script

From the archives: Don’t be that person

Maximum Z community, encouragement, feedback, networking, professionalism, screenplay, screenwriting, script, social media, support, writing , , , , , , , , , ,

yelling

The story you are about to read is true. Only the names have been omitted to protect the innocent.

Had an encounter earlier this week that reminded me of this post from August 2020. Still rings true today. Enjoy.

The script of a friend of mine has had some positive results in the contest world, and the most recent venture was getting professional analysis on it, resulting in somewhat decent scores.

I’ve read this script, and it’s very, very good. It takes a classic story everybody knows, and then examines what happens AFTER the events of that story. There’s a lot to like about it, and my friend is doing what they can to get it out there.

Part of their effort is seeking advice from those with more experience. Sometimes it’s via social media, private online groups, or public community forums. We’re in several of the same groups, so I’ve seen a lot of my friend’s posts.

Not that I consider myself to be especially ‘experienced’, but since becoming connected with this person, I’ve done what I can to be supportive and helpful when applicable.

Earlier this week, my friend came to me with a dilemma.

They’ve been frequenting a community forum where one of the members regularly belittles or downplays any form or announcement of good news posted by another writer. Sometimes it’s along the lines of “”Look, this is a tough industry. If you can’t take the criticism, you’re totally in the wrong field, which it looks like you are.”

I also marveled at how much time people tend to spend on these forums. Many comments tend to be of the “I know better than you, so bow before my obvious superiority” sort. This was a big part of why I stepped away from them. I’d rather spend my time, y’know, actually writing.

Quick side note – the person claims to have representation, and some optioned scripts as well as a news release from a few years ago about their latest script being shopped around. Both my friend and I scoured IMDB Pro for any mention of them at all, but…bupkis. Take from that what you will.

As much as I consider every other writer to be my competition, I don’t think I’d ever actively try to dissuade somebody from trying. Would I remind them this is an extremely tough field to break into, let alone thrive in, and that their overall chances of success are very small? Yes.

I’ve also dealt with “professionals” who’ve talked down to me and told me my story ideas were stupid and worthless, using the reasoning “I’m just treating you the way somebody in the industry would. If you can’t take it, maybe you shouldn’t be trying.”

Not having as much experience as some, the people I have encountered were actually polite, helpful and supportive. If something didn’t work for them, I’d at least get “thanks, but no thanks.”

This does compel me to ask:  is that really how the industry treats most people?

This most recently came to a head when my friend asked about suggestions for how to use the positive results they received from a reputable script analysis service as a marketing tool.

The same person was the first to respond, saying the concept wasn’t that original, so the script didn’t have much of a chance, and marketing it would be a very tough sell. When asked what they would recommend, they seemed to just repeat the same things.

My advice to my friend was to ignore 99 percent of what that other person said, but keep in mind that yes, the field for potential interest in their script is limited, but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t at least try. There’s no guarantee, but you never know who might say yes.

I made some suggestions of possible strategies, and summed it up with the standard “if they say no, you move on to the next one.”

As many of you probably already know, I’m a big believer not just in networking, but also in supporting the writing community. I try to help when I can any way I can.

This other person seemed to run completely counter to that. I just don’t see the point in why they would. To make themselves seem important? To show off their accomplishments? Wouldn’t they rather be seen in a positive light, rather than a negative one? I know I would.

I also mentioned to my friend that treating people like that could eventually backfire. Just because you might be a nobody today doesn’t mean you couldn’t be somebody important tomorrow.

And writers have long memories. We tend to remember those who leave bad impressions.

The best I could offer my friend was that I was there to help them and offer encouragement and advice when needed, and I hope other writers feel the same about their friends as well.

As determined as ever

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This is the 1200th post of this blog, so a little reflection is in order.

I started this endeavor in 2009 with the intention of chronicling my journey towards becoming a professional screenwriter. As you can probably tell from the lack of industry announcements that include my name or a script of mine, it hasn’t happened.

Yet.

Has it been frustrating? Most definitely. I’ve come close a few times, including having two managers and some of my scripts being considered at a few production companies. Daydreams of signed contracts and checks clearing were inevitable, but as often the case, things fell apart along the way.

I allowed myself a moment or two of “woe is me”, then got back to working on my scripts.

Like I recently wrote about, they’re significantly better than my earlier ones, and I’ll do what I can to make the next ones even better.

But for as many negative things that have happened, there’ve also been a decent number of positive developments along the way.

-publishing three books collecting a lot of the interviews I did on this blog

-being a guest on a friend’s podcast about writing, which led to co-hosting the next iteration of said podcast, and now being the sole host

-being invited to be a panelist talking about screenwriting at the San Francisco Writers Conference, then a panel moderator, to coordinating the whole Writing For Hollywood track

-writing a short script with the intention of actually filming it, with the wheels now in motion to see that come to fruition. Watch this site for the forthcoming announcement of the crowdfunding campaign.

