Watch out for that tree!

So my friend sends me this story today, that was sent to her. We had been talking about focusing on the things you're grateful for, because if you do, then more of that comes into your life. Then she gets this story sent to her that says that exact thing. It's a story about a parachuter and as he's heading towards the ground, he sees a big tree right in his way, he keeps focusing on that huge tree, wishing he wouldn't hit it, but of course he lands right in the tree! The instructor tells him once he's on the ground, do you know why you landed in the tree? The guy answers, yes, it was right there, I was heading right for it! The instructor goes on to say, no, you were focusing on it, so that's why you hit it. If you focus on a tree, then yes, you'll land in it, there was plenty of open land for you, but you focused on the tree.

And the story goes on to say that this works for life too. So if you focus on all the lack of success or how hard it is for your writing career to take off, or all the contests you're not winning, and no director emails me back after my queries, well, guess what's going to happen? Yup! Exactly what you're focusing on!

So focus on your successes, no matter how small. And set your sights for what's on its way, things that you want to come into your life. Success! Eye that open land ahead of you instead of that big tree you're about to hit. Just remember, you're only getting snagged in your career if that's what you focus on. Happy landings!

It's your option

So, an indie director wants to option one of my feature comedies. Yay! That's a good thing. But reading the option, holy moly, not such a good thing. I felt like understanding Calculus in college was easier to do. So this is a post on how I handled my option, in case you get to this point in your career someday too.

First thing I did after trying to read it a few times and still not understanding 99% of it was I reached out to a few friends to see how much their entertainment lawyer would charge to read it. Oh, yeah, it was a LOT! Why didn't I go into law again? So that seemed like a dead-end. The option was not worth me paying for a high-paid lawyer. But I also wasn't willing to sign something I did not understand. It's 8 pages of a document that doesn't make sense to me. No way could I sign that without someone's help.

So I started asking around to some other writer and producer friends. One writer friend I asked, he's had some pretty nicely paid options, well, he reads his options himself and doesn't even use a lawyer. Hmm...interesting. Okay. He sent me a couple of his options to see if that would help make reading mine easier to understand. It didn't. It just confused me more. I did learn that there are so many ways to write an option by reading his. So some of his points weren't in mine, and visa versa.

So then I reached out to even a few more producer friends, and got names from them. But they were pretty sure their friends would charge a lot too, but not as much as the ones they use. Great, that didn't help. Luckily for me, I had written a writer friend just to say hi and see how things were in her career and mentioned this option dilemma I had. Her husband is a manager and she suggested he could rep me on the deal. So that meant I wouldn't pay him out of the option, but pay him a percentage once the funding is raised. And that would be perfect!

So he and I spoke after he read the option, we went over it in explicit detail. He made all of it make sense! Imagine that! He told me what parts we needed, what we could leave out, what wasn't right for what my script was. He's going to mark it up so that it works for my needs and send to the director. Voila! I'm so relieved I finally found someone to help me with the option, and that I didn't have to pay out of pocket up front for.

If you're ever in a similar situation, please cover your butt and find a way to get a lawyer or a manager to help you through your option. You never want to sign on that dotted line till you know what you're signing.

You can't rush your career

So this morning my son in middle school told me he just wants to skip middle school and go straight to high school and college. For him it's all about the hockey and he wants to go straight to where it's more competitive. I told him he can't do that, he has to learn what he needs to in middle school because each part builds to the next and if he went straight to high school, he'd never succeed. He needs all those steps that lead up to it.

And that made me think of our careers as writers. I think many times we just want that success, that brass ring. But are we really prepared? Each of these moments we've been in have been the steps we needed to be able to handle the real success we want. Think of it this way -- imagine your career as your schooling when you were a child. Your first draft of a script, was like kindergarten. It seemed brilliant when you first wrote it, but now you look back at it and it looks like a bad finger painting! Then you move on to maybe a second script, another class, each step teaching you something new. You're growing as a writer. Maybe you'll get a girlfriend or boyfriend along the way, bullied by someone insecure, asked to hang with the popular kids. But you need all those steps and those will be the moments that you'll remember. Till eventually you find yourself graduating and someone hires you! But that can't happen overnight.

