Kaia Alexander - empowering writers

As a champion of diverse voices and own voices, Kaia Alexander knows representation matters. She is bi and queer writer and would love to see more LGBTQ stories told and made. She's on a mission to help more writers who have been kept out of the industry get their stories out there. 

When did you first start writing? 

Kaia explains, she was always writing. As a child, she took comfort and solace in it. She started writing books at 7-years-old. She was the first writer in the family at that time, but then everyone in her family followed her lead. Her Mom and Step-Dad started writing when she was in her 20's. A cousin is now a children's book author and an Aunt is writing essays about southern living. She found out a Great Grandmother was an editor for a newspaper she owned and ran, at the turn of the century. That side of the family were alcoholics, so Great Grandma did what she had to and took over the paper to keep things running. After that, her Grandmother studied journalism and writing was passed down through generations. 

When did you start writing screenplays? 

Apparently screenplays came before she wrote novels. When she started writing them, there wasn't even software for writing screenplays. Because it was such an early part of her writing career, an early reader didn't give her the best praise and it scared her off writing completely. She even says, this reader should have been more kind and given her guidance and at least seen her talent in her writing. Something like, "yes you're green, but keep going". Luckily, she kept going even without that. At the time when she started writing, she only saw men writing TV, so she felt she didn't belong in that medium. Growing up in LA, if she would tell someone she was a writer, people would say, "Oh you mean an actor". So that made it hard for her to take her writing seriously. 

Writing her first novel 

As luck would have it, she met author Tom Robbins, author of Even Cowgirls Get The Blues, which was later turned into a movie with Uma Thurman. After meeting in Hawaii, he started mentoring her. When she told him she wanted to write a novel when she was in her early 20's, he told her to write it long-hand in pen, said it would actually force her to finish it. He told her, "start with a title and write yourself into corners and it will force you to write yourself out of the corners". So with that advice, she starting writing what would become her novels in journals. Sadly, one was stolen from a coffee shop. Luckily, her mom Xeroxed it. Yay mom! But then it was time to transcribe the whole thing into her computer. At this point, she didn't even know how to type. So she had to teach herself how to type while she was transcribing. It wasn't pretty! In fact, she still has a weird typing style that she admits is very wrong. She says people who see her type are very confused. 

Is it up to the writer to make things happen? 

Kaia tells me that her first novel was published by Harper Collins. She did that deal herself, without a rep. She brought a rep into that deal because she networked and met the Senior VP of Harper Collins, and read her novel and she said, we want your book. There's nothing more powerful than the subject line of your email you're sending to say, "deal in hand" as you go to get a rep. There's a lot you can do if you have an Entertainment Attorney who is willing to help you, because they can go through unsolicited. They can help you if you don't have a rep. 

Do managers work for you or themselves? 

Most managers will have possibly hundreds of clients because they're making a percentage off of each client. They need a lot of sales to keep their lights on. They're constantly like, "squirrel" by each project. They have to be opportunistic by what the buyers want. They have to look at what the buyer's want in their network and think what do they want? 

Went she back to writing screenplays

She found herself back in Los Angeles and astrologers kept telling her she had a destiny in film and TV. But she had no interest. She was interested in yoga and writing books! That was the life she planned for herself. But then in one of her yoga classes, she became friends with the owner of a production company. When he found out she was a committed novelist, he told her, "I need a Development Executive, come work for me". He explained her job would be to read scripts and help find stories. So apparently the astrologists were right! 

Being a Development Exec 

The first script she read and gave notes on was Just Friends which was cast with Ryan Reynolds, Anna Faris and Amy Smart. This was when Anna Faris' career was launched, so she really enjoyed seeing this film put to life, and she got to see Anna's career born. Then after this film, she worked on The Good Night with Gwyneth Paltrow, Danny Devito, Simon Pegg, Penelope Cruz and Martin Freeman. Kaia calls it the greatest movie you never heard of. Her boss even put $1 million of his own money into this movie, he believed in it so much. After this, she worked on Peaceful Warrior. She had read the book in high school, so when her boss asked what should we do, she told him, "we should do Peaceful Warrior". So he told her to find out who had the rights to the book, which turned out was Nick Nolte. Her boss said, "I want to work with Nick Nolte"! That's why this movie got made. 

