And so we begin. . .

May I first say, before I get to the part about how great it is that you are all putting yourselves out 'there/here' and jumping in bravely, that the title of this blog is not intended to be perverse. Though many scholars have argued that its creator, Herman Melville, did indeed intend it to be so. Anyway, we're not here to be scholars. At least I'm not. I just really like Chapter XCIV of Moby Dick a whole bunch. And it just so happens that it's all about sitting as a group, shoulder to shoulder, and working a quickly crystalizing whale brain between ones fingers until the "gentle globules of infiltrated tissues" return to their liquid form. If you're into that sort of thing, you can read more here.

But that sounds just like what we're doing, or about to do, right? Am laughing at my giant leap.

Jumping right into the vat, though, I think we should begin with the rules.

Very simple:

I am the administrator of this blog, but that's where my authority ends. This is our project.

Any amendments to these rules are done by a group vote, initiated at any time, by any single member—simple majority rules. In the incidence of a tie vote, the administrator (me) decides.

Any revenue (like how optimistic I am?) gleaned from this project is split equally by the core group of writers (soon so be listed here).

Any additional participants enlisted by a core member/s on this project are to be considered subcontractors and paid by the member/s responsible for their participation, under the member/s own terms.

Everyone respects the privacy of the core group. If you know names and contact information of other members, please do not volunteer that information to the group or the public. Let everyone work with their desired amount of anonymity.

That said, by participating in this project, you acknowledge that the intent is to submit the final project to the Sundance Institute's Screenwriters Workshop, as detailed here. ANY material posted to this site (www.asqueezeofthehand.blogspot.com) is here after the legal property of the entire group.

At any time, a member of the group can initiate a group vote for amending a rule or, if need be, removing a member.

If you are voted out, all written material remains as the property of the remaining group members, collectively.

Once the project begins, new core writers may not be added.

All core members will have the password to this site. That's risky. I know. But I want this to truly be a group project based on trust. I will remain the administrator, which means I reserve the right to pull comments when necessary. All other members will log on with the sole purpose of posting material, editing ONLY material they have posted. And NEVER removing any major (more than 2 lines/sentences) without a group vote. This will rely heavily on the honor system. I will be backing up all contributions, daily, and encourage others to do so as well. Again, any material on this site is group property. This means that it is illegal to submit it/distribute it/sell it without the group's knowledge and approval. Ever. Even 100 years from now. Even 1000.

If anyone would like to add a rule or comment on one of the above, feel free.

The purpose of these rules is not to limit us, rather, it is to make us all feel safe to collaborate free of foul play, so to speak.

That said, I am fairly confident in my gut instinct and believe that all the writers on this project are not high risk. You wouldn't be here if I believed otherwise.

I am very excited to be working with such a diverse group of strong writers who give so freely of themselves to others, so humbly. That, in my opinion, is the strength we have going into this project. I sincerely believe that though you all write well in your own distinct voices, it is your unique generosity and willingness to laugh at yourselves that will make us all grow quickly and learn much as a group.

Final 'rule': Though our writing together at Peterman's Eye has brought us together and to this project, J. Peterman Co. is not in any way affiliated with, or, God forbid, legally responsible for what we do at this site.

Now, I'd like to get to the fun stuff.

No matter what comes of this, it will be an adventure. And you all know how Miss Ive feels about adventure. . .

Tomorrow, we brainstorm the skeletal issues. Things like format, fiction/non-fiction, etc.

Think about it.

BTW, Sundance has not updated their site for this program, but the deadline for application was May 1 last year. I expect it will be about the same this year. So let's get crackin'!!!