So next time you look to rush things, just remember, you're still learning. Enjoy the lessons. They're there for a reason. And before long, you'll realize it's time to graduate and go out into the real world.

Enjoy the moment

So I recently came in 2nd place for a monologue challenge I wrote for Tentsquare. Yippee! It was sure fun being chosen in the top three. But part of being chosen was getting a consultation with the author, Ty Drago, who chose the winners. I'm hoping Ty doesn't mind he's in my blog this week. Hi Ty! But I wanted to mention one of the pieces of advice he gave me that was simple but yet so profound. Ready for it? I'll probably be messing up the brilliant words he said, but the idea was basically, enjoy where you are right now. It seems simple. But we as writers forget to do that. We're always reaching for that next goal. That next accomplishment. Never feeling like we've grabbed that brass ring. But he even told me that I'm probably in my career where a 1000 writers wish they were. It's interesting putting it into that perspective because I can think of all the things I still need to accomplish. All the things I have yet to even scratch the surface on. But he's right though. We all need to just enjoy the moment we're in. Because writing is a journey. There's no tada! I reached it! Even the top screenwriters must all want something else they want to accomplish. Ty mentioned how some of his friends had reached so much success but still can't enjoy it because they're always on to the next thing they're trying to achieve. So if we can't enjoy where we are now, no matter where we are, when will we? They seemed like simple words, but they definitely have me thinking about each and every moment of small success. I am trying to enjoy all the moments now and I will think of his words from here on out. What about you? Are you making an effort to stop and smell the roses no matter where you are in your writing career? You should. Because each moment is gone the minute it happens. So remember to enjoy them! No matter how big or how small.

It's your vision dummy

I'm sort of being Steve Brule when I say it that way. If you haven't seen Steve Brule, you're missing out. Funny stuff! He always calls people, "dummy". Any way, my post isn't about being a dummy, it's about telling your own story. See, we've all chosen the story we want to write. We all have a passion for it. But sometimes what gets in the way is that we worry, what if it's not good? What if people judge us harshly by it? But guess what, you can't possibly write with that kind of pressure on yourself. You have to allow yourself to get the story on the page. And the only way to do that is to trust that you have a story to tell. So tell it!

A director/writer friend of mine right now is finishing up a really cool documentary of his. I know it will be good when he's done because the idea is great. But, he's starting to put pressure on himself about how good it might not be. But you can't work like that! So after I got him off the creative ledge, I reminded him, you are telling YOUR story. Don't worry what someone else would tell. Tell YOUR story. Your story will be great. Because it's your vision. If we as writers and directors worry about what other people would tell, we'll end up with crap. That's it. We will. You have to tell your version of your story. That's why you're inspired to tell it! So trust in your vision. Get it on the page. Get it edited. The worst thing, what if it's not as great as you hoped? Then edit it some more! What if it's still not? Okay, worse case scenario it's not your best. Okay, we all have those scripts. But they get us to be better writers. There's never a script that was a waste of time. We learn and grow with each pass. But you have to get it on the page or you'll never be finished. You have to give yourself permission to get in on the page by NOT worrying about the final piece.

So do what you know how to do, which is write. I bet it ends up better than you ever imagined. And if not, there's always the next script.

Break down your goals

So when we become screenwriters, I think it's safe to say that most of us think we'll write that one magic script, it will be our first of course, and then wham, we'll go on to being rich and famous, lunching with Brad and Angie of course, right? Yeah, doesn't work like that. Even when we read the trades that "Screenwriter sells first script!", I'm guaranteeing you that it was their first script they sold, not the first script they wrote. See, being a screenwriter whether in TV or film is not for the faint of heart. There is no overnight success. Even these young prodigies that might have some amazing writing career at lets say, 23, have probably been writing since they were five years old. I for one, did not hone my craft at five. And you most likely haven't either. So what's my point? That this journey might take a while and you have to be prepared for that. So instead of getting overwhelmed by it taking awhile, maybe you need to set many kinds of goals instead of: "become hugely successful screenwriter in 2015". Because if that's your only goal for this year, or any year, you might be disappointed and give up. So, instead, why not set up smaller goals, ones you can achieve.

