Welcome to the finals, Paul and Dave. It's been a long month and a half, hasn't it? This whole thing has been exhausting and I'm not even in the mood to set up a final round. So, I'm just going to declare you both the winner.

Yeah, right. Did you think it was going to be that easy? Well, it almost was going to be that easy. The original plan, a few weeks ago, was to have the winners simply write the best script they could in this timeframe. Then, I thought about it and thought, "What would that teach you?" Now, in the previous four rounds, I've tested you all in different ways, but there's one I haven't done, yet. Re-creation.

Six years ago, I wrote what was my favorite script sequence of all time. I always wondered what it would have been like to see how other people used the same information. In the championship round, we're going to find out.

This round, you'll be dealing with the 6 big questions: Who, What, Where, When, Why and How. The trick is that you'll both be writing the same script using these details. You'll be assigned the 5 W's and coming up with How is what will differentiate your scripts.

This is where the fun part (hopefully. I have no clue what constitutes fun) comes in. Only the writers will know what the script topic is until the scripts are released. When the voting finally opens, the readers will, then, know what the topic actually was (if they haven't figured it out by then).

Due to the limited scripts which have to be read and the extra time which may be necessary for writing, the writers have until 11:59PM next Friday to enter their scripts. After that, there will be two days of voting and reviewing. May the best writer/script duo win.

Official Rules:

Write a script using the Who, What, Where, When and Why to which you've been assigned.
No genre stipulation.
No page stipulation.
Scripts due in 180 hours.

eldave1
vs.
PKCardinal

This is intriguing!

The questions on my mind right now are What? And Why? And did I ask What?
Duo wins... I don't know what that means

Duo wins
Dont know what that means
Genre stipulation
That's a complication

Actually, I like that. We will test ourselves what we think of adhering to parameters. That's interesting. This one is as much for a reader as it's for a writer.

Uh-oh, Khamanna's starting to rhyme. This tournament has taken a toll.

Paul and Dave - I salute you. One of you will crawl to the finish line. Exhausted, bleeding, and delirious. Yet victorious.

Quoted from MarkItZero Uh-oh, Khamanna's starting to rhyme. This tournament has taken a toll. Paul and Dave - I salute you. One of you will crawl to the finish line. Exhausted, bleeding, and delirious. Yet victorious.

Thanks, bud - appreciate it

I'm going to post my questions here rather than PM (ignore my prior one) to ensure that Paul has the access to the responses (i.e., he may have similar questions).

- Are the writers assigned the exact same Who, What, Where, When, Why?  

- Shouldn't the voters know the parameters before they comment? Right now, if I understand it correctly they won't know till the voting opens (i.e., after reads and comments). Since many comments often relate to how closely a script meets the parameters it seems to be the better course is to let them know up front.

Re: "Where" and "When" - I'm assuming that they don't have to be 100% of the script. e.g., we're given a place for the event. I'm assuming that part of the story can take place outside that place. Same for "When". Yes/No?

Thanks.

Congrats to Paul and Dave!

Congrats, you big contenders!

Okay, so this is clearly re-creation, not recreation.  

Other than that I haven't a clue what's cooking except that it's difficult enough that you guys need an entire week to get it done.

I assume the April OWC will now be re-scheduled for Halloween due to burnout?

Thanks Dena and Libby - appreciated.

And I am burned out

Looking forward to the Finals. The Thrilla in Scriptzilla!

Two worthy heavyweights: Dave and Paul.

Congratulations to you both.

Quoted from Stumpzian Looking forward to the Finals. The Thrilla in Scriptzilla! Two worthy heavyweights: Dave and Paul. Congratulations to you both.

Thanks, Henry - love the title you came up with.

Quoted from eldave1 - Are the writers assigned the exact same Who, What, Where, When, Why?   - Shouldn't the voters know the parameters before they comment? Right now, if I understand it correctly they won't know till the voting opens (i.e., after reads and comments). Since many comments often relate to how closely a script meets the parameters it seems to be the better course is to let them know up front. Re: "Where" and "When" - I'm assuming that they don't have to be 100% of the script. e.g., we're given a place for the event. I'm assuming that part of the story can take place outside that place. Same for "When". Yes/No?

Yes, you both have an identical topic.

No, the readers shouldn't know what the topic is before reading. If it wouldn't have been a nightmare beforehand, I would have stuck with this rule for the entire tournament. The idea is that I want people to read the script for content, first and foremost. Then, they can judge it on how it followed the rules. The most important thing should always be script quality.

When I wrote the scene, it was a 27 page set piece contained within that one location, but part of a larger story. You guys don't have that luxury, so I'll allow for a bit of wiggle room on "Where", but don't push me on that. I'm only being lenient to avoid another incident where someone leaves the site because of reader complaints. "When" is set in stone. That day, period. =)

Quoted from LC I assume the April OWC will now be re-scheduled for Halloween due to burnout?

To be honest, I'm not 100% sure who's running April this year. If the tournament hadn't fallen behind by a week, we might still be on schedule. However, I don't know where it stands at the moment.

At this point obviously it's clearer for the writers (hopefully) and we readers just have to put a sock in it and be patient.

Sean, thanks for the clarification on the OWC.

Thanks for asking the questions, Dave. Saved me from a sure disqualification. I'll share details when all is said and done.

Starting over.

Quoted from Mr. Blonde Yes, you both have an identical topic.

Got it. Thanks.

Quoted Text No, the readers shouldn't know what the topic is before reading. If it wouldn't have been a nightmare beforehand, I would have stuck with this rule for the entire tournament. The idea is that I want people to read the script for content, first and foremost. Then, they can judge it on how it followed the rules. The most important thing should always be script quality.

That's a mistake IMO particularity given this finite set of parameters. i.e., it'll be a head-scratcher for many readers until they actually see the constraints. But whatever -  onward.

Quoted Text When I wrote the scene, it was a 27 page set piece contained within that one location, but part of a larger story. You guys don't have that luxury, so I'll allow for a bit of wiggle room on "Where", but don't push me on that. I'm only being lenient to avoid another incident where someone leaves the site because of reader complaints. "When" is set in stone. That day, period. =)

Don't like this - but thanks.  I'll just use my own judgement on where to wiggle. If it backfires that's on me.