Oh. Trust me, you don't have to tell me that there that was a lot of dialogue and plot cut from "Pride and Prejudice". I've virtually got it memorized that I've read it so much. But yeah, it would be unfair on Ms Austen if I were boiling the novel down to a basic skeleton, but I wasn't. My point is that every story has a genesis. Yes, if a movie is going to be adaptation of a book, then it's inevitable that it will be a bastardized version of the source material. Agreed. It is extremely snobby to dismiss the notion out of hand, though. Back in the day, Catholic school students in the UK were told not to read comic books, as it was nonsense and would not the brain. But, reading is reading. I'd be willing to bet good money that a lot of filmmakers and even authors read comic books in their formative years. If one can glean information from something, no matter what it is, then it's positive.
I have the same problem. I start them with good intentions, but very few hold my attention. I joined a book club. That really helped. The humiliation of not finishing the book was great motivation.
Yeah. Me, too, actually. But screenplays is definitely a nice jumping off point. Whatever gets us on the ladder, right? Yeah. Same with me. My dialogue has always been a lot stronger than my description. That's the one thing that I've always struggled with, even after years of writing, it's still challenging to me.
I do not think you need to read novels to write them. What really matters is fueling your creativity. I was inspired to create a sculpture after viewing a painting that appeared in the background of an episode of a TV series. I literally could not stop thinking about the image and ended up in my workshop at 9:30 in the evening, welding the sculpture together because the idea would not leave me alone. The same sort of thing has happened with some of my stories. Expose yourself to things that fuel your creativity and you will have plenty of energy for your writing. Talk to people who are interested in the same sorts of things you are interested in. Be around positive people and do things you really enjoy, things that invigorate you, and you will stoke up your creative furnace.
