From what I’ve been reading on the internets, a lot of you are making some excellent progress with both your writing and your careers.
I’d love to hear more. Feel free to share the latest development(s) for you and/or your writing. Anything worth noting you’d like to tell the world? Doesn’t matter if you’ve made a sale or written 2 pages in your latest draft. It’s all good stuff.
I’ll go first.
I’m about halfway through outlining the story for a sci-fi side project, working on some script notes for a few friends, still trying to break the story for my new idea, and my western has advanced to the semifinals of the 2015 Screenwriting Action/Thriller contest.
Over the past week or so, the idea for a new story has been slowly developing inside my head.
Even though most of my attention continues to be focused on completing other projects, that seed has been planted and I work out a few details about it when I can.
This is just the beginning of the whole process, and my work is definitely cut out for me. Like with any script, it’s going to be tough.
But I also have to admit I’m quite thrilled about it.
There’s just something about coming up with a new idea that really reinvigorates your creative process. You’re excited about the story, the potential within it and possibly even (gasp!) looking forward to writing it.
I certainly doubt I’m the only who experiences this.
As expected, there will be days I get frustrated about any number of things related to this, which is par for the course. But I’ve also been doing this for a while, so the positive days steadily continue to outnumber the negative.
As has also been my experience, some of those negative days will most likely include outside comments of a tearing-down nature. Fortunately, I’ve developed a thick skin over the years and learned to ignore the ramblings of self-proclaimed “experts”.
For now, everything is still in the early-early development stage. It took a while just to come up with a good logline, and even that will probably still need work. Now I’m just figuring out the plot points. There’s no rush, especially since I already have several other scripts that require my attentions.
I like the concept of this one, and am really looking forward to seeing how things work out with it.
It’s the home stretch of the last week of November, and hopefully you’ve made some excellent progress on your designated writing project. Let’s go with the theory that you made the sincere effort to write every single day.
Pretty nice, isn’t it?
Are you further along than you expected? About the same? Not as much as you’d hoped? Doesn’t matter. You found the time to write and maintained that pattern of producing something on a regular basis.
Even if real life got in the way and maybe you had to skip a day here and there (it happens), isn’t it great to know that you made this commitment to yourself and kept it?
Maybe you had a really lousy day, and think “I really don’t feel like writing today” (which also happens), but then reconsider and realize “No. I said I’m going to do this, and I’m going to do it.” So you sit your ass down and pound away on the keyboard. For how long is irrelevant.
Your total output might just be a couple of lines or a couple of pages, but your progress is right there for you to read. Maybe you tell yourself you’ll do more tomorrow.
Admit it. You like this. Otherwise you wouldn’t be knocking yourself out doing it.
This can be addictive. While some may follow the Dorothy Parker school of thought (hate writing, love having written), others actually enjoy the whole process and want to continue doing so, constantly striving to improve both in quality and output.
I tend to go back and forth, but mostly it’s the latter.
So even though the month is wrapping up, that doesn’t mean you have to slow down on your writing. You’ve gotten into the habit of being a productive writer. Make the effort to continue doing so in the coming months, and that will quickly extend into years.
True, normally I’m a pie kind of guy, but I’ve really been craving these for a while…
Happy times around these parts, chums. The November writing project was a success. The first draft of the low-budget comedy is complete.
I listen to Pandora for white/background sounds while I write, and – this is absolutely true, swear to God – Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus was playing as I typed in “The End”. A pretty solid good omen, if you ask me.
So the draft is done, and now gets tucked away for a couple of weeks. It’ll definitely need a lot of work when I come back to it, but it’s great to know I have a completed draft to come back to.
This is that feeling that every writer should savor when they achieve a specific milestone like this. A lot of would-be writers start a project, then abandon ship when it “just gets too hard” or “don’t have time”. It’s those of us who are truly dedicated that toil away no matter what. You’ve had a long day at work. Stuff around the house needs to get done.
Through it all, we find the time and make the effort. Even if it’s only 30 minutes or one page a day. We do it not just because we want to, but because we have to. We consider not writing unthinkable.
There are good days and bad days, but you learn to work your way through both. You have a goal in mind, and do what you can to get there. And once you do, there’s nothing that can compare to that feeling of accomplishment.
Enjoy it. You’ve earned it. The first of what will probably many rewrites awaits, but it can wait just a little bit so you can reward yourself in a small but appropriate manner.
A friend told me that whenever they finish a first draft, they celebrate with scotch. Scotch really isn’t my thing, but I wouldn’t say no to a cannoli from this great Italian bakery down on the Peninsula…(diet be damned)
Have a great weekend, and get some great kickass writing done.
All I need to do is cut out the non-essentials. Who needs food, sleep or oxygen anyway?
I’m in the home stretch for the November writing project. I got into Act 3 over the weekend, and think there about 10-12 pages left before I can call it a day. No reason I can’t wrap things up in the next couple of days. Estimated final page count should be somewhere in the mid-90s, so pretty much where I was hoping it would be.
My original intent was to put that on the back burner once it was done and shift my focus to another script, but something else has developed that definitely requires my attention: other people’s work.
Over the past couple of months, I’ve been very fortunate to have gotten some fantastic feedback from friends and trusted colleagues. Now it’s my turn to return the favor.
Actually, make that favors. Plural.
Every time I’ve asked someone if they’d be willing to read and give me notes, I always offer to do the same for them. And several have taken me up on the offer.
Which is totally fine. I just didn’t expect all of them to happen within such a short timeframe. But it’s cool. Just requires a little planning.
Some script-related items, two scripts requiring special attention (with a bit of a time limitation), and at least 4-5 others getting straight-up notes. Yeah, that’s a lot, but I’d feel pretty shitty if I didn’t reciprocate the kindness all of these folks extended to me.
While I’d love to keep the 2-pages-a-day momentum going clear through to the end of December and have at least part of a draft of another script, taking care of these is now top priority.
It may take me a little longer than I expect, but I always strive to honor my commitments. I said I’d do something for you, and by gosh, I’ll do it.
Maximum Z 