Yesterday I was taking video for my memoir screenplay The Darkness Within. My memoir is coming out late August 2021 Barnes and Noble/Amazon. Devix a talented actor/musician/artist/and screenwriter is creating a screenplay for my memoir. I also have been in contact with directors/ producers to hopefully turn this memoir into a film. I posted the video I took on my wall. This was the hardest thing I have had to do.
The scene in my memoir is the day four years ago I was planning on jumping off the ravine by my home. I have not been back to this location since yesterday. I am sharing this to the lounge because I thought writing my memoir was emotionally difficult reliving all of the trauma I have experienced in my life.
Yesterday I realized how strong I truly am. I chose to live that day because I had so much more life to live. I am hopeful by sharing this that the people who struggle can see that I came out the other side. Mental health is so important and so many struggle silently. As vulnerable as I am being I feel emotionally naked. I chose to write this book to help people that is my purpose. I hope people can feel less alone in their struggles by hearing and seeing mine.
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Truly inspiring, Paige. Thank you for sharing this!
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James thank you for taking the time to read my post I appreciate it.
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Barry John Terblanche- With all due respect this comment is the reason why I wrote this book. I do not know if you know anything about mental health but suicide is the 2nd highest cause of death in the world. I don't think that 51.5 million people attention seek with mental illness and struggle. Sorry to disappoint you that I chose to live. If you would take the time to actually learn about abuse in childhood and how it affects the individual. I don't think that you would be using troll adolescent verbiage on this forum at Stage 32. You are a grown man telling a stranger she should have jumped. Life is hard this is true...What concerns me most about this comment is. I am concerned that you would want to represent yourself in this way to thousands of people on this site. How we treat and respond to others is a reflection of us as human beings. I appreciate your insight that you think I should have died, I am attention seeking, and that I have no respect for self minded people. I actually feel for you, because this is why the stigma continues. Maybe one day you will look back at this post and actually have empathy for the thoughts and feelings of others. I wish you the best.
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I second Drew on this. Barry, this is a very inappropriate thing to tell anyone, and while this is your take, I don’t agree with you in the least. I truly hope you can find it in you to apologize. Stage32 is supposed to be here to network with like-minded creatives, make contacts to work in an industry we love so dearly,, and most of all, in my opinion, boost others to create their best work. If that work comes from painful life experience, and can inspire others, then all the more reason to this voice out there in the world.
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Powerful! And courageous for responding to BJT, but not in kind. It's too easy to get lost in the anger. As much as as I think his remarks are reprehensible, it is the price we pay for this digital world of instant speech and relative anonymity. Stay strong, Drew Paige - his views are NOT the majority!
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John thank you so much! I chose to respond with grace. I believe if I was silent I would not get across that I am an advocate for people who struggle. This is my purpose I appreciate you and the time you have taken to read my post and comment. I appreciate you thank you.
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Your book sounds great, Drew. Looking forward to it. Glad you're part of this community. :)
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Drew, I can't believe how gracefully you handled that. Thank you for sharing your story and thank you for modeling grace and compassion in this forum. That was really inspiring to me.
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Catherine thank you I needed to have a voice I can no longer struggle silently. I appreciate your kind words and support. Thank you for reading my post and taking the time to comment.
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Maurice thank you for your support I will also support you. I appreciate you thanks so much!
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You're welcome, Drew. Congrats on your book coming out soon. How is your screenplay going?
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And thanks for any support, Drew.
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Thank you! Screenplay is coming along I am creating with an actor/writer so it has been going great intensive. I also have been reaching out to directors/producers to get this made into a film. The world as we saw today needs to change the narrative about mental illness and struggle.
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Barry John Terblanche; what's the purpose of what I view as your rude, crude and generally nasty comment?
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You are so strong. And it’s great that you’re vulnerable and know who you are. Most people put on a facade and won’t be true to who they are. But not you. I’m glad you’re still here and realizing how strong you are.