It really has been a rollercoaster ride navigating my way through trying to make things happen. There’s been a lot of disappointment and frustration along the way, but I’m fully committed to seeing this through. It might not happen as fast or as soon as I want, but I’ve no intention of giving up.

Support from the screenwriting community has made quite a difference in helping sustain that. From giving and receiving notes to words of support and encouragement, they’ve all played a role in helping keep me going.

And while I’ll admit to feeling those tinges of jealousy when somebody else publicizes their writing-related wins and successes, I’m also extremely happy for them because I know they’ve worked hard to get there, and hope they’ll do the same for me when it’s my turn.

And I do plan on my turn happening.

Someday. Hopefully soon.

Past You would be really impressed

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Ask any screenwriter how their most recent draft compares to, say, their very first one, by which I mean THEIR ABSOLUTE VERY FIRST ONE, it’s probably a sure thing they’ll say something along the lines of “It was awful!” or “An absolute mess!”, or maybe even “I don’t even want to think about it it was so bad.”

Taking a look at some of my first attempts, I can say the exact same thing. Scenes that drag on. Flat action lines, or ones that were way overwritten. Big chunks of text on the page. On-the-nose dialogue that’s pure exposition. Spoonfeeding story details to the reader to make sure they understand what’s going on.

Nothing to be ashamed of. There are vomit drafts, and “looks like my printer vomited words all over the pages” drafts. You gotta start somewhere, and the important part is YOU GOT IT WRITTEN.

Nowhere to go but up, right?

So you start working on getting better. You get feedback. You start to understand why things aren’t working and what you can do to fix them. You learn, and all this new knowledge helps shape the next draft to better than the one that came before it.

You put in the time and the effort and it becomes more noticeable how your writing is getting better. All of those newbie mistakes are a thing of the past. Your script seems more polished. There’s still room to improve, but it doesn’t seem as daunting now, does it?

Multiple drafts and seemingly neverending rewrites are par for the course. It happens to even the most experienced screenwriters. The hardest part is getting that first draft written. Accomplish that and you’re already ahead of the game.

There will most likely be a ridiculous amount of rewriting in your future, and the end result may be totally different from what you started with, but think about how far you’ve come. You probably had no idea when you were just starting out that you’d be so willing to put yourself through all of this, over and over again.

And that might even be for just one script.

Sure, you might be a little embarrassed when you look at your earliest scripts, but look at your most recent draft or the pages you wrote last weekend. As if they’d been written by two entirely different writers. Because that’s exactly what they are.

Past You was just starting out and made a lot of mistakes. Present You knows what’s needed and does it.

And just imagine the skills that Future You is going to have.

(Silent) wheels in motion

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Mega-shorty today.

A lot’s been going on over several fronts, including this weekend’s San Francisco Writers Conference.

Much as I’d like to announce these recent developments, I’m opting to keep most of it under wraps for now. Details and updates will be posted as they warrant, if at all.

Nothing earth-shattering or drastically life-changing, but there’s definitely some potential in them thar hills.

Still, pretty excited about all of it.

Lead shielding not required

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Even if you’re not a comic book nerd, you probably know what that glowing green rock is, or at least have heard of it.

For the truly uninformed, it’s kryptonite, aka The One Thing That Can Harm Superman. It drains his powers and makes him decidedly non-super.

And it’s also incredibly necessary, because without any kind of weakness, Superman is pretty much unstoppable, which is BORING. Who wants a hero who can’t be defeated? Who always wins? Why should we care about him if there’s never any doubt he’ll succeed?

A protagonist needs some kind of weakness or flaw, like kryptonite provides for Superman.

Bonus – it also adds to the conflict.

I recently read a script where everything went perfectly fine for the protagonists. Every obstacle they encountered, they overcame with ease, then casually moved on to the next thing.

Where’s the conflict in that?

If a protagonist’s road to their goal was a long and empty straightaway of perfect asphalt, low gas prices and nothing but green lights so they get to their destination ahead of schedule, is this a story that would hold my interest? Not really.

But what if that road were nonstop twists and turns, laden with potholes, overly aggressive drivers, and a poorly timed construction project blocking 3 of 4 lanes AND the protagonist was running out of time to get somewhere they absolutely had to be? That is a story I’d want to see.

The protagonists in this script had no flaws. Everything always worked out for them – sometimes with little to no effort on their part. I told the writer they needed to do the opposite. There needed to be conflict for these characters at every turn. What was going to stop them, or at least slow ’em down?

Included in my notes – “What’s their kryptonite?”

Your hero needs to have a rough time in reaching their goal. (CONFLICT!!) Overcoming obstacles both physical and emotional is what provides the opportunity for them to learn and change. Without that, they remain stagnant and the reader/audience won’t care about them, let alone if they achieve their goal.

What’s your protagonist’s kryptonite? What’s stopping or at least hindering them from achieving their goal, and how can they overcome it? Does that help them grow and change?

Superman always finds a way to overcome his run-ins with kryptonite. Can you say the same about your protagonist?