What's the difference between a Development Exec and Producer 

For those of you wondering, a Development Exec is in-house in a studio, a Network, or a Production Company. They get paid a salary. Kaia did this job for a production company. The Development Exec is the buyer. They're looking at the attachments, saying, oh this script has Ryan Reynolds, we read it, it's high concept, we love it, New Line has put in X amount of money, and we'll bring in finishing funds. They bring in the financing, the attachments, like actor or director, and then they decide with their slate, does this align with our brand? Does it fill a slot on our slate that we want to do? And will it ultimately grow our brand? Will this movie be a hit and make us more successful? Kaia said she probably read 1000 to 2000 scripts. When you read this many scripts, even with big movie stars attached, you read stuff where you say, this is terrible. She would read scripts and her creative mind would come alive, thinking, you could do this or that to this script. So her job was to give notes as Development Exec to help the project succeed. 

That's when she had ideas for scripts

The first script she wrote got lost with a computer crash. The next movie she wrote was called Small Talk. She got a producer attached to that one. Now has three scripts written. But then as projects happen, Small Talk lost its producer, because he quit the industry. But she kept going, kept having ideas. Now she has what she calls a boneyard. That's because every time she writes ideas, she keeps them in the boneyard. It's a keeper of awesome things that she can always go back to. She may use parts of them in other projects. If she overhears dialogue she likes, she puts them in her boneyard; she will write it down and have it as a resource for later. 

Current scripts 

She has a pilot out now with an A-list actress. She has an adaptation of her favorite memoir and is buttoning up the option now. She's also written a couple features she needs to get into the right hands. The Enchantment of Cary Grant she feels is the closest. She writes mostly comedy, or dramedy. 

How Garry Shandling came into her life 

Her friend Frank owned a shop called, Natural High, all bamboo and hemp clothing, on Main Street in Santa Monica and he needed someone to help. She loved retail, loved getting an eye on the world, she figured why not! So she worked a few Sundays. One day, she was folding shirts and sees a guy trying on a shirt and she can see him from behind and she sees an Enso tattoo. She blurts out, "you have an Enso tattoo on your neck"! So Garry whips around and looks at her, and says, "I've had this tattoo for years and no one knows what this is". He asks, "Who are you? Do you work here? What are you doing?" Her first thoughts are, did I do something wrong? Because he was intense. 

How their friendship grew 

Garry ends up hanging around the store and buying a few things. Then he invites her out to dinner with a friend, and gives her his number. But she feels a real connection to him. Even watching him on TV she felt he was talking to her. So seeing him in real life it felt like he was already her friend, and now here he is in person, and it still feels that way. It just really flowed for her. He tells her, "call me, come up to the house and teach me yoga". But she didn't think he really meant it. She put his card on her desk, and her roommate at the time was a bit crazy and coked out and the roommate throws the card away. So she figured, oh well, guess she won't call him. A week or so later, Garry calls her and he's like, "Kaia why haven't you called me? I need yoga! Can you come today?" That's how the friendship formed. She was so enthralled by everything between them that she kept notes while she was hanging out with him,hanging out all the time. Even Kevin Nealon said about Garry Shandling in the documentary, "He really changed my fabric" and Kaia couldn't agree more. She was seeing the world differently with him. She starts understanding the entertainment industry in a different way because he was really opening up to her about his experiences and letting himself be vulnerable. 

Garry on manifestation 

At the time they became friends, the book, The Secret was very big. So she asked him his thoughts on the book. If any of you know anything about Garry, you know he was a Buddhist and very zen, and big on manifestation. Kaia reads me an email from Garry, about that very thing. "Keep the mind empty, know your intention. Integrate it into every cell of your body and commit. And you can do anything. Remain unresult oriented but live moment by moment in process and what you are in this goalless unspeakable focused path will result in what you want. Thinking about what you want, and then acting like you're committed to getting it, to the degree of already getting it, is just a confusing way of twisting people around. Quantum mechanics and the field of energy that exists transmits on a frequency far deeper than thought. Sure thoughts will create reactions. Empty mind, pure heart, will result in being right where you're supposed to be. The Secret will get people to think about consciousness on a simple slightly distorted way but at least thinking about it. It's not a secret you can be whatever you want and make your life what you want. But it comes from a still place. Not the mind, thought, acting out place. Clear the mind and get out of your own way and be. You will automatically find natural action and discipline in which to find peace. Create the life and people you want around "forcing" is not the secret. One must be quiet and grateful for where they are before forward movement happens and then it will happen organically." Wow, some very wise words from a deeply spiritual man. Make of it what you want, but we all know Garry was a very successful man, so if you don't believe in manifestation, explain why he did and was so successful. 

