Fan To Pro - The Blog of Professional Geekery

Lost in Translation - Behind the Scenes 1

A brief look into the making of an entry

Inspired by Rob's "Launch or Lunch" series and needing some filler, I've put this together to show the thought processes (or lack thereof) into the "Lost in Translation" series.

The first step is brainstorming, either to get ideas for future entries or to place ideas for a specific subject down. I have a list of entries with one liners to remind me of the basic plan, and keep adding as I run into more adaptations, remakes, and reboots. In general, I try to limit myself to those that I have access to, either in my own collections or those that are easy to acquire; this holds for both the original and the remake since I compare the two. I also try to have a mix of well known and obscure so that readers don't lose patience when I indulge myself from time to time. I usually try to refresh my knowledge by reading/watching/listening/playing both to keep comparisons fresh. One of the best things about DVDs over video is the commentary track; a good commentary will include insights from the participants about why decisions were made.

From brainstorming comes the decision; which reboot to examine. This can be one of the toughest choices. Sometimes I have ideas for multiple entries and can only work on just one at a time. (I'd try multiple entries at once, but I'd need a second set of arms to work the second keyboard.) Once that choice is made, I mull over the approach I want to take. A typical entry includes the history of the original, sometimes the background of the creator or creators, what happened with the original material, when the adaptation/reboot/remake (ARR from here on), the problems the ARR faced, and whether those problems were resolved, avoided, or appeared. The first draft can have some tense issues as I jump between past and present, and will have question marks throughout as I mark the text for later fact checking.

Once I'm satisfied with the first draft, I go through it again, cleaning grammar and spelling and noting down in a separate file what details need to be clarified. I usually let the first draft sit for a bit so I don't gloss over errors by accident. (That's right; all errors you see have a matte finish!) Oh, and I check for inappropriate humour. An entry about a comedic subject, like The Naked Gun, will have comedic asides and a lighter tone than a more serious subject, like Battlestar Galactica.

The fact checking is mostly to confirm dates. Any other details are taken either from the source directly or a reliable secondary source. When either the ARR or the original is hard to track down, I do rely on Internet sources, but backed up by my existing knowledge to avoid embarassing mistakes, like saying The Blues Brothers came out in 2008. I am well aware of the problem of wikiality. Fortunately, most of my list can be verified easily. An odd case coming up is the BattleTech animated series, where, because the series isn't readily available, I'm relying on a sourcebook produced in support of the show for the original game. Another case, also to come eventually, is the Heavy Gear animated series, where it's easier to ask the members of Dream Pod 9, the publishers of the wargame, and the Pod Corps, their demo team, about the series. Networking - good for blogs, good for me!

Now I've come to the hardest parts of the entries - the title and the tagline. I'm regretting the cliffhangereque approach I've taken, laying down a hint of what's next instead of just saying it outright. It's easy to use "boldly go where no reboot has gone before" and still expect people to realize what's next. Coming up with a tag for the BattleTech and Heavy Gear adapations will be harder due to their relative obscurity. The titles aren't much easier. Some are fairly obvious, such as the Casino Royale entry, "Number 007 - Licence to Reboot". Others, not so much. Hindsight being 20/20, I probably should have thought this through a bit more. C'est la vie.

The last thing I do before scheduling the post, after all the read overs, fact checking, corrections, corrections of corrections, and questioning myself for starting this, is figure out a decent order. I want to make sure I don't do too much the same over and over, like two Star Trek entries in a row, or two RPG adaptations one after the other. Variety is the spice of life. I want to make sure failures are examined as well as successes, as long as the sanity loss isn't too great. In my to-do file, I keep a list of what I've done, what's in draft, what's on deck, and the untouched. By examining the completed entry list, I can tell what I've focused on too much or too little and use that to pick what to write about next.

Finally, the scheduling. I take this as one last spellcheck, though I sometimes disagree with my browser on spellings; tends to be a grey area. I add bolding and italics as needed, add hyperlinks, fix formatting, generally use the posting to administer final touches. Then I schedule and ignore the entry until it appears on its appointed date. Or panic if the system messed up and posted immediately. Mainly ignore.

I am trying to create a buffer. It's very useful and prevents a panic when a Saturday approaches and there's nothing. I'm a bit remiss, but life events tend to trump the entry. The main buffer I'll need will be in November, where NaNoWriMo will eat my brain like a zombie ninja. Maybe a zombie pirate T-rex ninja. Anyway, yeah, buffer. The more, the better.

For those wondering what I use to write the entries, well, brace yourself. Notepad. Yep, a basic text editor. It opens quickly, doesn't have formatting issues when doing a copy and paste (except for weirdly placed carriage returns/line feeds, which is easily fixed after the paste), and forces me to make the final read through to catch all the markings I made while typing. And part of it is force of habit from writing fanfiction in the Usenet days. Text-only was the default then.

