Welcome to JC’s Blog!

Hello All!

My name is James Leach. Call me “JC”.  I’m an addicted Screenwriter and I welcome you all writers, or non-writers, and folks who just wanna surf, into my world.

For personal details of me as a human being, refer to the About section.

So let’s do this. I have finally taken the plunge into the Blog world. I must keep up with social networking.

So this is how what a blog looks like! *As he ponders about to what to write next*. (For those that don’t understand the asterisks (*) above, they are “personal thoughts” I inject my writings. Fellow screenwriters will understand. It provides depth in my entries. Consider it a personal touch and feel.)

This website comes complete with a Blog section. I intend to discuss my projects, and thoughts as I take this Screenwriting journey.

How did it all start?

As I write this first entry, I can’t help but reflect on how my writing addiction started.

I had to go all the way back to the mid -970’s. It started in high school. English class homework, snowballed into reading various books (mainly historical documentaries), and of course Sci-fi movies. It Stanley Kubrick’s “2001: A Space Odyssey.” that inspired my first effort: “Mayan Space.”

The outline alone was 300 handwritten pages; there were no word processors back in the 1970s. Hell, Bill Gates was just inventing software back then. Dang, I feel old.

Regardless, I researched the book “Mayan Prophecy” and even examined the connection between alien life and Mayan intelligence through astrological events. It is fascinating and drove me to keep writing; to find that answer.  A series of life-changing events (20 years of military service, kids, and marriage) put an indefinite hold on that.

But the bug ate its way out over the years.  I became infatuated with Training. As an instructor or supervisor, I always enjoyed the moment the “clue light” turned on in a young student’s head. It was inspiring to know I was making a difference in someone’s life.

Eventually, I graduated into Instructional Design. Developing the training was an angle that brought forth the “creative” side. Being able to develop analogies allowed me to fine-tune descriptions to ensure the end-user (the reader of screenplays) understood what it was I was trying to convey; whether it be a simple task, to a full-blown concept. I truly believe those experiences have unlocked the writing bug that I enjoy today.

Screenwriting is not my full-time job. No way. As a budding Screenwriter (*addicted*), my day job is a technical writer. In a nutshell, I write better versions of those one-page manuals you receive with IKEA furniture that provide no simple way to assemble that computer desk you desperately need to house computer equipment and business material to eventually collect dust.

But after work? Enter “JC Leach – Addicted Screenwriter“. (*Insert kick-butt superhero audio background song here*).

My weapons? Asus Laptop (high speed, low drag), semi-comfortable couch (*My Command Center*), earphones (cheap, and effective in sometimes tuning out too much and always at the wrong time), various Screenwriting programs, and my addiction–a plethora of ideas ready to spew forth through my fingertips.

So here I am. James “JC” Leach, marketing myself, giving form and function as a dedicated screenwriter who constantly hones (with a military work ethic, I might add)  the Screenwriting craft.

With that being said, since 2008 I’ve been busy when a simple Genealogy search turned into my first screenplay effort. With a few rewrites, I felt it was a good first effort. But there is always room for improvement. My addiction demanded it.

So, I read “Screenwriting For Dummies” (*Hey– small steps, baby*). It gave me the foundation and showed me basically what’s involved in the craft. Okay, I needed more.

Then I read my first screenplay–“Shawshank Redemption“. Then I read it while I watched the movie. Oh, the feeling. The addiction was feeling great. The flow of creativity through my veins was overwhelming!

Flash Forward – Present Day

Today, I am on my 8th Screenplay. Fully addicted, unable to stop. All full-length features, some public domain book adaptations, and I even brought that high school effort (Mayan Space) out of mothballs (now named Pakal’s Secret). *You didn’t mention TV Pilots, JC*.

TV pilots and series efforts are on my radar screen, but I am enjoying Feature writing so much now, they can wait. My addiction is wonderful.

But there are setbacks. Last year, I took a step to enter one of my Scripts into the annual

PAGE International Screenwriting Awards

Although I didn’t make the 2016 quarterfinals, it was a great experience. I’m not going to let a small contest discourage me.

I also took a stab at Writing/Directing a small (very small) production. I wrote and assisted in the direction (mentored with the help of experienced friends) of a Doritos Superbowl Contest ad. We, my Director mentor Andy Darby, creative director, Bob Summers; along with a fantastic cast and crew, shot this in one day. Even my pet superstar Cat (Charger) made his cinematic debut. It was total fun and great experience in film-making.

Note: No pets were harmed in the making of this production. (Always wanted to write that–LOL)

Current Projects

For those that are still reading, I thank you for hanging on.

Now for the Screenplay efforts. As you can see below, I’ve been busy. They are in various stages of development; contest ready, or in a marketable state.

Please (*I humbly beg*) comment on which ones you would like to see in a theater, or read the script. I value your opinion:

• The Lost Despatch – (Action/Drama – Public Domain Adaptation) – “At the height of the Civil War, a Confederate spy and her Union Soldier lover, must prove her innocence when she is tried for murdering a Federal Agent.”
• Poverty Island – (Action/Adventure) – “Hunting down a 150-year mystery, treasure hunters confront thieves to honor a man’s last wish, who also knows the truth behind the legend of Poverty Island gold.”
• Pakal’s Secret – (Action/Sci-Fi adventure) – “Dogged by dangerous and nefarious cartels, an archaeologist unlocks a complex mystery hidden beneath a Mayan temple. After black suits get involved, he takes matters into his own hands.”
• Dead Hand – (Historical Action) – “When a rogue Russian General takes over a secret Doomsday system, the scientist who built it risks allegiance, family, and friends to avert nuclear Armageddon.”
•  The Variable Man – (Sci-Fi – Public Domain Adaptation) –  “After being  scraped through time into the 23rd century, a technician with special skills is forced to repair their secret weapon to slew the odds against a celestial turf war, all in return for a ticket home to the past.”
•  Savage Grant – (Historical Drama)  – “A frontiersman, whose family is massacred and his daughter taken hostage, conducts a rescue mission and  befriends the squaw who cared for her.”
•  Invisible Wounds – (Biopic Drama) – “A young boy, surrounded by the daily terrors of World War II England, endures a lifetime of post-traumatic stress over the tragic loss of his first love at the hands of the German Luftwaffe.”
•  Justifiable Revenge – (Action Horror) – “On the 20th anniversary of a bully victim’s death, surviving victims team up to execute revenge only to discover they’re gonna have to take a number.”
•  Confession in Bottle – (Murder Mystery) – “While grieving her daughter’s loss, an infatuated mother searches Tsunami debris for answers. After finding a 40-year old confession in a bottle, she finds inspiration to get closure for another mother’s loss.”
•  Protecting Providence – (Based on True events – Historical Drama) – “After a hurricane shipwrecks a 17th-century merchant, he must shepherd his crew and passengers, survive Native Indians, natural elements, and starvation as they make an impossible trek up the Florida coast to Philadelphia.”

Thanks for reading and all you Screenwriters? Keep writing!

JC  “Addicted Screenwriter”