Living in LA

Kaia believes all these experiences happened for her because she lived in LA. She believes if you want to be in the industry and you live in the area where the industry happens, it helps to live and sleep in that area. Because you run into it everywhere in an area that you won't. 

Does she believe you need to move to LA? 

She knows writers who have gotten reps and don't live in Los Angeles. Yes you can write features and other things and not live in LA. Things have changed and people can succeed outside of LA. But once you get in, the industry stays hard. Your competition is the people you see on TV. So to stay top of mind, get those meetings because the hustle never stops. You also have to love the hustle. Kaia loves to make things happen. She is only an hour away from LA. She can get to LA quickly. She does have one TV sample so if it gets made she'd have to move to LA. And she would. But she's also not relying on the entertainment business to pay for all her bills. She also has her own business, to pay for the bills. But if she was relying on the entertainment business to pay her bills as a writer, she wouldn't take that risk by not living in LA. If you look at the stats of the Writers Guild she says a third of the writers are unemployed at a given time. So whatever you can do to improve your odds, do it. A writer friend of hers who is a showrunner with four shows, met her manager at the WGA office. She would go there to work in their space and met him there. Just being in the world of LA, being out, going to Margaret Herrick Library or the DGA, and being able to be immersed in it if you're committing to making this your career. 

How Garry got his rep

He wrote a spec script for a show called Sampson and Son. He writes it and has a friend whose uncle is running the show, so he asks his friend if he can give it to him. The guy liked it, says this is pretty funny, and gave him notes. Garry integrates the notes, turns it back in on time, and he says we're going to use it, and buys it from Garry. So Garry is now in the writer's room, which is across the hallway from Welcome Back Kotter. So the lead of Welcome Back Kotter sees him and goes, who are you? Garry says, I'm writing for this show. They say, we need another writer. You write comedy? Suddenly, he's writing for two of the biggest comedy shows on TV at this time. His friend tells him, you should probably get an agent. He tells Garry, I'll introduce you to one and tell him what you're working on. Garry calls the agent and says where he's working. But the agent misunderstands him and thinks he says, he wants to write on those shows. Garry says, no I'm already writing on these shows. So the agent hangs up on him because he thinks he's lying. So the agent does some research and finds out he is working on those shows. The agent calls back 15 minutes later, and has 30 meetings set up for Garry all over town. He tells Garry, you're my next client, you're the next big thing, and he helps his career take off. That's what Kaia calls possibility thinking. Somebody needs you. You just have to figure out who that is. 

Find your wolfpack 

This is something Kaia talk about often in her Entertainment Business School. You have to find your Wolfpack. You have to link elbows. When she does her podcast, Entertainment Business Wisdom, she asks guests like, Mike Medavoy, Scott Gardenhour, and Debbie Liebling, "who's your Wolfpack?" they instantly say, "It's my wife" "it's my agent" "It's my manager". They know who is in their wolfpack. Who circles them and helps them and who they lean on. If you loan wolf, you will starve in this industry. You won't make it. 

What is the Entertainment Business School? 

Kaia realized she was meeting so many talented and amazing creatives. But they were having trouble with their deals, they didn't know if they needed to start their own company, and what to do with to do with their taxes. These are all things that make up the business of entertainment. But writers and creatives don't know the business side, or negotiating, so then they find they were trusting blindly people on their team, hoping their team was doing things right. That's a very unempowered place to be stuck and Kaia wanted to do something about it. She even saw it happen to Garry Shandling, who got screwed horribly by his manager Brad Gray. Even Garry said, he didn't know what Brad was doing because he was his manager, and trusted him, and it hurt him. That blind trust became a massive lawsuit. These are things that inspired Kaia to form the Entertainment Business School. 

Things you'll learn in Entertainment Business School

Kaia even teaches if your manager or rep is good for you, or if they're a sociopath or narcissist. Are you dealing with someone who has a personality disorder and can hide it? Kaia explains, there are plenty of sharks in the industry and you have to double-check everything. You have to read a contract and also understand it. It's the biggest mistake creatives make. They lose money because they walk away from deals or won't negotiate deals or they won't encourage reps to negotiate deals. In her first cohort of students she taught them how to negotiate. They ended up with so much more money. They realized there was more money than they thought. This is something every creative should know how to do. 

