General Discussion

When writing children, remember that development varies wildly from child to child. One twelve-year-old may still look very young, while another may already look like a teenager. You might meet a child who is twelve but physically looks fourteen or fifteen, then meet another fourteen-year-old who still looks nine or ten. Both are realistic.

The same applies to boys. One fourteen-year-old boy may look sixteen, while another may still look like a small child. Physical development is inconsistent because puberty affects everyone differently.

Some children also experience precocious puberty, meaning they develop unusually early. A young girl may physically resemble an older teenager even though she is still mentally and emotionally a child. This can create awkward or even dangerous situations where adults misjudge the child’s age. I have heard parents describe needing to constantly clarify their child’s real age because people assumed they were much older.

A lot of…

When I was recording my videos about screenwriting advice, I realized I forgot something very important: reminders matter. This is especially true when you’re working on long-term projects with other people—or even by yourself. Screenwriting, animation, and filmmaking can take years.

AI can speed up some parts of production, but it does not magically remove the workload. You still have editing, animation, scene composition, revisions, and quality control. Most AI-generated films are short, inconsistent, and often lack strong plots because very little actual effort is put into them. People want an easier way to make films, but many skip the writing, planning, and refinement entirely.

AI is unreliable. Sometimes the output looks good; other times it needs heavy correction. You may have to reanimate scenes, crop footage, edit mistakes, or paint over errors manually. AI also struggles with long scenes. Most systems only handle a few seconds well because longer…

So, I asked GPT for advice on screenplay formatting. Some of it I agree with, and some of it depends on the situation. A lot of screenplay “rules” have reasonable workarounds.

One page usually equals one minute of screen time, which is why scripts are formatted so strictly. Still, there are areas where I disagree with the rigid approach.

I agree that scene headings are extremely important. They clearly establish where a scene takes place and help organize the story. Action lines are also necessary because they tell us what is happening visually.

The main thing I question is the idea that scripts should avoid thoughts or backstory entirely. Thoughts can work if they are handled carefully. They should be short, purposeful, and not overloaded with narration. The audience should still figure out most emotions through dialogue, body language, and actions. However, brief internal context can help communicate tone, especially…

Examples of Phonics Components

• Letter Sounds (Alphabet): 'a' as in apple, 'b' as in bat, 'c' as in cat.

• Digraphs (Two letters, one sound): 'sh', 'ch', 'th', 'ph'.

• Long Vowels: 'ai' (paid), 'ee' (bee), 'ie' (sky).

• Split Digraphs: 'a_e' (date), 'i_e' (time).