I'm still struggling with finishing the first draft of our next spec.
Annabel turned in her first draft to me like two weeks ago, but I haven't been able to finish my rewrites quite yet. Thankfully, being mother to what must be several hundred children, has given her the patience of a saint. Because she definitely puts up with a lot of shit from me.
I miss the old days where I would do my work, come home, and all I'd need was some booze, tits, and maybe some hot wings - and I'd be happier than a pig in shit. I even started to write with this mindset - and it was easy. At first.
Now days, you put in me in front of Final Draft, and I turn into an artsy fartsy type - all indecisive and emotional.
I think a lot of it has to do with coming to terms with failure.
I guess part of me wanted to hit it out of the park with our first spec. I would go as far as to say I kind of expected to. Unrealistic? Sure - but when aren't I unreasonable? It's part of my charm.
So a lot of what I've been going through with this spec is coming to terms with the fact that I didn't hit it out of the park on my first go-around. And even though I feel our current concept is much stronger and much more marketable, I might very well fail this time too.
I hope not, but the probability is that I will.
And a lot of the time I've been taking to finish this first draft has had to do with building up my ability to cope with that probable failure.
See what I mean about being emotional when I try to write? Any minute now a giant beer can is going to fall out of the sky and crush me to death.
Slowly but surely I'm getting over this artsy fartsy shit, and I'm jumping back into writing with cock in hand. And pretty soon the first draft of the new spec will be done - and a whole new batch of feedback will be given.
And the process will repeat itself.
God, writing sucks.
8 comments:
These are the stages of writerdom as we have ALL experienced.
1) I'm awesome and writing is easy.
2) No, you're wrong. I'm awesome and writing is easy, although maybe not as easy as I thought.
3) I'm a horrible writer and everything I write is crap and I can't do this and I'm going to stab myself.
4) But maybe I should try again first. Because writing may not be easy, but I'm still kind of awesome.
5) Except that I suck! I suck and everybody hates me! I should quit and move to the South Pole and hunt penguins.
6) But I'm going to write this script first. Because it's the best idea ever.
7) Actually, it is kind of good. Maybe I don't suck.
8) Acceptance
"God, writing sucks"...
yeah, but you don't, so buck it up, whack off or whatever you need to do, and get back to it, boy... that's an order
(how you like my new bossy attitude?)
Emily - it's both comforting and ironic that this shit is so universal.
MQ - Your new bossy attitude is awesome. Now we just need to get you a fedora.
Paddy Chayefsky used to talk about having a time clock in his writing office. He would literally get to the office with lunch pail in hand, and clock in for the day -- write for 8-whatever hours - and clock out.
Screenwriting can really be a lot more 'blue collar' than a lot of people think. Especially when you're writing on assignment.
When inspiration strikes it's a great thing, but you can't wait around all god damn day for it to happen. And that doesn't mean what you write will be utter crap, either. You just need to get the words out of your system one time so you can go back over the piece a second, third, fourth, and ??? time to make it right.
Chayefsky used to say something to the effect of -- "I use the seat method of writing. I place the seat of my ass to the seat of the chair, and write."
Get after it, bro.
"In Hollywood people don't fail, they quit."
-- Jack Sowards
"Writing isn't hard; no harder than ditch-digging."
-- Patrick Dennis
What am I, like the quote guy or something, today?
Writing does suck. And that's part of what makes it so goddam wonderful. Ain't it great? :-)
Here are my crusty little gems of inspiration:
The first draft of everything is shit. E. Hemingway
To escape criticism--say nothing, do nothing, be nothing. Elbert Hubbard
I love being a writer. What I can't stand is the paperwork. Peter De Vries
It's a comfort to know when I'm goofing off, snacking or just playing computer games instead of writing, that somewhere out there...several other pro writers are doing the same thing.
The dubious privilege of a freelance writer is he's given the freedom to starve anywhere. S.J. Perelman
Meh. What can you do but persist?
Stercus Accidit
No advice. No quotes. Only shared sentiment.
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