IMO, yes. Vamps and werewolves are overdone. It is becoming increasingly difficult to find any sort of twist or new direction to make them interesting again.

Not as overdone as elves though. I have taken to tossing aside any book that introduces "mysterious, beautiful people, tall and graceful, their voices like music, eyes glinting with the knowledge of ages..." and rot such as that.

If I ever write a story involving elve sI'm gonna make them hideous insectoid things, cannibalistic and stinking, who speak in gutteral grunts and clicks.

Very few shows start out fantastic, stay fantastic, and end fantastic. Dresden was no exception.

What Dresden did do, however, was find its feet surprisingly quickly. Bythe 12th episode the cast was working like a well oiled machine, the writers were losing their hesitancy and starting to build a cohesive and fascinating world, and new characters were emerging to deepen and solidify that world.

I firmly believe that, given a full 20-22 episode season, the crew and cast of Dresden would have graced us with an edge of the seat season finale for a show we'd have been counting the days for the return. Word of mouth and critical recognition would have brought the audience it deserved. The second season would have been where the show truly bloomed.

I actually wrote a spec script, in the optimistic days just after 'Second City' aired. I hoped perhaps I could get in on the second season. It was only the second teleplay I've ever been able to finish, mostly because of how involved I felt with the show and how plain the writers made the progression. My spec script involved White Court vampires and took ideas from the books but tailored it towards the very different television world.

As I've said before, I was glad that the producers of the show opted to take the 'alternate world' path. The books are wonderful, but I've already read the books! This was a way to play in the world of Dresden with an entirely new and free set of what-ifs.

Too bad. Maybe in the future a network with more vision and flexibility will give the Dresden world the support and room it needs to truly bloom and grow.

Until then, I'll treasure these twelve episodes for what they are -- extremely entertaining television.

I carry titles around. I've been carrying some around since childhood. It took me almost 20 years to find a piece of writing to call micropiece. I'm still looking for something to call The Laws Of Futility and Coyote Laid Low. My story Tessellation was originally called the rather clumsy Two Conversations, Up On Pond Creek. I had to change it because the story ended before the second conversation happened.

I named a friends novel. I also name cats and boats. My favorite of the latter was owned by a pal who equally loves fishing and logical debate. I named his boat (in a goofy story we were writing on a forum) Fishin' Ain't Fallacious and he liked it so well that he adoted it for his real boat.

That's something you have to decide yourself, really. I'd suggest that you give rewriting a shot and see how it goes. If, in practice, it seems a more practical thing to restart, then do that.

As for the names, I wouldn't be overly concerned about it in a first draft. Just continue on. As your story grows in the telling, you may just find characters and places 'naming themselves'. If so, it's a simple thing to use find-and-replace to knock the previous section in line.

How do you get the motivation/time to do this every single day?  I have a very sensitive Muse.  Anything can send her away pouting.  I know it's better to show up every day at about the same time, so the Muse knows where to find you instead of just clunking around and waiting for her to track you down...but

The first thing you have to accept is that not everything you write is going to be good. Some of it isn't even going to be worth keeping. That's not the point of a daily quota: the point is the discipline, the habit, and creating a dedicated daily space just for writing.

I write because it's one of the ways that my mind analyzes and makes sense of the world. I write all the time, in my head. Putting the stories that result into electronic and paper form is simply the logical outcome of my continuous, ongoing observation and analysis of the big, mysterious world around me.

Just a few points:

Remember that dialouge is revelatory rather than descriptive, and the main story aspect it should reveal is character.

While it is a good idea to listen to real world conversations to get a feel for the different ways that various couples or groups (boyfriend/girlfriend, four co-workers, mother/son etc.) interact in conversation, your aim should not be 'realistic' dialouge. Real dialouge contains lots of pauses, coughs, sniffs, 'uhhhhhs', 'ummmmms', sidetracks in point, lulls, etc. Your goal should be believable dialouge that flows; pleasant to the ear but not artificial. Remember, your dialouge is not a free form conversation, but a tool you are using to advance your story.

Last and, IMO, most important: give seperate characters their own voice. It does not have to be radically different, but it should be different.

Hope that helps a bit.

Jack, so pleased to be of help. I've thought often of your Faith, Hope and Charity.  Enjoy the ride! She sounds like a heck of a character. By the way, I'm writing an ending without a beginning.  I'll let you know how it turns out.

Please do!

Oh, and if you're curious, I've put the first two sections online:

The Woman Who Hitchiked With Cats (Work In Progress). I'd love to hear your comments.