I retired early when my employer gave me lots of money to go away. I'm a former journalist who grew up and spent much of my adult life in the St. Louis area (Go Cardinals). My professional career in journalism encompassed sportswriting and editing jobs throughout the country -- coast to coast -- and mostly in the southern tier of states. I left the sportswriting end of journalism when I got married in order to be at home more, and writing sort of took a backseat. Now that I'm no longer married, I bought some screenwriting software and I'm tuning the skills. My first completed screenplay, "Storming Sedalia," was a quarterfinalist in the Fresh Voices competition, so that jazzed me up a little bit. I know that doesn't mean much to a professional screenwriter, but to somebody who is just starting, even making it past that first level is enough validation to keep me going. Three days after my severance money hit my bank account I left St. Louis for Flagler Beach, FL. That's on the Atlantic coast, about 20 miles north of Daytona Beach. I've got a nice little place about 150 feet from the beach. I get a good look at the ocean from my back patio, where I often sit and work on my projects. As a rookie I need lots of help, and my questions will probably sound basic, so bear with me as I learn.