How long is the Entertainment Business School 

There's the main flagship school which is 12 weeks that has live coaching with Kaia. It's 4 hours a week. Monday night mixer. Tuesday night teaching with slides. Wednesday sometimes guest speakers. Thursday is group coaching, hotseats to work on your career, your bio, emails you need to compose. This for all creatives, women and men, all stages of their career. Some students may have just graduated with MFAs and others will have had 5 movies produced. But all got something out of it. There will also be an evergreen course for a mastery that is a paired down version of the business. Whatever works for your lifestyle and budget, it's there. To find out more and sign up, visit https://entertainmentbusinessleague.com/ She also has scholarship spots in each cohort. 

Does your yoga help your writing? 

She's been practicing yoga for 25 years but 5 years ago she traded her yoga mat for her surfboard. So that's where she gets her mental health. That's her new church and religion. She still meditates and stretches but no longer does her daily yoga like she used to. She teaches inner guide meditation and uses it, and feels meditation is very meaningful. But she feels like our western culture that's always on the go, is hard for people to all of a sudden sit still. But she's a big proponent on spending time in nature. Whether it's a park, or morning walk, or a beach, it heals the soul and she recommends time in nature even over meditation. 

What's one thing you would tell new writers interested in writing screenplays? 

Pick subjects and genres to write about that you're madly in love with. Because to get a great script done, we're all in love with a first draft. But we have to marry that script and be in multiple drafts and notes. Will you love this five years from now? Your love and passion is where to put your attention. If you love horror, or romcoms, then throw yourself into what you love the most. Don't write a genre you don't love. Also work backwards. Ask yourself what kind of stories you want to tell, and that's your brand. When you focus on what you love it becomes organic. Look at Shonda Rhimes, of someone who focused on what she loves, and does it so well. We all identify her and know who she is. It helps your career if you focus on what you love. 

So that's Kaia Alexander. Be sure to look up her business school if you're ready to move forward in your career https://entertainmentbusinessleague.com/ 

Your own progress is what matters

I always do a year-end review just to check in with myself, keep myself writing, and inspire myself to keep going. We writers all need that from time-to-time, don't we?

Well, this year has been my most successful year thus far. But it doesn't mean I'm supporting myself with my screenwriting career just yet. I have a new writing partner and together we got a huge production company interested in our comedy that they've attached themselves to. They've sent it to a big director and we're waiting to hear if he's attaching himself. We also finished a WW2 drama that I'm co-producing with two really big producers. And I finished a third comedy feature that when it's ready, I'm getting to a really huge producer. Plus, I gained a manager for the first time because of my comedy that has interest.

But even though I have a lot to be thankful for, I'm still not where I want to be with my career. But I'm definitely on my way. And like I've done in previous year-end reviews, it's important for us writers to relish the positive. We writers tend to compare ourselves to others that are reaching more success, whether financially, screen credits, meetings, the list is endless! But we have to remember that every writer has their own path. What might be a success for one writer one year, could be the success another writer sees the next year. When one writer wins in a contest one year, another screenwriter can see success a couple years later in a different contest. So what I'm saying, is do not compare yourself to anyone but yourself!

Did you do better in a contest this year than last?

Did you write more scripts this year than last?

Did you have more meetings this year than last?

Or even did you just get your butt in front of the computer more this year than last?

Whatever looks like success for you, is what matters! Sometimes our success can look small when we compare ourselves to other writers. But if we compare each writing year from one to the next we can see how far we've come. And that's all that really matters.

So what did your success look like this year? Whatever it was,  use it to have a successful 2020! You got this!

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!

Not writing is writing

I don't know about you but when it comes to writing all I want to do is write the scenes and the dialogue. But there's so much more to writing than just writing. There's outlines. Which are so important. Sure some people think they can write without them. But once I finally realized how important they were, I think I shaved off about ten rewrites per script. My first drafts are now more like 5th drafts.

There's entering contests. For new writers, how else are you going to get noticed? And you can tell where you fit in amongst your peers when you end up a finalist. But keeping up on all the due dates, fellowships that need cover letters. It's a lot to keep track of.

Then of course there's queries for new writers. Which producers to contact, which managers, which directors. Then once you have, do you need to follow up? Should there be a schedule to it? It's a full time job! But it must be done.

Then of course there's a ton of writing events to go to. I don't even go to them any more because I felt like I was spending too much time going to events. But sometimes there's networking events. And I'm horrible about attending them. But really, you never know if you could meet someone that could further your career. Maybe if I went to more I'd be farther along in my career.

