Reflection is not always about mirrors...

Good morning! I hope this week had lots of joy and happy times for you as it did me. This is the time of year where people usually reflect and then set goals for the upcoming year. It is year end and, as humans, we tend to get nostalgic when the end is near. I was looking at my reflection in the mirror today and for some reason it made me think of how big of a year I have had and that goal setting is very important. I set some realistic goals this time last year and have hit them. This time last year, after the acting bug had taken its hold on me, I said to myself that I wanted to buy a brand new car that nobody else owned, and I wanted to be in my first movie. In April I bought a 2012 Focus (my baby) and won a role in not one but two films. Good year right? I also did 5 shows of stand up comedy, was a principle actor in a Crime Stories episode, 3 commercials, a demo trailer, and I started writing. The writing has been a very welcomed addition. I currently have one short film story and 3 feature length stories on the go. I just got the idea for a book just over a month ago but want to finish my other writing first. Now anyone can say they are a writer, so I have decided to reveal a scene in my blog from the first story that started it all. And please, if you like it I would love to hear your feedback. I'm also going to post a link to my Crime Stories episode that I think aired in the UK earlier this year to give you an example of my work.

During my reflecting (I'm not in front of the mirror anymore), I thought about the friend that really encouraged me to get into the industry. On our latest visit, she just sat there and smiled at me and told me how awesome I was because of all the things I have done in this relatively short period of time. I just looked at her and said the same thing I say everytime she does this....I am just Glenn. I'm just a guy that has finally found what balances his life. I also got to visit another friend of mine this year (after not seeing her for 20 years) and she says I am fearless. I wouldn't say fearless, because when I do stand up, fear almost fills my pants. What drives me is that I need to do this....I love to entertain people so believe me being fearless has nothing to do with it. I would say its just like going home everyday....we do it because we live there. Well, the same thing goes for my creative process....when I go there I am home. Its what I need to do. I've been a fish out of water for so long that not that I have immersed myself in the creative waters, I have really found peace with who I am and what I am all about. I've found myself! I really like what I see.....really!

Back to goal setting. So after seeing what I have done this year, I have decided to make my 2013 goal setting a two pronged process. This year, I want to film more movies. This year my goal will be three. I also want to finish my three stories that I started this year....and I really want to start writing the book idea that I had so I do have my work cut out for me. This is the first part of my goal setting this year. The second is what one would consider "Long Term" goals. One of my long term goasl is to finish one of my scripts, pitch it and then have it filmed. The seoond long term goal is to appear on Jon Stewart (funniest Jewish guy ever) and David Letterman. I figured if I have truly been successful, I want to be on their shows...Jon and I will have a discussion about anchor babies and Letterman and I will discuss everything absurd....he's so cool cause he drives a Viper!

Now, without further ado, I am going to reveal a scene from the first story I started working on with a friend of mine. I kinda took over the whleo thing because my imagination took over.... but I think you'll like what you read. The story is called Zombie Legend: WW1. It is about a zombie infestation that takes place in WW1 France, 3 weeks before the Battle of Passchendaele. It is also the first part of a trilogy that I have planned. I use elements of the WW1 timeline and have included people that were players or quoted individuals from the Great War. The scene I am about to show you takes place early on in the story. I will warn you ahead of time that it is graphic, but what zombie story isn't right? I like this storyline because it sets up nicely in a time when technology was very limited and so was some of our ways of thinking. Once you have read this, I would love to hear what you have to say. This is the first time I have released any of this publicly so I am nervous but excited to share this with you.

Exerpt of Zombie Legend: WW1- The origin story has a parasitic organism that gets released by a comet fragment that falls during a gas attack in France during WW1. The zombies will have different traits than your normal zombie. More agile and brutal. Also, you will see there are camera shots described. It was more for my own visualization and will be filtered out later on subsquent drafts. Enjoy!

The trenches: British front

We see a group of British soldiers in the mucky trenches. They are shooting and firing artillery shells. All are wearing masks. We can see a few dead bodies in their vicinity. Some look shot, others look like the gas got to them.

