We’re now nearly 11 days into the 2010 Screenwriting Challenge, and the response has been tremendous. I’ve heard from so many of you, expressing the excitement of those who are enjoying the challenge, as well as the questions of those who are struggling with it.
Here are some of the common questions that tend to come up with the challenge and some answers that may help you jump-start your writing.
I’d also like to make you all aware of a special offer that will allow you to check out any of my upcoming classes and workshops for only $20 bucks!
If you missed the first newsletter and you’re not sure what all this Challenge stuff is about, find out more here.
Common Questions About The Challenge:
Question:
I really wanted to participate, but I missed the deadline to get started. Should I just wait until next time?
Answer:
It’s never too late to join the challenge. Go out today, buy yourself a journal, and get started. Give yourself 30 days, and start writing. The important thing is the commitment to writing every day, not the day you start or finish.
As writers, we often feel the urge to put off our writing for the “right” time, when we are less busy, less stressed out, have more time, more money, etc. We imagine some nearby future when we’ll have the time to pursue our passion. But as we all know too well, the “right” time never comes. We are always just a little too busy, too stressed, or too broke. And of course, the fact that we’re not writing makes those negative feelings even worse.
There’s only one guaranteed way to make the “right” time come, by carving out the tiny bit of time you do have right now, and using that to build the future you want.
Question:
I’ve been doing the challenge, but I hate everything I’m writing. And now I feel like I’m starting to lose steam.
Answer:
As writers we play a strange game with ourselves. Instead of dwelling on our successes, we focus on our failures as evidence that we were not meant to be writers. Usually this has more to do with fear than anything else. Fear of failure. Fear of rejection. Fear that we don’t have what it takes.
When your judgment of your writing is based on fear, it has little connection to reality. You may dismiss brilliant writing as terrible simply because you are afraid that others won’t like it. Or you may fall in love with scenes that are not working, simply because they feel safe to you.
There are many ways to overcome these kinds of fears. Many writers find that it helps to join one of my Workshops or Master Classes, where you can receive honest feedback about what is actually working or not working in your writing, rather than playing out your worst fears in your head.
Writers block isn’t just about the actual writing. It’s about the subconscious, underlying emotions that get in the way of writing. For deep rooted emotional blocks, many students set up private coaching sessions with me. In these sessions, we use cutting-edge hypnotic techniques to get under the surface, uncover the subconscious roots of your creative blocks, and eliminate them at the source.
Here’s something you can do today to put yourself on the path to discovering the writer within you: give yourself the permission to write badly.
All writers write badly, all the time. Even the true greats leave hundreds of discarded pages in their hard drives, never to see the light of day. Accepting that this is a natural part of the process allows you to focus your energy where it belongs: not on judging the pages, but on creating them.
When you give yourself permission to write badly, you are actually allowing inspiration in. You will notice that your writing becomes more fun and exciting, freer, and fuller. Writing ceases to be a chore, and begins to feel like an adventure. Before long, you’ll discover that you no longer have to drag yourself to your journal in the morning. You actually want to write!
Of course, there is a time when judging your work is important, when it’s time to invite the editing brain to the table, and give it free reign to pull apart the pages you’ve written. But it is not during the initial creation of your work. Remember, it is only by writing the bad stuff that you discover the good.
Question:
I started strong, but then I missed a day and got totally out of rhythm. Now I’m three days behind and it doesn’t seem worth it anymore. Maybe I’m not really dedicated to this after all.
Answer:
Usually when a writer is thinking about giving up, it’s more about fear than about rhythm. But there are times when we simply get off our game. Here’s the key: don’t let a couple of missed days get between you and your life as a writer.
If a vegetarian accidentally takes a bite of a burger, it doesn’t mean he is no longer a vegetarian. It just means he took a bite of a burger.
But countless writers will interpret a day or two of missed writing as evidence that they are not really dedicated to their craft.
Usually the truth is the opposite. If writing was just a hobby for you, you wouldn’t be agonizing over your missed writing days. You’d just find another hobby.
In fact, it’s probably your fierce dedication to being a writer that’s causing you so much agony. Because you’re not writing and you don’t understand why.
Dwelling in the past is not going to help you overcome this problem. The only way to get back into rhythm is by allowing yourself permission to not be perfect. There are going to be days that you miss. There might even be weeks. The key is recognizing when you get off rhythm, and picking back up as soon as you do. Grab your journal, hide out for 15 minutes, and write today.
Soon, you’ll discover that you don’t even have to try to find your rhythm. Your rhythm will find you.
Final Challenge Check In
Wow! It’s hard to believe we’ve already reached the official end of the 2010 Screenwriting Challenge. To everyone who participated, congratulations! You’ve made a huge commitment to your writing life that will continue to pay dividends far into the future.
Thanks to everyone who came out for the fabulous Challenge Party last night. We had a great time!
Classes start TONIGHT (Feb 1st) so I’d like to take this opportunity to invite you all to come check them out (remember, you can check out your first session for only 20 bucks)
Where To Go From Here
Even if you didn’t do the challenge perfectly, if you’ve stuck with it, you’ve probably found by now that you’re in a pretty good rhythm. In fact, you may even notice you start to feel strange on days when you don’t write!
Take a moment to celebrate and commemorate your success, and then keep that rhythm going!
Remember, writing begets more writing. Obey that little clock in your head that says “oh, it’s time to do my pages today!”
For those of you who have struggled to find your rhythm, or are still finishing the challenge, remember, each page you write brings you one step closer to the rhythm you’re seeking. So the best way to get to where you want to be is to build upon where you are.
Take a moment right now to celebrate what you have accomplished. Forget for a little while about where you fell short, and concentrate instead on where you succeeded. If you’re writing more now than when you began the challenge, you’re already a success.
So celebrate the days you did write, rather than bemoaning the ones you didn’t. Even writing once a week can become the foundation for a writing life.
You may also want to spend a little time examining things that are getting in the way of establishing your rhythm.
Have you been beating yourself up over the quality of your work, rather than keeping the focus on how many pages you are generating?
Are you allowing yourself to enjoy the feeling of success that comes with completing your pages, or are you cheating yourself of the joy of writing by focusing on your failures?
Are there activities that are getting in the way of your writing, favorite procrastination techniques that make writing “impossible”, or small changes you could make to your day to carve out the 15 minutes you need?
Do you have the support you need to get you through the difficult writing times? Or is it time to sign up for a workshop, master class, script consultation, or hypnosis session?
As you look back at your pages, you may find that you have many pages you love, or there might just be a few. Focus on the things that you can build on. It might be just one page. It might be one line. It might be a character you’re curious about, an image that resonates for you, or a rhythm you want to explore.
You can use these exciting bits to inspire the next phase of your writing journey. Some of them may even grow into complete screenplays! Others may seem useless now, and then surprise you when they pop back into your head as the perfect answer to something you are struggling with in your writing.
Whatever rhythm you have established for yourself, make sure you keep it up. These three pages you write every day are sacred– one of the few times you get to simply play as a writer, exploring ideas without the need for “usable” pages, “good” writing, or a “finished” product.
Stay tuned for my next newsletter, in which I’ll be discussing some steps you can take to set yourself on the next phase of your writing journey.
If you’ve completed the full 30 days of writing, please drop me a line and let me know about your experiences!