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9 Rules from Chris Pratt, “Generation Award” Winner

June 21, 2018 By C.S. Elston

I don’t often quote or promote celebrities but, Chris Pratt is not just any celebrity and he recently did something worth quoting. Sure, he’s an awesome actor who has been in some really cool movies. And, yes, I’m a little partial to the guy because we grew up in the same area. Also, while working on a screenplay about a decade or so ago, I sat one table over from him and his then girlfriend, Anna Farris, at a coffee shop called Priscilla’s which was nearly across the street from the Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, CA. I didn’t want to bother them, so we never spoke, which makes it a far less interesting story.

However, and far more importantly, Pratt accepted the “Generation Award” from MTV a few nights ago and took the opportunity to do something we don’t see often enough at awards shows. While some celebrities have been using these shows to promote political or social causes, Pratt used the platform he has been blessed with to offer some practical advice that could actually make people’s lives better by sharing his “9 Rules from Chris Pratt, ‘Generation Award’ Winner.”

After thanking his family and the fans, he told his audience, “This being the ‘Generation Award’ I’m going to cut to the chase and I am going to speak to you, the next generation. Okay? I accept the responsibility as your elder. So, listen up.”

Here’s a transcript:

“Breathe. If you don’t, you will suffocate.”
“You have a soul, be careful with it.”
“Don’t be a turd. If you’re strong, be a protector. And, if you’re smart, be a humble influencer. Strength and intelligence can be weapons and do not wield them against the weak. That makes you a bully. Be bigger than that.”
“When giving a dog medicine. Put the medicine in a little piece of hamburger – they won’t even know they’re eating medicine.”
“Doesn’t matter what it is, earn it. A good deed . . . reach out to someone in pain, be of service. It feels good and it’s good for the soul.”
“God is real. God loves you. God wants the best for you. Believe that. I do.”
“If you have to poop at a party, but you’re embarrassed because you’re going to stink up the bathroom, just do what I do. Lock the door. Sit down. Get all the pee out first. Okay? And then, when all the pee is out, poop, flush, boom. You minimize the amount of time the poop is touching the air because if you poop first, it takes you longer to pee and then you’re peeing on top of it, stirring it up, the poop particles create a cloud, goes out, and then everyone in the party will know that you pooped. Just trust me. It’s science.”
“Learn to pray. It’s easy and it’s so good for your soul.”
“Nobody is perfect. People are going to tell you you’re perfect just the way you are. You’re not. You’re imperfect. You always will be. But, there is a powerful force that designed you that way. And, if you’re willing to accept that, you will have grace. And, grace is a gift. And, like the freedom that we enjoy in this country that grace was paid for with somebody else’s blood. Do not forget it. Don’t take it for granted. God bless you.”

Here’s the video:

Pratt did an excellent job of mixing humor with important advice and, while we’re getting better quality Christian movies out of Hollywood these days, Pratt’s overall message, which I would break down into two parts, was not one we hear coming out of Tinsel Town very often:

You have a soul. Treat it well. Two of the best ways to do that are communicating with God through prayer and treating others well.
You’re imperfect but that’s okay. The God who designed you loves you and wants to show you grace.

When is the last time you remember a celebrity using their award acceptance speech to remind the audience who they are, who God is, and, most importantly what can happen when they know Him? Not a single memory of such an event comes to mind. That’s why this was worth quoting. It’s worth passing along.

While most celebrities are trying to get us to look at them and admire them, Pratt took the stage and told us to look at the God who bought our soul’s freedom with the blood of His Son and to accept that freedom. Jesus is the “King of Kings and Lord of Lords.” No one is a bigger deal than Jesus Christ and nothing is more important than how you respond to that fact. After all, at His name, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that He is Lord.

And, because he is using his platform to make that known, I just became an even bigger Chris Pratt fan than I was already. I was going to see Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom anyway but, maybe now I’ll have to see it twice.

The Kind of Stories I Most Enjoy Telling

January 12, 2018 By C.S. Elston

As I mentioned a few posts ago, I did a #MounceChat interview on Twitter back in November and a participant, Racheal Colby, suggested I turn some of the questions and answers into blog posts. This is the second time I am taking her advice. The second question I was asked was, “What kind of stories do you most like to tell?” Here was my response:

I’ve always had a wide array of tastes. I like music from just about every genre (as is evident in a number of my blog posts) and the same is true of books and movies that I read and watch. So, of course, that greatly influences what I write.

As a screenwriter, I had the opportunity to try my hand at just about every genre out there. I hope that the same can be said when I’ve written all of the books I’m going to write. However, so far, with only three books under my belt, I have pretty much stayed in the fantasy lane. Not Lord of the Rings or Game of Thrones type of fantasy – although I am a big LOTR fan – but fantasy nonetheless.

My first book, The Four Corners, I’ve always put in the same category as the Narnia books. Others have compared it to Bridge to Terabithia and A Wrinkle in Time. I hadn’t read either of those when I wrote it but, I’ve read the latter since and I can see why that comparison has been made.

The Four Corners starts with a family that is falling apart at the seams. The parents have essentially fallen out of love with one another and the oldest child, their daughter, is practically raising her younger brother on her own. When the young boy, Kinsey, hears the word “divorce” finally uttered in the midst of a screaming match, the emotions he has been bottling for years finally explode out of him and open a door that transports him to another world. When his sister and his parents go looking for him, they are transported to that world as well.

