Writer´s Block, or simply Laziness?

[Zenmaster4]

Here I am, sitting for the past 3 months without writing a single line in my script. And not like I´ve been sitting, looking at the computer screen every night, but rather rarely sitting down, and when I do, not getting anything out. So, my question is, have I just been a slacker, or is this a mild case of writer´s block. My feeling is, it´s just a little bit of both.

z4

p.s. I wrote over a page in about 30 minutes yesterday, so i´m improving...i think...

 

[Supersonic11]

I would call you slacker, but since I am guessing you don't write as your main source of income, you really aren't slacking, since to slack would mean that you aren't doing something that has to be done and if you dont write as a profession, you obviously are doing this for recreational purposes.

But since you are pursuing it as a recreational activity, you might as well actually accomplish something. Just start writing. Be it writing character back story that you won't even use in the screenplay, coming up with a rough outline of how the movie will proceed, or writing the screenplay itself. Get at least SOMETHING down whenever you sit down to write. That way, the next time you come back, you will have a starting point, something to reference, something to build on.

Good luck!

 

[temerson]

It's a little bit of both. I've been having the same problem recently. It's hard for me to just sit down and write anymore. I've been finding ways to avoid writing. As soon as I sit down, I get up, go to the bathroom, check the fridge to see if there's anything good to eat, see what's going on on the news, read the newspaper, walk the dog. Lately I've given myself excuses to not do what I love to do. So, I have to think it's a little bit of both. The trick is to sit down and just start typing, even if what you are writing sucks. It will get you into a groove (that's always been my biggest struggle. Once I get started, I really get into it. It's just getting started that takes forever!).

 

[Michael]

Maybe that is why I have never started to write a screenplay. Thank you to both, temerson and Supersonic11 for your counsel. I even did't "dare" to start with it. Very often when I am sitting in the train so many stuffs come up in my mind I wished I had written down. There are also very funny stuffs coming up so that I start to laugh, of course, no one will hear me laughing

 

[Roughcut17]

I have a bunch of ideas for screenplays, but I just can't start writing. I would write jokes that I came up on my own, but I can't start.

I understand that it takes time to write a screenplay, but I can't have writer's block too long. I'm thinking about writing a screenplay out of sequence: instead of just starting at Act I, I'll just create scenes that would come together in a whole.

 

[Michael]

That's ok Roughcut17,

just start with creating a scene. It could be the beginning of your screenplay. Once you have started with that, it will move your story ahead. Trust your idea. I have reached the 3rd page of my first screenplay. That is not much but the story will go on.

 

[tiramisushi]

there are many things you can do if you're stuck. skip to the next scene, make sure your structure works in the outline (if you have an outline, that is. if you don't, that might be why you're stuck - because you don't know where the story is going), do character studies, etc. also, just write and give yourself the freedom to write garbage. you can always edit later. you can't call yourself a writer if you only write one script, especially if you never even finish that one script.

 

[jodymichelle]

Keep on writing

 

[LindbergMTL]

Re: Writer´s Block, or simply Laziness?

Here I am, sitting for the past 3 months without writing a single line in my script. And not like I´ve been sitting, looking at the computer screen every night, but rather rarely sitting down, and when I do, not getting anything out. So, my question is, have I just been a slacker, or is this a mild case of writer´s block. My feeling is, it´s just a little bit of both.

A lot of people think writing (or anyting we desire) should be the fruit of hard work. Sweat and tears... But what if it was not the case? What if you had the ability to write your script feeling inspired, and see with amazement the words write by themselves?

I suggest that you do this: relax for a few minutes, and see yourself write the script with great ease, joy and satisfaction. Feel the exhilaration.

Dream consciously of your success as a writer...

You get the idea. And this is just a start...


Enjoy and Engage !

 

[tiel_99]

I know one really good motivation to get your working:

A deadline with a paycheck at the end of it.

Sad to say, that is a prime motivator for most people in this industry.

I've known lots of people who keep telling me every time I meet them that they are working on a script, and this can go on for years. But the reason they never get round to finishing it is because no one's paying them for it.

But give them a deadline and promise them payment, you'll get a script within three weeks to a month. Sometimes even 10 days.

With a deadline and a paycheck, all script problems can be worked out and anyone can get out of bed.

The questions is: How hungry are you?

 

[LindbergMTL]

I know one really good motivation to get your working:

A deadline with a paycheck at the end of it.

Sad to say, that is a prime motivator for most people in this industry.


The questions is: How hungry are you?

I think the question is also: do you believe in your writing talent to the extent that you know that you are going to get a paycheck (big and fat) in exchange for your script?

 

[tiel_99]

Well, yes.

I remember back when I was working in the drama division of a TV station and I met a middle aged new school teacher who had just joined as a script writer.

I asked him why he had left teaching, and he told me that he was always watching televison and saying how he could write better stories than what was on air then, and he believed in it so much that he quit his job and applied to be a scriptwriter.

But he didn't last long and it was less than a year later that he left to go back to teaching.

While he thought that he was good enough to hold the writing job, what he didn't realise was that writing is a discipline and you have to keep at it day after day after day even if you don't feel up to it.

I remember speaking to him before he left, and he said that he mistakenly thought that writing was about inspiration, but he found out that it is really about working your ass off no matter if you're inspired or not! Also, as a writer for a cop series, he was just a factor of production in a much larger chain, and that called for team work and adherence to established story arcs and characters, and I think he was too much of an individual for it.

So this guy firmly believed in his talent, but he realised that it was just too much work for him.

As for me, I don't have the discipline to sit down and write. I really respect those who can and I wished I had the talent to do it too. But while I can't write a script, I can develop a good story with a writer and execute it for the screen. That's why I chose to be a director instead. I prefer to tell the stories in pictures. But it all starts with the written word.