Rewrites are like cleaning the house

Do you ever find yourself with a messy house and so when it's time to finally clean it, it feels like a huge undertaking? I know for me, I have a 10-year-old and a husband, so in a week, there can be many little piles of clothes, shoes, books, mail, and who knows what else, in so many different places. When I decide to get us back on track I can go from room to room not feeling like I have accomplished much of anything. But what I find works for me is I have to stick to one room, clean that room up, then when it's organized, move on to the next room. If don't focus on the whole house, I can actually get it done without getting overwhelmed. If I think of the whole house, I just want to give up.

Rewriting a script when it's a huge rewrite can be just like that. I just this minute finished a huge rewrite of my latest comedy. The notes I got from some talented writer friends were definitely going to change this script in a big way. But I agreed with these notes and knew it needed a big overhaul. So bit by bit, day by day, I'd chisel away, rewriting a scene at a time. I didn't worry how long it would take me. I didn't focus on the huge task that was in front of me. I just kept moving forward. It wasn't easy, but viola! I finished! Any script can be rewritten. No matter how many notes, how many changes. It can be done. It's a script! So next time you have a big rewrite, think of it like cleaning the house. You know it's going to get done. Just focus on what's in front of you at that moment and that task at hand. Before you know it, you'll have a work of art.