But none of this includes the actual writing of the scripts. Which to me is why we writers love writing. I don't know any writers who got into writing because of the love of entering contests though or the love of writing a great synopsis. But it's all part of it. It's the business side. And it must be done if you ever want a career. And I'm pretty sure that's what we're all hoping for.

So the fact is we must find the time for this stuff too. Too bad we can't hire an intern who wants to work with a someday future screenwriting star! Hmmm....perhaps a Craigslist job post is in order for that! Okay not really. But sure would be nice to have some help with that stuff. Oh well, till then, I guess it's up to us to further our own careers. Onward and upward!

You need more than one script!

I don't know how many times I need to tell new writers this. But for some reason new writers think that they're going to get rich and famous off of one script. Even the writers that you hear come out of nowhere, I guarantee you they've been writing for years and years and have a bible of work ready to sell. But new writers think, ah, I have this one amazing idea, let me write this one only and get famous!

Yeah, doesn't work that way. Even in one of my early screenwriting classes, one of my writer friends actually came first in a really decent screenwriting contest. Production companies and agents contacted her and guess what? They all asked, "What else do you have?" She didn't! She admitted to me that those contacts went away. She blew that opportunity. Don't do that!

Not long ago a newbie writer contacted me about his one script that was ready and he was going to get it out and he was waiting to hear from producers. I told him, "Great! While you're waiting, get started on the next project." He ignored me and recently wrote me how a management company passed on his script, so he's fixing it and making it stronger. Great, always a good thing to do. But again, I told him, "Work on something new. People want to see other projects!" I think he ignored me again. But people, it's not about having one perfect script. It's about growing as a writer, having as many great projects as you can because you never know who will want to read everything you have.

I read recently that when Judd Apatow was discovered everything he had was bought up, all the scripts he'd been writing for years and years. Heck, who wouldn't want that? Would't you rather have a lot of great things bought up than one script that people pass on because that's all you have? I know I would.

And the more projects you have the more doors you can open. Even now I have a script at Nickelodeon, another with a latino executive producer, a feature comedy somewhere huge, another with a Hallmark producer, a spec with an HBO show, getting ready to pitch a reality show, and on and on. My gosh,  I have so many different types of projects. I'm not saying you have to get into every type of genre or medium like me. I just do that because I can't stop creating. But every door could lead to another door and another opportunity. You just never know where opportunity is going to knock next. And if you've only got one script to knock with, guess what, you just might miss out.

So finish that first script, start the second, and start getting ideas for 3, 4 and 5. You're a writer gosh darn it. Of course you have more ideas. And if you don't then start reading more newspapers or going to museums to find more. There's plenty of things to write about. Just figure them out. And then, write them.

what's in a name?

When we choose character names for our scripts/films, we think about what name would best suit our stories. But did we ever realize that it's possibly because those names really connotate a certain image even in real life? That it's not as random as we first perhaps thought. I listen to these podcosts almost daily on spirituality and positive thinking, and today the guest was a woman by the name of Sharon Lynn Wyeth. She wrote a book called Neimology, the study of what names really mean. It was so interesting! It got me to thinking that when we choose characters, that maybe we always knew there was meaning behind them, without even realizing it. Sharon, (pronouned Sha-rone, not Sharon), did a study on names and letters for fifteen years and visited 60 countries collecting data, before publishing her book. She found that all the rules she writes about with names and their meanings holds true as long as they're written with the same characters. If you think about it, we know that a Jennifer means one type of person, whereas a Norma would be a completely other type of person. Even recently a writer friend on Facebook asked for people to chime in on character names for a guy that's annoying, boisterous, obnoxious. People quickly wrote, "Clifton, Chad, Lewis," on and on and on. Sure some names seemed to fit that type of character more than others. But right away I got images of who those characters fit and what type of person I'd expect to see. There really did seem to be some truth to what she wrote and talked about. And perhaps if we writers get this book, we'd be able to come up with the perfect character names without just reaching randomly into thin air or googling, "baby names" in search of the perfect name. I for one am curious and might have to get the book. Even if I don't use it for screenwriting, I could always find out what my name means. I hope it's all positive! Plus knowing names could help us understand our day-to-day as we interact with people. I mean, I might like to know which producers are easier to work with someday, right? Here's her website for anyone that's interested in reading more about it. http://knowthename.com/about/

How many scripts does it take to be ready?

