Well, it's official. I am SHER-locked!!!
I've just spent the last few days catching up on Series 1 & 2 of Sherlock with Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman before starting Series 3 for the first time (all on DVD) and I'm hooked. I don't watch much TV to be honest, which was why I had to recap series 1 & 2 on DVD as there were parts I had missed when they originally ran. And then I got to watch them all back to back.
Nothing like a bit of 'binge-watching' :)
So what do I like about BBC's Sherlock? The banter? The plots? The characters? Cumberbatch himself? All of the above and much more. It's so well written (hats off to Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat) and the dialogue just flows - and how Cumberbatch manages to say his long stints without faltering is beyond me. I wonder how many takes they really had to do?
Sherlock Series 3 is actually interesting. A writer friend of mine at the moment is worried that her current WIP is too character driven and there's not much plot. She's read one star reviews (on other pieces) that say 'brilliant characters but no plot' and she's worried that she has to change her planning to find a happy medium. But this doesn't have to be the case - and Sherlock is a great example in my eyes.
I can't falter any of the plots for Sherlock, except the second episode in Series 3, The Sign of Three (but then it's not even a fault). This episode is very much character driven, and you know what? It works. The relationship between Sherlock and Watson is so solid. And you can feel Sherlock's fear as a third member is introduced to their circle, threatening to change everything. So what I say to my friend - and all others out there struggling with the same issue - is yes, plot is important, but it doesn't have to be the end all. Character driven pieces work really well too, so don't let this thought hinder you're progress. Write what you want to write, and if at the end you feel it doesn't work, tweak it. But you'll never know unless it's written.
So on that note, I've decided to choose two pieces for today's Pic of the Week. I like them both very much and couldn't decide which to share :) The artist is Alicexz over on Deviant art, and over the last few years she's been building her own gallery of character portraits for the Series. Be sure to go over there and check them out. They're phenomenal...
Have a good week people... :)
I've just spent the last few days catching up on Series 1 & 2 of Sherlock with Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman before starting Series 3 for the first time (all on DVD) and I'm hooked. I don't watch much TV to be honest, which was why I had to recap series 1 & 2 on DVD as there were parts I had missed when they originally ran. And then I got to watch them all back to back.
Nothing like a bit of 'binge-watching' :)
So what do I like about BBC's Sherlock? The banter? The plots? The characters? Cumberbatch himself? All of the above and much more. It's so well written (hats off to Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat) and the dialogue just flows - and how Cumberbatch manages to say his long stints without faltering is beyond me. I wonder how many takes they really had to do?
Sherlock Series 3 is actually interesting. A writer friend of mine at the moment is worried that her current WIP is too character driven and there's not much plot. She's read one star reviews (on other pieces) that say 'brilliant characters but no plot' and she's worried that she has to change her planning to find a happy medium. But this doesn't have to be the case - and Sherlock is a great example in my eyes.
I can't falter any of the plots for Sherlock, except the second episode in Series 3, The Sign of Three (but then it's not even a fault). This episode is very much character driven, and you know what? It works. The relationship between Sherlock and Watson is so solid. And you can feel Sherlock's fear as a third member is introduced to their circle, threatening to change everything. So what I say to my friend - and all others out there struggling with the same issue - is yes, plot is important, but it doesn't have to be the end all. Character driven pieces work really well too, so don't let this thought hinder you're progress. Write what you want to write, and if at the end you feel it doesn't work, tweak it. But you'll never know unless it's written.
So on that note, I've decided to choose two pieces for today's Pic of the Week. I like them both very much and couldn't decide which to share :) The artist is Alicexz over on Deviant art, and over the last few years she's been building her own gallery of character portraits for the Series. Be sure to go over there and check them out. They're phenomenal...
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I like your ability to relate aspects of a brilliantly written series to a friend's WIP ref character driven writing. I think you're spot on. It's just difficult to achieve.
ReplyDeleteThanks Mike. These things are difficult to achieve and it doesn't help when you have a niggling voice in your head asking if this is working or not. This voice needs to be blocked out in order to progress :)
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