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And don’t listen to people. Each person has their own journey and that’s yours. And you own it. It’s what makes you, you. I’m proud of you and all your strength to overcome a lot. Some people like Barry don’t understand that everyone has their difficulties and everyone has different mental health. So stay true to who you are!
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I'm looking forward to the book and the movie, Drew Paige.
Doug and Justin thank you for your kind words the support means so much to me thank you.
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Maurice thank you! I am hopeful that it will be made into one and I will not stop trying until it does.
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"Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle." Philo ... words we can live by.
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Judith I appreciate your kind words thank you so much.
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Hey, Drew: I took a look at your video - very poignant. I hope the work is cathartic for you.
I have an anxiety disorder and have been on meds for decades now (geez, time flies). I know that one of the more therapeutic things I did was write - hoping that proves true for you as well. I think revisiting and reassessing past events is certainly a productive exercise. All the best in your journey,
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David thank you for your kind words. I appreciate you taking the time to watch my video and read my post. I thank you for your kindness and vulnerability. I am so hopeful my story can help so many people who struggle. Thanks again
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Barry John Terblanche So (scratching chin), you've never had suicidal thoughts? Or at the very least you seem to have little empathy for those who do. Your lack of compassion for those individuals notwithstanding, you mentioned that you would prefer not to see a movie about someone who considers suicide. With the following list, it seems that a healthy portion of the population would disagree with you: Hamlet, Death of a Salesman, NIght, Mother, Hedda Gabler, Miss Julie, Romeo and Juliet, Spring Awakening, The Seagull, Ordinary People, World's Greatest Dad, Little Miss Sunshine, 21 Grams, Dead Poets Society, Dear Evan Hansen, and countless novels. Just sayin'.
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Drew, getting back to your screenplay. To quote you; "A true story of survival and resilience, (should be a ;) an unflinching look into the life of a woman living with the secrets of her past." I love it - it a very powerful storyline. Then you say "You can always come out of the other side of your trauma." - you give it an up ending (very good).
Now my movie making pov and opinion. It will find strong market appeal among the female audience (basically it's a 'chick flick') which isn't bad because that's a sizable audience, but it's not a tent pole. That will define the upper end of the production cost range.
The story is obviously very personal to you and I hope that writing it was helpful and uplifting but when it comes to making a film; it can't be 'your story' - it must be every woman's story. In your opening banner I would change the words form 'life of a woman' to 'life of women' to create a sense of universal market/audience appeal.
Anyway, that's just my opinion.
Getting back to your question about location. I watched your video. There are bridges similar to that in almost every state in the US and elsewhere in the world. That means that the film can be produced almost anywhere. That's an asset that makes production more economic.
All the best with it, Doug
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Doug thank you so much for your insights and thoughts about my memoir being turned into a film. I am open to all ideas and what will work with a film. Thank you for taking the time to give me advice I really appreciate it.
Dan thank you for taking the time to read my post and comment on this post. Healing from the abuse that I endured is still and has been a journey. The mental health struggles I have dealt with all of my life have been challenging. I chose to fight to be the voice of people who can’t in their own mental health struggles. I think my memoir is going to help so many. Thank you again for your support it means everything to me.
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I am so humbled by your show of strength, Drew Paige! When we write from a place of experience, it always feels like bleeding on the page, but to offer something so personal is a triumph. Congratulations on your book release, and please do share updates on its adaptation!
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Thank you Karen I really appreciate your kind words and amazing support!
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You are very brave, Drew Paige. Good for you! :-)
Lucie thank you so much!
Hi Drew, thanks for sharing your story! I think you might find this passage inspirational, best quotes from the web site GoodReads while searching quotes under 'Sages' , A great site to kick start to any scene idea with an inspirational quote to get you writing! Stay present, everyday is a new beginning to reinvent yourself ! Best of everything !
The path of awakening"All of your past selves are walking behind you,
like a shadow, waiting for you to awaken fully.
Waiting for you to return home.
