encouragement

Moving that inner strength outward

Maximum Z anxiety, burnout, creativity, dialogue, encouragement, goals, ideas, inspiration, motivation, problem-solving, productivity, scenes, screenwriting, script, self-confidence, story, stress, writer's block, writing
It may not be as heavy as you think
It may look heavy, but it might not feel that way

I hate hitting a lull. Even the sound of it is off-putting.

“Lull.” Yuck.

Which of course is exactly where I found myself over the past few days regarding the first draft. I thought I was making some good progress, but instead found myself staring at a screen that mockingly stared back.

“Come on, writer boy,” it seemed to say. “Show we what you can do.”

Putting more pressure on yourself combined with the anthropomorphization of electronics doesn’t usually end well. You’re already frustrated, and when the words won’t come, you just want to throw up your hands and do your best Bill Paxton impression.

I’ve been down this path before. I don’t like it, it ain’t pretty, but it’s gonna happen and I accept that.

This is one of those times when you have to remind yourself that you’ve got two options: quitting, which is the easy way out, and totally squashes all the hard work and effort you’ve already put in.

Or you dig deep and force yourself to keep going. Again.

I recently started re-reading my copy of THE FIRST TIME I GOT PAID FOR IT, which chronicles the tales of many successful and well-known writers and how they got started. Apart from some great stories, it’s a good reminder to us outsiders striving to be insiders that even the pros started in the exact same place we are now.

And if you’re like me and want to change your status in that scenario, there’s only one way – keep writing!

I don’t know what the exact trigger was, but the next time I faced off against that blinking cursor and half-empty page, something clicked.

Boy, did it.

The words didn’t just flow – they gushed. It was like a Niagara Falls of scenes and dialogue pouring onto the page. My fingers could hardly keep up with my brain.

Whoa. Three pages in thirty-five minutes? Inconceivable!

I definitely now feel back on track. A renewed sense of what drew me to the story in the first place. Being that much closer to being able to type FADE OUT. And a little more faith in my ability to be productive, even when I don’t think I can be.

Take that, lull.

Looks like my get-up-and-go has got up and went

Maximum Z burnout, creativity, encouragement, exercise, motivation, Movie of the Moment, productivity, screenwriting, script, Superman, writing , ,
Everybody feels like this sometimes; today just happens to be my turn.
Amazingly, not as comfy as you’d think

I’m up to page 80 of the first draft, with maybe 2-3 pages to go to hit that next major plot point, which would put me approximately 7-8 pages over. Not necessarily too bad.

But there have been times lately, especially in the past few weeks, when writing feels more like work, which it really shouldn’t.

I’m not going to call it burnout, but it feels mighty close to that. Call it the writer’s equivalent of battle fatigue.

I don’t like it, and what bothers me more is the why.

Maybe it’s from not exercising as much, so my energy levels are down. On the other hand, I did two 13-mile runs in just under a week, so maybe I’ve exhausted myself.

Or maybe it’s psychological.  The ever-present concern whether people will like the end result is shaking my confidence, which makes it hard to focus.

A lot of writers say they write because they can’t imagine doing anything else. I agree, but what do you do when it’s tough to actually write?

It’s not writer’s block. I know the material. And it’s not motivation. Believe me, I really want to get this done.

The biggest drawback to all of this is if I’m not mentally jazzed about writing, the writing’s going to reflect that.

I could have an incredibly thrilling action sequence ready to go, but it might read as sluggish, listless or, god forbid, lazy.

It’s one thing to say to yourself “Keep going! You can do it!” It’s another to actually put those words into effect.

-Movie of the Moment – MAN OF STEEL (2013) Talk about tired and listless. How can a movie about Superman feel so empty? The special effects were impressive – I’d expect nothing less – but in terms of story and characters, I was very disappointed there wasn’t more of a sense of fun to it.

A friend says they were following the Nolan/DARK KNIGHT model and going for dark and brooding, which is what Batman’s all about anyway.

For a character with the nickname of the Big Blue Boy Scout, ‘dark and brooding’ isn’t exactly what comes to mind.

V and I saw it, and there were a few times she asked “Is it almost over?” This is a child who really enjoys a good comic book movie, and she’s known about Superman since she was really little, so when she asks that, you know it’s not a good sign.

Deterred? Me? Never!

Maximum Z Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, confidence, encouragement, goals, half-marathons, inspiration, motivation, Movie of the Moment, running, screenwriting, writing
Just...a little...farther...
Just…a little…farther…

And so another half-marathon has come and gone, along with my latest attempt to break the much-desired time of 1:55.

This time it was the SF WiPro on Sunday morning. There was a lot more uphill along the course than I expected, but I’m proud to say I didn’t stop on any of them.

End time: 1:57:28, for a pace of 8:58, which is actually pretty good for me. And taking all that uphill into consideration, it ain’t too shabby. It gives me confidence of how I could do on an entirely/mostly flat course.

Was I disappointed about still not hitting my personal best? Sure, but it’s in the past and now I can look ahead and get ready for my next race in August.  I’ll do my best for that one and see what happens. If I beat 1:55, great; if not, there’s yet another race in October.

For me, training for and running in these races is a lot like working on a script. I work at it when I can. Sometimes it’s easy, sometimes it isn’t. It’s a tremendous effort that takes a lot of dedication and commitment, and success does not come easily or quickly.  However, the payoff for when it does go well can be extremely gratifying.

Most importantly, no matter how hard things may seem, or how much I feel like giving up, I keep going.

Every single time I put myself out there, either for a race or a script competition, it’s a challenge to myself to do better than the last time. If I don’t get the results I’d hoped for, the next step is to figure out how I can improve.

