With all the activity surrounding the one script these past few months, and even though I was working on some new stuff, I’d practically forgotten that I really needed to build up my arsenal of material. When somebody asks “What else have you got?”, I want to be able to say “This, this and this.”

Thus the pattern of always working on something continues. As it should for every writer.

Progress on the western spec has been pleasantly steady. And with school starting up the week after next, there’s no reason I can’t bulldoze my way to FADE OUT soon after that. When that’s done, it’s right into reworking an older script with the hope of a quick turnaround.

Changing your focus every once in a while helps keeps things fresh, both on the page and in your head. It gives your creativity a necessary recharge. If you’re working in different genres, it allows you to put yourself in a totally different mindset.

Think of it as crosstraining for the mind. You work on this for a week, then something else the next week, then another the following. Skills are sharpened while attention is spread out equally. In the end, you’ve got progress on multiple fronts.

It’s easy to fall into the trap of constantly rewriting the same thing over and over, which can quickly lead to frustration and burnout. New work can help avoid that.

Take advantage of the opportunity to switch it up, and even when you start something new, keep one eye looking just ahead to the project after that.

-Stan Lee update. Didn’t get to meet him, but took some nice pix from deep within the crowd. I also won a signed copy of Avengers #31. Both V and I had a good time despite the Giants losing 6-1.