What a day.

Avid readers/followers of ScriptShadow will no doubt be aware that an amateur script is currently the absolute hottest thing in the film industry right now.  Said script will be officially reviewed tomorrow (there, not here). There is so much buzz about this script that when Carson sent it out to his readers yesterday, he mentioned how he’d received more voicemails in one day asking for it than any other time or for any other script he could remember.  And that the writer had received calls from just about every single major agency, production company and studio, asking about making a deal and/or representation.

To put it in perspective, that’s like being the holding the only winning ticket for the highest-ever lottery in the history of mankind.

The first thing I thought: Wow. That must be some script.

Second thought: Lucky bastard.

Third thought: Wish I could get that kind of response from my stuff.

I’m sure there are hundreds, if not thousands, of other writers who are thinking the same things.  But I can’t stress enough that I don’t resent this writer his success.  I read the script, and it is extremely good.  Definitely high concept. Compelling premise and story. Interesting characters.  A definite page-turner.  Smart.  This guy has earned his rewards.

(Without giving too much away, it came across as a modern interpretation of THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE. Not necessarily a bad way to go.)

While it was easy to feel sorry for myself, I didn’t like disappearing into a “poor me” mood and instead opted to do something about it.

I went for a run. (New Orleans Half-marathon is a week from Sunday. I think I’m ready.) That always helps me reflect on whatever might be bugging me at the time.  It’s also good for clearing one’s head.

After I got home, I knew I had some time to work on DREAMSHIP, including incorporating the additional scenes I mentioned yesterday. That went a lot better than expected. One scene I really wanted to do just wasn’t going to work, but I managed to find a good alternate way of doing it.

I also reminded myself that my script is completely different from his on several levels, but still has to be rock-solid.  And more importantly: this is only the first draft of the rewrite, so I shouldn’t be so hard on myself.  Once I type in “FADE OUT”, then I can go back and see what needs to be fixed.

So a day that started off making me upset ended up with me feeling pretty darned good about things.  The key now is figuring out how to keep that latter feeling going into the next day.

Shameless self-promotion: The Script Adventurer! on Radioslot, live on Mondays 1-2PM PST, and replayed Sundays at 7PM PST. What, you’d rather watch 60 MINUTES?  Of course, the Oscars are this Sunday, so I won’t be offended if you opt to watch that instead.