To the Oneness.
To love, wisdom, silence and compassion.
The child you once were is still with you.
It is waiting to receive the unconditional love
and acceptance which it has always wanted
which will finally heal it, calm it
and enable it to relax and surrender
into the vastness of your Being.
Into the light of consciousness.
And it is not just the child
who is walking behind you.
All the identities from past incarnations
are still with you.
The seeker. The pirate. The script writer, The producer, The cinematographer,
The highwayman. The sage."
~ Leonard Jacobson, Words From Silence
Thomas I absolutely love this! Thank you so much for sharing this with me. I also want to thank you for your support and taking the time to write this on my post. I wish you the best in everything thanks again!
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@Drew Congratulations on your Barnes Noble/Amazon release, I hope this is just the beginning and the story goes Transmedia film, novelette, stream, talk show/podcast etc. More true stories need to be out in the ether, especially if spoken from the heart it can be a powerful healing tool to others. A quote I dig from Oscar Wilde. "Through art and art alone can we shield ourselves from the sordid hurt of actuality." It's awesome you turned this bad chapter of your life into a living breathing project. Kudos!
Debbie thank you so much! Your words are so powerful and supportive! I appreciate you and the time you have taken to read my post and support my memoir. Writing this story has definitely been a cathartic release of emotions. Thank you again I am moved by all of the support I have received. I love that quote I am going to write it down! Best to you and I hope you are healthy and safe.
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Thank you Drew for your kind response & for so making my day! My family has experienced that heart breaking walk over that bridge scenario, winging over one additional inspiration, for that next novel or script before your female protagonist gets all tangled up in mystery & uncertainty, that I think you might really like .. . .
Book II, act 1
Drew wanted to be a women who would dive off the highest prow of a tall sailboat & somersault into the sea, fall back in a tangle of cotton sheets, laughing & giggling, who could dance a tango or teach a merengue class, lazily stroke a leopard with her bare foot, freeze an enemy's blood with her eyes, make promises she couldn't possibly keep, then shift the world to keep them. She wanted to write personal memoirs and autograph them at a tiny bookshop in Rome, with a line of admirers snaking down a pink-lit alley. She wanted to make love on a balcony, trade in esoteric & mysterious knowledge & languages, watch strangers as coolly as a tall, fat tomcat. She wanted to be inscrutable, have a drink, maybe have two drinks named after her, a love song written for her, and a handsome adventurer's small airplane, champagne-christened, Drew Paige, which would vanish one day in a windstorm somewhere over Arabia, so that she would have to mount a rescue operation involving camels, and wear an indigo veil against the stinging sand, just like the nomads of yesterday.
embellished from Lips Touch: Three Times, Laini Taylor
Have a great weekend & then some!
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Thomas!!!! WOW I love everything that you just wrote! I am inspired and as I was reading this I was transported to every place you wrote that I was at. You my friend, are quite a talent I am honored that you wrote this just for me. Thank you so much I am glad I made your day. You just made mine by all of the above! Have a great weekend as well again thank you (insert mind being blown) by your creative thinking.
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This is so beautiful, Drew Paige ! Your mission, your new view of life. You got this! Can't wait to read it.
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I have screenshots of what he posted. Framing his comment as a nothing more than a personal opinion, regardless of any background is nothing short of distortion. There is simply no excuse to actively choose to write what he did. He's banned from Script Revolution because the risk of him impacting another member in a severely negative manner far exceeds any need he has to express his highly controversial views.
Just like Stage 32, I take the wellbeing of my community as a whole very seriously.
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I'm with CJ. If BJT's background caused a trigger when reading Drew Paige's post, then the last thing he should have done is to vent here.
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I want to thank everyone for their support under my post. It meant so much to me. I took down the other post on the screenwriter lounge. Looking forward to connecting with so many on this forum. I have been honestly blown away from all of the kindness that I have received. Thank all of you.
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There are so many good people here, I'm happy you've been able to connect with so many of them.