encouragement

Rediscovery within the idea factory

Maximum Z creativeness, creativity, encouragement, feedback, ideas, inspiration, loglines, productivity, screenwriting, script, story, storytelling, title, writing
Where output is a 24/7 operation
Where output is a 24/7 operation

Where do you keep your collection of story ideas? A folder stashed away somewhere in your home office? A notebook tucked away on a bookshelf?  A flash drive lost amidst the clutter on that messy desk you keep telling yourself you’re going to eventually get around to cleaning?

No matter where it is, hopefully you still have it and have been contributing to it all this time.  The stuff you came up with way back when with the intention of getting back to it someday.

When was the last time you looked at any of them?  How much did you work on this or that before moving on?

It might just be a title, a logline, or a single paragraph. Take a closer look. How do they read now?

Does your mind still race about the possibilities of what could happen? Do you read it and think “I barely (or don’t) remember writing any of this,” or (hopefully) “This is a lot better than I remember.” Do you make a mental note that this has to be your next project?

Sometimes the ideas we come up with are better than we realize. The initial effort might not be what we’re hoping for, but  the idea or concept behind it is so strong – that’s what really appeals to us; it really drives us and motivates us to explore it further. Some may jump right into reworking it, while others file it away – “I’ll hold on to this.”

Maybe all you really needed were time and experience. Aren’t we all better writers than we were, say, a year or two ago?

Last week I wrote about working on two projects. While I wait for feedback on each in their current state, I turned my attention to the outline of a story I came up with about five or six years ago.

Much to my surprise, there were two outlines: the original, and then a semi-rewrite from two years after that. I skimmed through both. I prefer the second one, but there are definitely elements from the first I can incorporate into a new version.

There’s nothing like finding some of your old material and not just enjoying it, but seeing its potential and looking forward to working on it.

(As much as I’d like to add this into the mix, it’s probably better to not overdo it. I’ll focus on the other two, then move on to this one.)

So dig around and find your ideas from days gone by. You might even be surprised and potentially impressed with what you find.

Making space in my repertoire

Maximum Z confidence, creativity, encouragement, goals, multitasking, productivity, reading, rewrite, screenwriting, script, westerns, writing
This many
On the verge of this many more

After finally finishing the outline for the rewrite last week, I immediately jumped into re-reading the western spec in preparation for the inevitable rewrite/polish.

Looking at it after a 1 1/2-month break was incredibly helpful, and it still reads great.

Then it hit me.

If I can keep up this kind of productivity, I’ll have two brand spanking-new scripts ready to go relatively soon.

Yay.

This whole “dedicating a little time each day to writing” thing continues to be paying off.

Added bonus – more material at my disposal to respond to the question “What else have you got?”

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.