And, before I end, a note about success. I've realized that I haven't really defined what a successful ARR is. There's the obvious - the ARR made money. The Phantom Menace definitely qualifies there. Then there's fan approval; fandom accepts the final product as being canon. The Phantom Menace, not as successful there as hoped, but Serenity definitely qualifies. So, what would a successful ARR be? Is it one that gains fan acceptance despite a poor general reception? One that is immensely successful in either ratings, sales, or box office receipts but is derided by fans? A mix?

And there you have it, a look behind the scenes. This way to the egress.

Next time, back into the dungeon.

Launch or Be Lunch, Day 13, - Realism vs. Reality vs. Realization vs. Real Estate? (Quick, Come Up With Another Word!)

As we discussed yesterday, research is the key to getting everything right - or at least plausible - in your works.  But in all that, there's a question that should really be asked.

Why?

Or rather, does everything need to be true and accurate in all details?  Yes, it helps to know that the point end of the sword is not the part that you hold, and that the moon is not made of green cheese.  But what it if was?  What if ol' Luna were composed of Swiss? (sorry, couldn't come up with a gouda enough variety).  What if there was air in space?  What if we just threw the book out?

And, of course, it goes without saying that some things just don't mesh well in a realistic setting.

The Deathly Mellows

Without warning, it strikes.  It’s 2 AM, you’re half asleep, and suddenly... INSPIRATION!   Hopefully, you’ll find the energy to write your idea down before falling asleep, but in the morning, what happens?  You’ve got to jump out of bed and go to work/school/job search/other responsibility, and by the time you catch a moment to read your idea over, it’s lost its sparkle.  What was “ZOMG, MUST DO!” at 2 AM looks kind of “meh,” by that evening.  All that stress piling up over the course of your day can drain your energy, and make fun ideas look a lot less appealing.  This can be a useful filter for making sure you don’t waste time on things that don’t really need doing, but what if you want to take that extra step and get them done anyway? 

Geeky Things to Do At Work

So now and then you want a way to let out your inner geek at work?  Here's a few suggestions to keep your sanity, geekry, and fannity (is that a word?).  Of course, use your own discretion, but otherwise, try these . . .

1. Take screenshots of your favroite TV, move, or anime and make them into Motivators.
2. Arrange the action figures on your desk so they're having a meeting.  Give them little flowcharts.
3. Give yourself a title that fits your interest, such as "Sparkly Vampire Manager" or "Metroid Hunter." Put it on your cubicle or desk nameplate.
4. Print out LOLs using your favorite characters and shows.  Hang them on the outside of your cube and change them to fit your mood.
5. Decorate your cube/office with as many posters as allowable.
6. Take a favorite quote from a show/film/anime/manga/book.  Get it printed out and framed in the fanciest way and frame possible.  Hang it up on a wall/in your cube and see how long it takes people to notice what it is.
7. Use the action figures at your desk to hold office supplies.
8. Create a book/DVD trade group at work to trade neat stuff.
9. When you go to a convention, find amusing fun little collectables to get your co-workers.
10. Have a viewing party or outing for any movie you want to see and convince co-workers to go.
11. On Halloween, wear one of your cosplay outfits.
12. If you use color coded charts for assignments, assign each person an appropriately color-coded sentai character, superhero, or pokemon on the chart for a laugh.
13. In the books on your desk, mix in geeky stuff, manga, etc.  See who notices.
14. Create an internal newsletter (or add to an existing one) for reviews of movies, books, etc.
15. Get an appropriately fannish lunchbox.  Keep candy in it at your desk and chat with people when they come by for a snack.
16. If you have to give people, computers, etc. code names, pick ones related to your fandom.
17. Share your favorite shows/movies via Netflix connections.
18. Make sure your screen background is something relevantly geeky.
19. If you have a company mascot, get or make a figure of them.  Pose them with other action figures.
20. Have an artist friend draw the company mascot in an appropriate style of fannishness - giant robot, anime style, Frazetta, bishounen, etc.  Have a poster made and put it at your desk.  Have copies on hand for others.
21. Have everyone in your department who games share their gamercodes so people can play together.
22. Have gaming nights held regularly for board, RP, or video games.
23. When there are conventions or shows in the area, invite your co-workers.
24. If you're helping with a convention, see if anyone from your job may want to speak there or see if your company wants to sponsor.
25. If you play an MMO or similar game with customizable characters, try and design your co-workers in the game.  Print out screenshots for a laugh among those who'd get it.
26. If you're a fan of things from a given country (anime from Japan, britcoms from Britain, etc.) bring food from the country of origin to parties at work.
27. Rename your cubicle something appropriate to your fandom, such as "The Batcave" or "Bablyon 5" or "Gundam Central Command."
28. Photoshop posters or book covers or screenshots to insert your co-workers and yourself for fun (as a Sentai Team, superhero team, etc.).  Put them in your cube or use them as humorous report covers.
29. Share your favorite geeky websites with co-workers.

- Steven Savage