In this strange place, controlled by a demon named Raum, they are all separated onto different islands where they meet other people in their own gender and age categories who are also separated from their respective families. This gives them the opportunity to realize how much they love and miss one another and it becomes a story of finding their way back to one another.

My 2^nd and 3^rd books are a little trickier when it comes to finding comparisons. They are each part of the same series and I haven’t found too many novels that I think are accurate comparisons. They blend elements from stories in other media forms that I think work better. An example would be the 1995 movie Powder and even some comic books like Spider-Man, Superman and the X-Men.

In a nutshell, each of the first four books in the series are stand-alone stories about one person per book who begins to develop the ability to control an element. The first two are Tyler, who controls earth, and Rio, who controls water. Next will be Mattias who controls fire and then Amanda who controls the wind. It’s their journey in discovering who they are and why they were created. Their purpose is to show this fallen world that miracles still happen and that God, who gave them these abilities, still loves us.

But, I also have books I plan to write that are nowhere near the fantasy genre. I just haven’t gotten to any of them yet. I’m a planner by nature so, I already know the next 5 books I’m planning to write and one of them does happen to be one of those from outside of the fantasy genre.

Stay tuned . . .

Finding The Inspiration To Write

October 2, 2017 By C.S. Elston

I mentioned a couple of weeks back that I might do a post on finding inspiration to write. So, as promised…

Personally, I find inspiration all over the place and in any number of different ways. Particularly when it comes to finding what it is I want to write about. That can truly come from anywhere: a news story, a song on the radio, a conversation with a friend . . . I’ve already written posts about what inspired my first two novels but, this might be a good time to bring it up again.

The inspiration for The Four Corners struck as I was driving down the 101 freeway in Southern California and thinking about all the different lives that were being lived by the people that surrounded me at that moment. Specifically, I began to think about the home-lives of the people in the houses and apartment complexes that I was passing by. It struck me that some were happy homes and some were not. That led to pondering the many differences and, conversely, the many similarities that existed between them and what led to the contrasting outcomes. Ultimately, I realized that a lot of those households could be changed if the people in them were faced with an extreme circumstance that forced them to realize and admit to both themselves and to each other, how much they loved one another. Those thoughts led to a book. And, now I’m currently writing the next book in the same series, The Four Corners of Darkness.

Although the inspiration for The Gift of Tyler also hit me in the car, it was a completely different experience. For one thing, I wasn’t alone. In fact, I wasn’t even driving. I was in the backseat and my parents were in the front. I was visiting from Los Angeles and we had just been to dinner. The song “Superman (It’s Not Easy)” by Five For Fighting came on the radio. I had heard the song many times previously but, for some reason, the lyrics resonated with me on a far deeper level than they ever had before that moment. I was taken by the idea that being the most powerful person (human or not) on the planet could be difficult and extremely lonely. From there, I wondered what it would be like if someone grew up thinking everything was normal and then suddenly found themselves in the position those lyrics were referring to. A person in that scenario would be faced with a choice between using that power for the common good or for selfish gain. Three weeks later, I had completed a screenplay for The Gift of Tyler. In a couple of months, the next book in The Gift of the Elements series, The Gift of Rio, will be released and I’ve already outlined the third book, The Gift of Matthias.

The main takeaway is the simple fact that there is no way to know when or where the inspiration for a great new story is going to strike. But, when it does, it’s unavoidable. It’s also awesome. You wouldn’t want to avoid it if you could. That’s why it’s always smart to keep a notebook handy. Or, a voice recording app on your smartphone. Whatever works best. Just don’t miss the opportunity to grab a great idea while it’s there because they can be as fleeting as the memory of a great dream.

Then you begin the much lengthier process of turning that brilliant new idea into a full-fledged finished piece of work – whether it be a short story, a 600-page novel, or something in between. I’ve already done a blog post on writer’s block so, I’ll try not to be too redundant. My main point in that post was that I find writer’s block to be little more than a myth. Sure, some days writing comes easier than others. That can be as simple as mood. And, some pages are easier to write than others. It’s all part of the process.

Sometimes, you just need to clear your head. This can mean temporarily moving on to another project, whether the project be something else you’re writing or pulling some weeds in the garden. The bottom line is that a writer needs to let the process run its course without letting difficulty become an excuse for laziness. As I said in the writer’s block post, “Do whatever it takes: A walk in the woods, a lengthy prayer, some journaling at the beach, or, maybe you need the inspiration that another artist can provide – a song with a similar feeling to the one you’re trying to write about.” Even another book, a movie (could be just a scene) or a TV show that you know hits you with the same type of emotion that you’re trying to convey. I’m not suggesting plagiarism. Far from it. Don’t copy. Just use that other piece of work to get you where you need to be mentally and emotionally so that you can do your own work and convey the story and the message that you set out to from the first moment where you were originally inspired to write whatever it is you’re writing.

Find what works for you. And, it may be different on different days, with different projects, and on different pages. That’s okay. Again, it’s part of the process. Every great piece of literature and/or art has a story of its own. A journey that the writer or artist took to bring it to life. Don’t be afraid to take it. Embrace it. No matter how frustrating that experience can sometimes be, when you look back, it will also be part of the joy that piece gives you. And, whatever you’re working on can become the inspiration for someone else. Or, maybe even for yourself at some point.

That’s the beauty of art, of writing, and of being an artist or a writer.

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