Oscars and Ideas

Okay, I just have to ask this. Is Jack Nicholson some kind of deity in Hollywood? Why does he always get a front seat at the Oscars? Why does the camera pan to him so often? I mean, yes, he's a fine actor and he's been in some great films, but so have lots of other people. Is it because he's "cool?" I just really don't get it. At the same time, I'm wondering if George Clooney is the new Jack Nicholson. He has some great reactions, and he's purty, so I could live with that.

I get asked a lot about where I get my ideas. Nobody ever asks when I get my ideas. Last night, during a lull in the Oscar festivities, a plot twist for the work-in-progress meandered into my mind. It didn't appear like a bolt from the blue; it was more like, "I'm concerned that idea seems too cliched. Is there something else ...oh, wait a mo'. What if I have that character do that? Now that's different and more interesting. And then I could maybe bring in that character who got cut back in that revision and use him with her...ya, that could work...."

The other idea I had over the weekend actually came to me in a dream. Now, this is the very first time that's ever happened to me (that I remember). In my dream, I was meeting with an agent. Not my own agent, or even an agent I've actually met. I'd recently read an article by said agent, with a picture, so I guess that's where that came from. We were talking about paranormals and how popular they are. The word "vampire" was mentioned, to which I replied that they'd been done a lot. "What about.... this?" I said, giving an example of an, as far as I know, unused paranormal-type character, followed by the memory of one of those historical tidbits I tend to keep socked away in my mind. And voila, I had the seed of a story. Now, here's the thing: I have absolutely no desire to write a paranormal. However, I kinda like this idea. I probably won't do anything with it, but it'll no doubt rattle around in my brain for awhile. Who knows, though? Maybe it'll take root. And that's why I'm not going to say what it is. >:-}