It's sort of like that question the owl used to ask in the 1970's Tootsie pop commercial. "How many licks does it take to get to the center of the Tootsie Pop? A-one, a-two, a-three! Crunch!" Well unfortunately it takes more than three scripts. Maybe you're thinking, "But wait, my first script is amazing! Of course I'll be ready after three. Or even after one! I'm a fast learner. Maybe it takes some writers a long time, but not me!" Well, let me tell you, that's most likely not the case.

I just read an article from Terry Rossio. He and his writing partner are the writers of the Pirates Of The Caribbean films, along with many other great films. He said it took he and his partner 13 scripts in five years before they felt ready to get anything out. Here's the link if you'd like to read it. http://www.wordplayer.com/columns/wp19.You.the.Expert.html And now he's got huge success. But it took him that long to be ready and good. You can't start out so-so and go to good in this business. When you hit the ground, you hit the ground running.

I even remember early on in my screenwriting career hearing a successful writer at a WGA event say it takes 10 years till you're ready. I remember thinking, oh god no, please not 10 years. I'm ready now! Well, I've been writing over 10 years and have at least 10 scripts give or take. But maybe only two that I would show, and the current one will be even better. So maybe I'll have three by then. Plus of course the indie that should be produced this year. But it really took me that long to be ready.

So before you panic and give up at the thought of it taking that long. Yes, it could take you less time. If you happen to not have a full time job. Or don't have kids or a spouse. Perhaps you are very fortunate to write 24/7 so you can devote all your time to studying your craft. Okay then yes, it won't take you 10 years. But for the rest of us, it's not going to be an overnight success thing.

I always thought of it as someone who wants to go to med school and become a doctor. They don't take one anatomy class and then feel ready to practice medicine. But for some reason, we know being a doctor needs the discipline and years to get good at their practice. But for screenwriting we think we can learn format and then, viola! Oscar worthy script! Sorry. Doesn't work that way. There's so much more to learn beside format. There's subtext. And plots. And high-concept ideas. And...the list goes on and on.

And no, I'm not saying being a screenwriter is as important as being a doctor. But they do say, "laughter is the best medicine". So it's a different kind of health care, right? Okay, maybe not. But it does take time to learn and study till you're ready to go out in the world with your skill, no matter what profession. And screenwriting is no different.

So take your time. Learn your craft. If you truly love writing. 10 years won't matter. You'll be doing it because of the love of writing. If you're looking to make an overnight success. Don't worry, you can, just after 5-10 years. See...I plan to be having my overnight success, any day now.

The goals yet met

There have been many things I've read that say we need to look at where we've come, not at where we are not, in order to see our success flourish. Sometimes it's hard to remember that because our goals are not yet met. But if we only focus on what we have yet to achieve, then that becomes our energy and we just attract more of not achieving it. And since that's exactly what we don't want, then we have to focus on what we DO want. So I thought today I'd post the things I've "achieved" in my writing and other areas of my life and hope to inspire others who will do the same with their own achievements. And then we will see as we increase the energy of our dreams on the way to success as more and more wonderful things come our way. I don't know about you, but I've seen a lot of great things this year so far, and I can only hope that happens for everyone else in this world.

1. Sold a short to Disney
2. Have a feature script at Disney Feature Animation
3. Had two scripts with Sony. One was rejected (boo!) The other is still there (yay!)
4. Pitched two sitcoms to the heads of ABC
5. Have an idea that two big production companies are interested in
6. Should be seeing my indie film made this year
7. Have another producer, huge producer, that wants to start working with me this year, as soon as we nail it down
8. Have a hubby that I love
9. Have a child I adore
10. Have a successful advertising career that keeps me busy and seems to be doing quite well even in a not so great economy
11. Have a home I love
12. Have a great dog and wonderful fish
13. Have my health
14. Have my mental faculties (even if not always sane, but that can be a good thing I think)
15. Love life

So, there you have it. A lot to be thankful for. A lot that I've achieved. A lot more I hope to achieve and that's okay too. Just read an article today on Huffington Post that talked about the uncertainty. And that if life was all mapped out for us, what would be the point? And that uncertainty is what makes us go after things in life. It's that moment before the success happens that we have to just sit in the silence and be patient until it arrives. So, here's to the uncertainty of the dreams we have yet to attain.

Be your own champion

So this weekend was a great learning lesson for writers with all the sports going on. Sports and writers? Yes, let me explain.