For instance, if you're just starting out as a writer, perhaps your goals are like:
1. Take a screenwriting class.
2. Get an outline written
3. Write a first draft.

Maybe that's all you'll accomplish your first year.

If you've been writing a few years and have a few scripts written maybe it's goals like:
1. Enter the Nicholl's and other important contests
2. Find screenwriting producers I can query
3. Reach out to managers and get a script read

Because even those might not end up the successes you'd hope for. You might enter a contest, but not do well, query producers and managers and not hear back. So then you have to alter your goals again. Such as:

1. Take another screenwriting class to place higher in Nicholl's and other contests
2. Get yeses from producers to read scripts
3. Get managers to actually say yes they'll read a script

See the difference on setting goals? Instead of it being an all or nothing in your writing, make them smaller goals and adjust them every year. Every month if that helps. Because I've seen many talented writers drop out of this journey only because I think they thought it would be a quicker one than it was. But if you break down those goals, keep moving that finish line, eventually you're going to reach success. Doors are going to open. And before long, you'll have to tell Brad and Angie to stop bothering you to go to lunch, you're busy! :)

Looking back. Looking ahead.

Every year I do a "where has my career flourished" kind of list and what I can be thankful for. It reminds me that even if my career isn't where I want it to be, it's definitely on its way. So here we go! The reason I do this is because every year, I focus on the positives and I can see the strides I have taken. I ask that you do the same. Because although you might not have an Academy Award yet, or a huge sale, you might have successes that you don't even realize. And those successes you should use to propel you further ahead. Each success, no matter how large or how small, will get you to the successes you want someday. If we ignore these successes, then we give up. And that's just not something I want any writer to do. Ever! So here is my 2014:

1. Still working with really high profile producer. This year he could win a few Oscars himself.
2. Working with a new producer that also has a few actors and movies being nominated for some big awards. Met him from working with #1 producer. Just goes to show why each success can open doors to others.
3. Going to contact another producer that I was working with from #1 producer. He left that company and went to a new company that is also getting Oscar buzz. Again, one door open leads to another open door.
4. Still have a script in development. Not sure what's happening with it. But, it did get me an imdb!
5. Have several big management companies reading my scripts, that have been involved in Black List scripts. So that's kind of exciting to be working with those level managers.
6. Going to get my script to a huge A-list comedy actor because turns out a good friend of mine knows their producer. Who knew!
7. Recently contacted by production company that wants to read several of my scripts. They are looking to produce films in 2015. Hello!
8. Contacted by another director/writer who also has money to produce in 2015. Hello again!
9. One of my scripts is with a huge casting agent that's looking to get an A-list actress interested in my latest feature. Got that same script to so many big industry people, the most I ever have in my career thus far. That was exciting!
10. Finished three feature scripts this last year.
11. Finished the outline to my latest spec TV script.
12. Just finished before New Years Eve, the outline to my next feature script. What timing! So excited about that!

There's probably even more successes I'm not even thinking about because these ones are so big the smaller ones start to not seem as big. But if you were to even look in my previous years, you'd see that every year the successes lead to new successes in the coming years. So sure, I don't have a script in the theaters just yet. But things are happening. It's a momentum that I can feel. It's exciting. People that can get my scripts made are talking to me and wanting to work with me. I am loving it! I can feel 2015 will be a great year. So take a look at your successes. Write them down. Be thankful for them. You have had them whether you know it or not. Don't dismiss them! You're on your way I promise you. Just. Keep. At. It! Happy and successful 2015!