Wow! It's happening! Or is it?

I wrote a script for an indie producer maybe ten years ago. And now, it's finally getting made! It's here. That moment we all wait for! There are about four actors cast in roles on the imdb site. One really well known. Another that was in a very famous movie. And other really strong actors. So why am I scared out of my mind?! Because it's! Getting! Made! What if I don't like it? What if people have negative things to say about it? Of course as a writer, we know once we write it, then it's out of our hands. Sure, I've had some say in the many different rewrite phases. But even then, only sometimes was I listened to. The movie is 90% getting made out of the country, so I won't be there to help with any last minute changes. So what could go wrong? A lot!

I had a horror movie made by an indie director a few years back. I saw some of his previous films and thought they were pretty good. But once I saw the horror film made, there were things I think he could have done differently, that I think would have made it better. So as a writer, it's really scary when someone else takes your vision and doesn't do with it what you think they should.

Alas, I'm not a writer/director nor do I feel the need be just yet. So all I can do is hope for the best! It's at least getting made. Hopefully more doors will open for me once the movie comes out. Hopefully if it's not as good as I think it could be, people will know that wasn't up to me. So all I can do is enjoy this moment as the movie gets cast. And someday, I'll see my words up on the big screen, spoken by very talented and capable actors. and my name will be up on the screen too. That can't be too bad, right?

When it finally all clicks

I was reading an article by a writer who's finally getting noticed by Hollywood. And she said how all of a sudden she knew her scripts were ready when it just all clicked. I know that feeling and maybe you do too. But if you don't, that's okay too. It just means you're still at the learning point of your writing career. It's not something you can force. It's not something you can rush. Developing the tools to become a writer that will get you hired and sell your scripts is like a fine wine, it takes time. It takes studying the craft, learning as much as you can, and getting comfortable with breaking the rules you've learned.

I always wondered if I'd know when I finally "got it". Believe me, I felt many times before that I was there. But most recently I've rewritten two scripts, one for a producer and one with a writing partner. And both scripts, I just could tell I'd be able to figure out how to fix these rewrites. I could see it clearly. I'm not saying it came easy. Oh no. Especially the one for the producer. Since that was a page 1 rewrite, I was basically starting from scratch. But once I knew the new story, then I knew what had to be done. And I could tell what beats to hit and what would make the story flow in the best way it could.

And the rewrite with the writing partner, I could see it as clear as day what had to happen to make it a strong enough script to be ready to go out. I could just tell that something had changed in my writing. Maybe it's like hiting puberty. You don't really know you're in it while you are. But when you get to the other side of it, and you've got boobs or a hairy chest (hopefully not both!) then you realize, wow, I've blossomed!

So keep at it if you're not there. There's no waste of studying your craft, no waste of reading scripts, analyzing movies. It all helps you get to where hopefully you will be having meetings and selling scripts and seeing your ideas on the big or little screen. We can all hope it's sooner than later!

Can I stand being judged even more?