First it was my son's soccer State Cup tournament, and of course the Super Bowl. Now, I'm really happy the Giants won. No, I'm not a football fan. But my hubby and son are Giants fans. To the point where my husband has been stressed all week. So yes, I am happy they won. But my son's team, they didn't win, but was also a great learning lesson for them. They played hard, they never gave up, but in the end, they lost. But we were so proud of them for giving it all they could.

And you could say the same for the Patriots. It was a close game. It could have gone either way, even up to the last moment. But when you see teams of those caliber, they bring it. Oh, they bring it! Both teams fight for that win. They play hard, they fight hard. But only one team gets to win.

So what is the consistent theme in my son's game and the Super Bowl? Play hard. But in order to play hard, you've got to be in the game. And whatever it takes, don't give up. And believe you can, no matter what. Maybe you won't win, but you'll never know unless you try and give it all you can.

So for screenwriters who dream of that success, you can achieve it, but only if you're in the game. So ask yourself, are you taking classes? Are you reading screenwriting books and scripts? Are you signing up for screenwriting websites? Entering contests? What are you doing to prove that you will do anything to make your dream come true? You have to fight for that dream. You have to make sacrifices and work hard. If you want it, you can achieve it. But you have to give it your all. So go out there, and do it! You might just end up a champion.

Waiting for a producer feels like in dog years

So I know producers are busy. I get that. And since what they love to do is juggle projects, then they always have more and more projects, which means more and more juggling. I get that too. But since as screenwriters, all we want to do is write and see our scripts get made and put onto the screen, then we really have one focus: which is to get our script made. So when a producer says, hey, we're going to lunch this month, or I'll call you this week. Then we go okay, that's cool. Talk to them super soon. Super duper soon, in fact. And then we don't hear from them. And then they say, sorry, we'll set it up soon -- again. And then we wait, and it doesn't happen. And to us, it's like where in the world are they?! What could possibly be more important than meeting with me? I'm a nice writer. I bathe. But to them, they're sooooo busy on project A, and then project B is picking up, and then project C all of a sudden comes back. And they have nooooo idea we're over here going, what happened to that producer?! Oh, the agony of waiting. I get it. I'm keeping myself busy. I check in with said producer every so often and hear back most the time. But sheeez,we just must be on different time lines. They're on dog years time, and we're on..."want to get produced now" time.

The new black

So I'm reading the black list scripts. I think I mentioned them earlier, for those who don't know what they are, they're the ones the industry has deemed their favorite scripts. The industry has a voting system and pick their top faves. Somehow every year I don't seem to find time to read them. Guess with my son a little older, it's a little easier this year. So I'm reading a comedy now, which is what I write. And it sure is fun reading and seeing a writer play around with the genre and format. I don't know about most writers, but I don't feel threatened by good writing, it just inspires me. I have a feeling some writers get intimidated by that. Maybe they don't. But for me, it really opens up what I feel I can do next time.

You always hear, the more scripts you read, the better writer you become. And I think getting a hold of the black list scripts does just that. So if you don't have the luxury of reading them yourself, just read scripts of movies you like. Even the ones you don't! Because those can be a learning lesson on what not to do too! I know I sure learned that lesson being a judge in a screenwriting contest last year!

And reading other people's good and bad scripts, you just might learn a thing or two. Or three. Or four...

Soup's on!

So I met with the indie producer yesterday for lunch. But she wasn't hungry or thirsty, and I was only in the mood for soup and ice tea. So light lunch I guess! So she shared with me the notes on my script she wanted me to use for the final rewrite, and the notes on the other writer's script to use too. She was worried how in the heck I would combine these two scripts into one story as some of the ideas are so completely different. But I felt excited just talking about the story and seeing where it would go. But then when I sat down to write last night on it, yes, I did feel a tad overwhelmed. Not crazy, horrible, but a little. But I think only to the amount anyone feels when trying to unravel a story to do a rewrite. So I ended up writing about two hours and made some decent headway. And I can tell this story will definitely work out. I look forward to doing another pass after both scripts are put together. Just so I can cut what isn't needed and make sure there isn't anything in there that doesn't really need to be, and to really add my style to the script, which is what she's liking more over the other writer. I'm hoping to finish this script before the New Year, as I have a lot of exciting projects that are going to start in January. So I want to get this off my plate so I have the time to devote to the other projects heading my way. It will be an exciting time doing this rewrite, and an exciting New Year.