

When I want to take time off for other activities in my life, I have to plan for it. That’s not so difficult; it just takes a bit of organizing. What is difficult are those times that I can’t exactly plan for, the moments that come along either expected or unexpected, when emotionally, I’m not in the best place to write. I suspect that we all have those moments. But like most working writers, I have deadlines to meet, and curling into a ball under my desk is remarkably unhelpful. I have a few strategies that are helpful, though, starting with making time to take time off.

Accept that you need time for yourself. Why is it so hard for us to take care of ourselves? I mean, really, we’re pretty good at taking care of everybody else’s needs, but when it comes to our own needs, maybe not so much. We believe we must soldier on, no matter what. So first, give yourself a break. Give yourself permission to take time off.

Next, do something good for yourself. So you’ve taken that first step, which is taking a step away from work and writing. And now it’s time to take care of yourself. For me, that means meeting with friends for food and laughter, or heading to Tybee Island to reconnect with family. Maybe it’s a day of sitting on my deck, reading. I love to read, and like comfort foods, I have favorite books and authors that comfort my soul. It might even be binge-watching a season of one of my favorite comedies on Netflix. The point is, I indulge in something that makes me happy. Granted, it doesn’t change the reality of my life, but it gives my sea storm of emotions a chance to subside. And that’s a very good thing.

Then get back to work. Oh, that was kinda wonderful taking time off from work, wasn’t it? But too much time off and I start to defeat the purpose of taking time off. Namely, my work piles up and guilt sets in. Or I get too far behind and want to throw in the towel and walk away. And so the trick to taking time off is striking a balance. It’s not just hearing, but listening to that voice that says, “Okay, you’re better now.”

And you know what? Mostly, I am. I take a couple of good, deep breaths and appreciate the gifts I’ve been given, including this writing life I love. Time to get back to work.

~Cathy C. Hall 

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9 comments Cathy C. Hall, netflix, reading, Tybee Island, writing breaks

When Social Media Turns Against You

I love social media and many of you can relate. It’s nice to keep in touch with friends, family, loved, ones, and those you’ve met with similar interests. As a city-girl turned farm-girl, I’ve often said “without social media, I’d be much less happy”. I’m a people person and social media allows me to stay connected even when days go by without seeing anyone outside of my immediate family. My community has recently found itself in the middle of a social media storm…and it feels awful personal. I truly don’t want to get into the nuts and bolts of what’s going on because it’s getting enough attention, but I want to know what you would do in a scenario where social media turns against you.

For example:

1) You write what you hope is a bestselling novel and somehow you offend the local bakery owner who is suing you for slander. Everywhere you turn, there is your face with negative comments (because of course, those hit us the hardest and we struggle to see the good). What do you do to protect yourself and your family?

2) The chief of police in your home town is standing trial for drunk driving. Social media is making a joke out of the situation and people are talking about how everyone from your town is a no good drunk. What do you do to protect yourself from feeling ashamed of your heritage?

3) Your niece has been killed in a drunk driving accident. Her photograph and that of the driver is everywhere you look. Accusations are flying about what she was doing driving so late at night and people are saying hateful things about her and her parents who are in mourning. What do you do to find the positive and uplifting posts without muddling through the hurtful comments and posts about someone you love?

These examples are fictitious, but you get the drift…

Some people have chosen to deactivate their social media until things die down. Some have unfriended anyone who doesn’t feel the same way they do about this particular situation. Some have just stopped logging in. Others have chosen to engage with the negativity in hopes they’ll get their point across and help others understand.

I think it’s important for each of us to come up with a plan to protect ourselves. It’s next to impossible to hide all negativity from our newsfeed and for those of us who rely on social media for our daily pick-me-up, it can be devastating to consider deactivating our account. What’s your plan? Have you ever found yourself in a similar situation? What did you do?

Until I can come up with a plan, I'm going to hop back on my happy unicorn and chase those rainbows!

Crystal & Delphine

Crystal is a church musician, babywearing mama (aka crunchy mama), business owner, active journaler, writer and blogger, Blog Tour Manager with WOW! Women on Writing, Publicist with Dream of Things Publishing, as well as a dairy farmer. She lives in Manitowoc County, Wisconsin with her husband, four young children (Carmen 8, Andre 7, Breccan 2, and Delphine 10 months), two dogs, two rabbits, four little piggies, a handful of cats and kittens, and over 230 Holsteins.

You can find Crystal riding unicorns, blogging and reviewing books, baby carriers, cloth diapers, and all sorts of other stuff at:http://bringonlemons.blogspot.com/
and here: http://muffin.wow-womenonwriting.com/

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2 comments appeal, brendan dassey, community problem, killer, making of a murderer, murderer, netflix, social media, social media gone bad, steven avery, theresa halbach