Tools of the Trade

There’s a montage in Commando where Arnold Schwarzenegger packs on a few hundred pounds of munitions:

Not-too-common poster for "Commando"

(The poster neglects to show the shotgun and rocket launcher/pod that are part of his kit. Maybe the PR elves thought it all a little overkill or something.)

When it comes to writing, I haven’t been picky with my kit. All of my handwritten notes are consistent in their random ink colours – and occasional pencil – because I don’t care for my writing implement (and because I lose pens on a regular basis). As for the electronic records, they include Word, text-only, rich-text and Open Document formats – although that last one has been the standard since 2007.

A couple of years ago, I started playing around with Celtx and, well, nothing has been the same ever since. I use Final Draft now. I understand now the zeal of the convert: FD makes (screen)writing so much easier. But it’s only a tool.

Commando will always have a special place in my heart but it’s been a quarter-century already, and in this post-Bourne world where a rolled-up magazine is as handy in a fight as a Rambo knife, it’s no longer about suiting up for every possible situation. Save the montage for a flashback or Michael Bay homage.

Use whatever you have to hand to put words on the page or screen.

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6 Replies to “Tools of the Trade”

  1. Dexter is the best series ever I can’t wait till is released season 5

    1. i agree that Dexter is a perverse pleasure to behold.

      we’re only half-way through Season 2 to be honest, and from what tidbits i’ve been unable to avoid for the last couple of years, the rate of attrition is… unsettling.

  2. In the coiatmcpled world we live in, it’s good to find simple solutions.

  3. Had this poster hanging on my bedroom wall as a child and try desperately to find it today and that’s not easy task !

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