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This week's Answer: When
The Writing Gets Tough Wayne,
I appreciate your e-mail. Getting going, as you put
it, on a script is not always an easy thing to do.
First there's the "getting" part, which isn't
easy in itself. Then, of course, you have the
"going," which can be even more difficult --
especially if you're stationary (I don't mean "if
you're a piece of paper or envelope." That's a
different spelling of a word that sounds like the other
one. Well, come to think of it, if you were a piece
of stationery, it still wouldn't be easy to get
going). And let us never forget the famous adage,
"When the going gets tough, the tough get
going." Or you could say that "It's tough
to get going and, when you try to get going and it's too
tough, that's tough." I hope that helps.
I've been in the same situation,
Wayne, wanting to screenwrite, but not knowing how to rev
up the engines, so to speak, and plunge in. (I
apologize for mixing my metaphors, but it is my contention
that, if they're not mixed at least once in a while, then
I say, "fire the cooks and hire some that aren't
afraid to mix a metaphor or two.") It might be
of assistance if I show you some inner dialogue regarding
this subject, which I hope will be of some help.
INNER DIALOGUE OF A
SCREENWRITER WHO IS HAVING A HARD TIME GETTING GOING
I don't know what to
write.
Maybe I'm not a
screenwriter and I've just been fooling myself
But I've written a lot
of scripts. I guess I am a
screenwriter. But I still don't know what to
write. I want to write something that I really want
to write, not just any ol' screenplay, but a great one.
How can I write a great
screenplay if I don't even know how to start a bad one?
What am I doing,
thinking I know what I'm doing and can write
screenplays. What was I thinking?!
I think I can write a
screenplay. I've done it before and can do it again.
Why am I talking to
myself like this? I could be using the time to write
a screenplay. Yeah, I could be writing right
now! Great! I can feel the juices finally
flowing. I'm a writer. I believe in
myself. I'm finally getting going!
I don't know what to
write.
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