Monday, March 19, 2007

John K writes about writing and writes about how much writers should not be writing cartoons... again.

Ya know, most of the time, I like John K's blog. It's educational, there's history in it... and it only helps nurture a respect for the art form. Plus, it's John K - those first Ren and Stimpy's remain some of my favorite cartoons ever.

Then, he writes about writing.

So... head on over to http://johnkstuff.blogspot.com, and take a peek. Don't go spamming the comment section and kicking up crap there - no good comes of that. It's not a writer-friendly blog. But that doesn't mean the blog doesn't have merit.

Still... take a peek. Because at some point, I'm sure, there's going to be something said there, that's worth discussing here. In fact, there already is.

But it's 6:45 AM, and right now, all I want is coffee.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

This site is exactly like John K's site except it has no educational content whatsoever. Both sites have polarized, self-indulgent views but at least John K occasionally has lessons for artists on how to draw better. This site just praises all animation writers and sees no problem with the quality of work that's prevalent in the industry today. At least John K's site sometimes takes artists to the task to get better. This site just maintains that everyone who is sick of terrible cartoon scripts is just wrong.

Steve said...

Roy;

With all due respect, I disagree with that.

I'm trying to foster a community where the merits of writers are discussed along with the merits of artists. I really hope other writers start posting here, as opposed to just replying.

Most writers I know understand that cartoons cannot be made without artists. The smart ones understand those people are as important, if not more important, than any written word.

And let me be clear: There are plenty of cartoons that I think are crappily written... but I don't think it does any service to single them out and bash them.

I'd rather talk about shows that are well done, discuss the issues that are important, and avoid personal attacks on actual humans.

But thanks for swinging bye...

- Steve

Anonymous said...

Given the low caliber wince fests he's produced in the long, long time since classic Ren & Stimpy, I have a hard time listening to John K. as an expert in storytelling.

Have you seen those commercials he's been promoting? Yikes.

Anonymous said...

How many times can people post that we should all just get along? That should go without saying. Of course we should all get along. But then what? What would be far more valuable is if you actually posted some of the problems that are common in scripts and open the floor to finding solutions. That's not bashing. That's just facing the problem and dealing with it.

Steve said...

From Roy:

::How many times can people post that we should all just get along?::

Probably as many times as people can post that writers are a hinderance to animation. (snark)

::That should go without saying. Of course we should all get along. But then what? What would be far more valuable is if you actually posted some of the problems that are common in scripts and open the floor to finding solutions.::

You know what? I don't disagree with that.

Part of the reason I wanted to 'blog about the Carol Burnett thing is that I truly believe that it's a frivolous suit and, more importantly, it's the kind of thing that will make writing freely more difficult.

Lawyers WILL use this as a way to prevent parody and reference.

::That's not bashing. That's just facing the problem and dealing with it. ::

Also fair enough. Just to state the goal clearly - I don't want to be the only person who posts here. I'd like other writers to do that. But until people chirp in as authors, instead of commenting, all I can do is post from my P.O.V.

The other thing you have to realize is - I don't think I'm any kind of expert. I'm just a guy who happens to make a living writing cartoons, am proud of my work, and wish writers had the same kind of community that artists have.

But in no way do I want to put myself out there as the arbitor for the right and the wrong way to write. It's so incredibly subjective, and doing that would be screamingly arrogant.

All I can do is give my opinion, for what it's worth, and go from there.

- Steve