Why do we fall Bruce...?

Why do we do anything, why do we aspire, why do we write? 

I have had a creative streak burning inside me since I was a ten year old under achiever in art class, I had the vision for a painting, but it never came off. Then there were the in-between years, the hideousness of school where you read subversive and exciting books, dreamt of being an author and struggled to be interested in algebra.

There comes a time in a creative persons life where they just have to take that leap, embrace the dream and breath life into the stories that have been swimming around that cluttered brain. Except that brain is no longer stressing over rugby practice and unprepared exams. There are bills, mortgages and children to feed. Not to mention work, the day job and for the deluded few "a career". 

I am embracing my desire to tell tall tales, I spent many years non-starting novels before I got swallowed up by the wage-slave machine. Then I realised something deep seated, I loved movies clear and simple. There I sat with my special mix of popcorn and Minstrels absolutely alone in a theatre quietly munching through 'Broken Arrow'; partly because Jon Woo will always be a god to me and at the time Samantha Mathis was about to become the next big thing. Only she didn't. 

Yes, movies, loved 'em then, love 'em now. This opened up the format and genre my mindset had needed so badly, after reading a couple of books and taking a few classes I knew I was in the right space. So eventually around 2003 I knocked out 'Sparrow's Flight' and I was so pleased I never did a rewrite, I never got notes and I never polished it. It went out to whoever I could get to accept it. Of course it was rejected and not surprisingly, in fact it can still be found resting on Triggerstreet today and deep down amongst the mistakes I can still find dialogue I am proud of. I felt like I had achieved something at least, I had completed a feature screenplay with a beginning, middle and end. With I might hasten to add a kickass female heroine a long time before it was such a talking point on social media, in fact a long time before social media because back then we were still on Web 1.0 and dial-up.

So I fell, lost interest and packed her away. I never had Bruce Wayne's dad abseiling into my writing room asking me why 'we fall?'. I had me and my life had other things for my brain to worry about. I moved screenwriting to the back burner and turned out the gas for a few years until I was ready to look up at Mr Wayne swinging there and shout with a big grin: "To get back up of course!"

So that happened next...