SOLDIER 1: Bloody hell! The plumes are changing direction...we can finally get those fuckers!

Soldier 2: Don't get your knickers in a knot mate! I still don't trust them fucking Krauts!

SOLDIER 1: Yeah...me neither.

A soldier gets shot right next to Soldier 2 which causes him and Soldier 1 to duck down into the trenches more, along with the rest of the troops. The wind has now shifted so the gas plumes are now being sent back to the German side of the front. Everything goes quiet. We now hear echos of screams and loud animal roars. A smoky haze hovers around the trenches. You hear no gun shots or explosions. Its almost like the Germans just disappeared. You hear a loud growl echoing nearby, which instills more fear than gunfire.

Soldier one grabs a trench periscope and tries to take a look at what is happening. He can't see anything so he gives a thumbs up to the other soldiers. They all kind of peak over the trench to take a view. Its still quite smoky/foggy. When they see there are no Germans in sight, they all stand up more relaxed.

As solder one looks at soldier two, you hear a loud roar again. All of a sudden a mangled torso flies at them as if thrown like a ball and lands in the trench. The head is gone, a partial right arm is still intact. One leg is missing too. There are big chunks of flesh missing throughout the remains like a bite from a hamburger. The torso and the one leg are partially clothed in what appears to be a German uniform.

SOLDIER 2: What the bloody fuck did that????

SOLDIER 1: Do we really want to know? I say retreat! Whatever it was that did this isn't too far behind!!

Soldier 2 yells out the retreat to the rest of the entrenched troops. As they are starting to climb out of the trenches, about 20 zombies come leaping out of the fog and start attacking the soldiers.

The zombies skin is darkened, a trait that was brought on by the parasite's DNA. Their eyes glow and it appears their facial bone structure gets altered as well. The jaw is more square, more prounounced cheek bone. Their muscles appear more defined and 3 times bigger (noticable on arms and legs). They appear very agile, some of them show they are able to run faster when they are on all fours.

Soldier 1 gets bitten in the right shoulder by a zombie. The zombie rips the muscle right off. The soldier falls back into the trench with a stunned look. He lays there, motionless as the creature that bit him goes off to attack another soldier that has caught his attention.

Another solder has a creature ripping off his arm, then hitting a retreating solder, as he is running by, in the head with the arm and knocking him out cold. He throws down the arm onto the ground, lets out a roar, and proceeds to feed off the one armed soldier.

The first German solder that got infected when he drank the tainted water appears. He spots a British soldier hiding in the bushes. He quickly darts off screen as if to prepare a surprise attack. The camera zooms in on the hiding soldier. He's looking around in fear because he has seen first hand what is going on. He hear's echos of the roar throughout the area. Each time he hears one he cringes. He then hears the low growl, like a cat about to pounce on prey. When he turns around he sees the zombie starting at him. As the creature starts to attack, the soldier pulls out his handgun and shoots as the zombie grabs his arm and bites, he fires off one round into the zombie's head. It releases its bite, falls to the ground,and within seconds, a dark oozing substance leaks out.

The bitten soldier runs in the opposite direction of the howls and growls. He is grabbing his arm as he runs.

In the trenches, we see Soldier 1 laying motionless . The view starts to slowly rotate, all the while keeping the soldier's face in focus. All you hear is a heartbeat in the background slowing down as if to depict that transition to death is near. The soldier takes his last breath, the last beat occurs...after a few seconds, changes start to occur in his face. The camera pans out slowly to show the soldier's muscles in his arms are growing. His face starts to make the transition, his skin darkens. The muscle that was ripped out by another zombie starts to repair itself. It repairs the muscle and skin but its not proportionate. You can see his uniform starting to rip in places where his body mass has grown. After the transition completes, his eyes start to light up. The new creature then partially sits up and lets out a big roar.


Thanks for reading my blog! If you like it, spread the word so that others may enjoy it as well! If you want to see my Crime Stories episode, click on the following link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=deRGFM85QlM&feature=share&list=FLW_ysQc1TyveEuziclG_Ahw

Glenn