So we've all had to get used to being judged by other writers as we joined writing groups, took classes, shared our work. There's been many stages of being judged by my peers. It took me some time to get comfortable with opening myself up to critiques. And at this point feel like I've developed a pretty thick skin. Even having some actor friends sit in on a past writing group, and not flinching to notes by fellow writers, and my actor friends saying, "Wow, the people here are pretty harsh." And I didn't even notice they were. So it seems like I could pretty much handle any kind of feedback. But as I start getting ready to see my stuff be on film, it has reached a whole other level of being judged: By the public! And we know how harsh they can be. Especially critics who are looking to tear apart writers for the pure enjoyment of it. And what about the reviewing audience where half of them are probably in a bad mood from having a horrible day at work or miserable marriages, and getting to rip apart your movie is perhaps the only joy they'll have all day. The thought of it is all too much! Of course that can't stop us writers as we see our dreams of seeing our screenplay actually on the big screen. But I must say, the thought of all those critics can almost send me into a panic. I guess the only thing we can do as we get closer to that, is take some steps to realize what it all means. First off, we know we can't read the critics. Sorry critics! But you're not going to help us at that point. 2nd, ask friends who are really going to give you good notes. Not your parents or friends who are proud of you for getting any film made, but your writing friends that will tell you like it is. 3rd, remember whatever ends up on the screen isn't always up to you. I remember one of my favorite screenwriting teachers had a movie destroyed by the actor/producer's wife who started writing pages. His movie got panned and he hid for months! It was a shame because the guy is a great writer. 4th, just remember that wonderful saying, "Opinions are like assholes, everyone has one" and take all the feedback with a grain of salt. 5th, be proud of yourself if you get something that actually goes from script to screen. Such a huge feat, as we all know. We can only do our best. So if you did your best, and it didn't turn out as you wished, then learn from that. Be allow yourself the time to be proud of yourself. No reason beating yourself up when there will be enough critics and audience members who can do that. Lastly, remember that you cannot please everyone. You just can't. I think I wrote about this in an earlier post, that the writer of The English Patient, Anthony Minghella won the Oscar for that, and then the next day he opens the paper in England and reads, "The English Patient - the worst movie ever!" It made me laugh. Him too. And you just have to realize, some people will like what you write, and some just won't. And if you made half the audience like it, then you're doing something right. Writing all this sort of calms me down. I talked to the indie producer and she said she wants to produce our script this November. I got excited and frightened all at once! I guess it's that same feeling I had when I found out I was pregnant. Like, "Yay! Here we go!" and then at the same time, gulp, and go, "Uh-oh, here we go." But I know it's what I've always wanted, to have a career as a paid and successful screenwriter. So in order to do that, we need to get our work out. We can't let our fears take over. We have to move through our fears. Because that's all they are. And what if, all our fears never even happen. Who knows, maybe we're on our way to becoming the next great thing. Now how nice would that be?

Screenwriting: In honor of Valentine's Day

Why I love screenwriting. Let me count the ways.

I love creating characters that can sometimes take on a life of their own and tell me a story I didn't even know I had inside of me.

I love creating plots, that get so complicated that even I'm excited to see how the story ends.

I love the idea that some day, my words will be acted out by actors I admire on the big screen.

I love that when someone with talent reads my words, it sounds even better than I ever envisioned.

I love that when it's time to do a rewrite, even if I feel like there's no way I can fix the problems, with a lot of sweat and toil, I always do.

I love that at times I love screenwriting and times it drives me mad, and that's exactly why I love it.

I love the sound of hearing people laugh because I wrote something they thought was funny.

I love pushing the envelope to see how far I can go with humor.

I love when someone tells me I'm a really good writer. That never gets old and never will.

I love so much about screenwriting. What about you?

screenwriting events can get in the way of screenwriting

So a friend recently sent me a link to an event out in LA where some really interesting TV writers were speaking. Of course they were cool shows, great writers, and it all sounded really fun. Only for $10. What a great way to spend the night right? Well, I must say, I've kind of stopped going to see other writers speak about their great careers. I noticed that going to those things started to seem like a way not to write.

I know people always find things to get in the way of writing any way. Everyone's lives are busy. So adding anything, even if it's to inspire you, can just take away writing time too. Yes, of course, once in awhile is fine. But there are always so many of those, especially in LA, you really have to ask yourself, "Am I using this as an excuse to not write?" It might not feel like it, but it's funny how we can mask doing things for your writing that is not moving your writing forward.

At some point you have to take out the computer and actually write the script. Take the finished script and submit it to producers. Get what you create to come out on the screen. And anything that isn't moving that forward, has to be given up. It's the same in our stories, our characters always have to be moving forward right? So then, our career has to too. And if we're constantly having an episodic life, guess what, that's boring for us too! It might not seem like it from the outside. Sure you might see some way cool Hollywood writer talking about the way cool Hollywood actors in his show or movie. But again, do you want to just listen to a writer talk about it, or have that be you up there someday? I'm opting for the, "it being me up there" someday. And believe me, when it's my turn, I'm not going to do so many that I don't have time to write at that point in my career either.