I like to think I’ll eventually break 1:55, and my writing situation has been steadily improving, both in terms of skill and career development.

It’s been a long, tough effort, but my proverbial finish line is somewhere out there. It just takes a while to reach it.

-Movie of the Moment – ABRAHAM LINCOLN, VAMPIRE HUNTER (2012) It sucked.

That’s me – the human flying buttress

Maximum Z Comedy Film Nerds, encouragement, ideas, Movie of the Moment, originality, screenwriting, script, Star Trek, story, storytelling, writing
Just offering what little support I can
Just offering whatever support I can

When another writer follows me on Twitter, I’ll send a thank-you DM when applicable and ask how their latest project is coming along. The responses are usually pretty enthusiastic, and it’s great to see such a wide spectrum of material and how each person’s path is developing.

(What writer doesn’t like to talk about their work? I’m no exception either.)

Or maybe they’ve hit a bump in the road. “I’m stuck in Act Two,” “This rewrite’s killing me!” or “I’ve been dragging my feet on getting this draft done.”  Happens to all of us.

Based on how they’re doing, I’ll usually write something like “That’s awesome!” or “Hang in there!”, followed by the ubiquitous “Best of/Good luck!”

And I actually mean it.

Honest.

So it was a little surprising when I got this response during a recent DM chat – “You have a special gift of encouragement. WHO does that these days?”

Really? Nice, supportive people are now considered a rarity?

I’m not an idiot. This is a savage business a lot of us are trying to break into. It’s extremely competitive, and the odds are definitely not in our favor.  It’s extremely easy to get disenhearted and want to throw in the towel after receiving that 97th rejection letter.

A few words of support are never the wrong thing to say, even if it’s something as simple as “Good luck.” That may be just the extra push you need to get yourself to keep going, start again, or what have you.  If you’re lucky, you have loved ones, friends and trusted colleagues who support your efforts, regardless of how long it takes.

And consider me part of that group as well.

-Movie of the Moment – STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS (2013). Nice to look at, but is it really asking too much for an original story and characters – again? I didn’t like the Leonard Nimoy/Spock part of the 2009 movie, and was disappointed at the way this one played out.

For a funnier, NSFW spoiler-filled review, click here.

It bothers me that Orci, Kurtzman and Lindelof have become the go-to guys for pop culture sci-fi flicks. Yes, they’ve got talent (to a certain extent), but their work just feels like something’s missing. Maybe too much relying on flashy spectacle and not enough smart storytelling?  The effects should enhance the story, not the other way around.

As much as I enjoy a good fanboy film, I’ll take a solid story over gee-whiz special effects every time.  I suspect a lot of people also feel this way, or at least hope they do.

Trust your audience to be able to follow along; they’ll appreciate it.

Cue the cartoon Disney animals!

Maximum Z adventure, AMPAS, confidence, Disney, encouragement, Oscars, outlines, pie, screenwriting, script, storytelling, westerns, writing

You know that feeling when you come up with a story idea you can’t wait to jump into, and then when you actually do, writing it is even better than you could have possibly imagined?  Almost as if the physical act of writing is no longer a chore-like slog, but has become a thrilling way of putting the excitement of your imagination right there on the page?

That’s exactly what’s happening now as I turn my western outline into a script.

I’ve been doing my best to stick to the at-least-1-page-a-day method, and so far, it’s been working out nicely. Going into yesterday, I was on the verge of getting to page 3, but made it to almost the end of page 4 courtesy of bringing my laptop to V’s soccer practice.  It was also cool to completely revamp the scene’s ending totally on the fly. I like when the creativeness kicks in like that.

(Working in a public space is becoming so much more productive. Good thing there are lots of coffee shops and cafes in our neighborhood.)

It’s really hard to describe how jazzed I am about writing this.  I don’t know if it’s the love of the genre, or letting my enjoyment of pulp-y adventure shine through, or just plain having fun with it. Maybe it’s a little of everything.  Truth be told, I wouldn’t trade this feeling for anything.

How powerful is this positive sensation? Not only am I not even acknowledging that internal voice of self-doubt and naysaying, but if it were possible, I’d send everybody a piece of my homemade pecan pie just to make their day a little brighter.  Trust me. That’s saying something.

Of course, I’m not completely oblivious to reality. This thing is going to need some major work when the first draft is finished. There will most likely be all sorts of details that need to be fixed, ranging from story to characters to historical accuracy.

But I don’t care about any of that right now. I’m really enjoying this and want to keep that feeling going as long as possible.

It’s also my hope that my enthusiasm comes across on the page, which would make it that much more fun a read for somebody else.  Who wouldn’t appreciate becoming engrossed in a rousing tale of adventure?

-The Oscars. Since we have Apple TV, the show wasn’t streamed live (unless we wanted to subscribe to a service we’ll never need or buy a useless product) so we couldn’t watch it, but were able to hear the audio. Hopefully the Academy and the networks will accept that live streaming is an inevitable part of the future and make the appropriate changes. Probably not, but one can hope.

Regarding the awards the awards themselves, nothing too surprising except for how well LIFE OF PI did. Guess I’ll actually have to see it now, along with most of the other BP nominees.

-Movie of the Moment – DREDD (2012). I’m familiar with the comic, and this was a much stronger adaptation of it than the Stallone version. Karl Urban was a great fit for the lead.

In terms of plot, if you enjoyed THE RAID: REDEMPTION, you’ll like this. The same concept, more or less, but with less martial arts and more whiz-bang special effects. Overall, not a bad way to spend 92 minutes.