Chris Shugart, Professional Writer
I got my start writing radio commercials for a music record distributor. Since then I’ve been writing ad copy for much of my professional life. One day I decided I could be a screenwriter. I had an idea for a story that I thought was pretty good, and I thought it would be easier than "real" writing. Little did I know how naive that notion was. But I figured it out soon enough. After a couple of dozen pages it was pretty obvious. The screenplay was awful.
Realizing I needed some practice, I got into blog writing in hope that I could eventually return to writing scripts for film. I started posting regularly on the internet on all sorts of topics using a pen name and alter-ego, Professor Christopher David. I even developed a fake bio to forward my literary ruse. (read the fake bio) Much to my good fortune, I found that the more I wrote, the better I got.
The rough sketch above is all that remains from my first writing project. I thought the movie concept was good: a "Star Wars" type of genre in a WW II setting. If only I knew what I was doing.
The origin of Professor Christopher David came from an idea I had for a book based on the Bible. It was a mockumentary styled story based on a supposed lost chapter of the New Testament. I called it The Book of Murray, the Complete Story of the Thirteenth Apostle. Though it never got published, it occurred to me that it might make a better movie than a book. It was the perfect opportunity to revive my screenwriting.
I wrote a film version of Murray that I thought turned out really well. I even went so far as to compile a soundtrack based on a variety of musical selections I thought would enhance the story. I thought I was Stanley Kubrick. With the help of a small-budget producer, we actually got close to actual production. With some money committed to the project, we couldn't raise the money needed for the whole project. I spent a few months trying to sell it to Hollywood, but to no avail.
I Followed Murray with two more screenplays. The first was never completed to my satisfaction, but I liked the story. It was set in the early Sixties—the Kennedy "Camelot" years. It's a coming of age story set in a coming of age decade. (read script outline)
Proposed theater poster for a movie that was later renamed "Between Heaven and Hell." .
My next screenplay may have been my most commercially viable. It started out as a re-write of someone else's work with money already attached to the project. The production was eventually scrapped. Ironically, it was the one property I made money on. I received a "kill fee" for my work after the production folded. (read script outline)
I've continued to do a lot of writing since those days, on a variety of subjects ranging from entertainment to politics. It’s one of the few things I’m willing to say I’m good at.