As I write my script Murderers' Club I'm starting to lose motivation to finish it. I always get new ideas for scripts, and want to write them really badly. What do I do to get out of this jam?

I usually watch movies similar to the genre. Once I watch a movie like that, I change the ideas around (try and make it different) and finally come up with something of my own.

Sean

Simple (if you know how it will finish!): Pretending that some producer asked you to write it and paid you 50% of your fee and the rest of this amount will pay you mom's brain surgery!

In this business one thing count than others: Discipline!

You jot your ideas down in a notepad, so you can go to work on them once you finish the script you're currently writing.  That's the disciplinary part of screenwriting, and lots of people get this temptation.

How long have you been working on the script?

Also, I'd see if any of your ideas tie into what you're writing now.  Sometimes there are ideas that aren't soild enough on their own, but make real nice complements.

Mmmmm I'd have to say for about 2 weeks. I'm guessing that's how long. It's about 60 pages now.

The ideas do tie into the script in some ways.

Hmmmm...

Thanks for everyones' responses.

It's important that you learn to write through the urges of stopping. It's part of being a screenwriter. Keep your drive and keep your focus and see yourself through to the first draft. That's the biggy. Get yourself to the end of the first draft, then lock it away for a couple of weeks.

When you go back to it, you'll be reading it with a fresh set of eyes and hopefully you'll get the original spark back to complete the re-writes.

You already recieved some good advice James, so I'll just add a little tip.

I once read an article from a screenwriting teacher about this topic. Before starting new projects, this guy made his students write a letter to themselves in which they explained why they were so passionate about their future script. Those letters were supposed to stay closed in an envelope, only to be opened during motivation crisis.

Try to remember why you started writing this script. Remember what was the main idea that first inspired you. Focus on the idea that made you want to write *this* script really badly. There lies your motivation, try to grow out the rest of your story from it.

Hope this helps. Good luck.

Sometimes I'll listen to music that compliments the script, or watch movies with the same genre or similar themes. I'll often see if I could incorporate my new ideas in with the old. If they can't fit, I wait to be inspired, and write down notes for my ideas, and when I have enough notes, I start building scenes on them. But in any case, to me, you just can't force a story to finish, otherwise it will be flimsy and won't measure up to the rest. The secret to motivation is just patience. Just because you're working on one story, doesn't mean you should neglect ideas for other ones. In time, ideas will come.

But above all, just keep going. Writing is an uphill battle that you must WORK to reach the summit of. If you stop, it will always haunt you. If you make it, it doesn't matter if it is crap to begin with, that's what revisions and rewrites are for. Finishing it is the hardest step. Rewrites are easy. Do the hard stuff an get it over with. When you get that done, it's downhill from there.

George has made a good point, the first draft is a tough one to get out of your system, get it on the page and finish it..

If you write a plan, or to use an industry term, an outline, this contains your narrative as it unfolds, your plot, sub-plots, hero and antagonist character and additional characters and your structure containing an inciting incident (set-up), Mid point (crisis) and reversal (leads to climax).. If you can structure your 3 ACTS like this the screenplay writes itself because you can refer to the outline like a map for a journey..

If you write from the hip, without a plan, then you can get stuck.. If you complete a screenplay, a full-length anyways, and you've written it from the hip without an outline, without planning all the serious elements so you know as a writer where you are going through the story, then you'll end up getting stuck, having writer's block.. If you force it you'll finish with half-baked ideas which are not related to your character-arc, plot, sub-plot and such..

Have a plan to ensure writer's block doesn't occur..

Go back and make some notes on how far you've got.. If you’ve written 60 pages then it’s feasible you only need 30 pages more, or maybe 40 if your first draft comes in at 100 pages..

Draw a 3 ACT Timeline table on a Legal Pad..

Split the acts into:

ACT I - 25 pages.

Have a set-up on page 10 and the inciting incident on page 25-25 this takes you into ACT II..

Split ACT II into two separate parts.

ACT II-a and ACT II-b

ACT II-a = 20 pages

On page 45 this is your midpoint..

ACT II-b - 20 pages

On Page 65 this is your reversal.

Now you have 25 pages left to complete a 90 minute screenplay..

ACT III = 25 pages..

Have your climax around page 75 - 80 or so..

Ramp up the action in the final ACT III..

Plan, plan, plan... Always best policy.. If something doesn't work, then go back and make notes on what you already got and see what you need to make what's missing - right, then do it..

Hope this helped..


Kev

It's proven, do it this way.. The proper way,,

Hey Kev what's up?  

Plus your find yourself just skimming through your screenplay. Short descriptive terms though.. I'll grace you with Goodluck..

Everyone goes through this, it's just something you gotta conquer, otherwise you won't develop as a writer.  Everyone has already given alot of good pointers which I've used firsthand, but I think above all, if you're actually losing interest in the script then maybe there's something wrong with the story.

You've only been working on it for two weeks you said, which is very early(in my opinion, considering it takes me months to write a feature haha).  Two weeks, 60 pages...good variables but there may be a story problem which you'll need to work out.  Just my thought.

If it's not story related and you're just getting exhausted writing it or something then just gut it out.  Write what comes to your mind and get a first draft done, it's the next best thing.  Afterward,  go through and take things out, add stuff in, give it a full edit session.

Just my 9 cents.

Success is 10% inspiration and 90% perspiration; it sounds like it's time to sweat dude.

Just think about how good you'll feel if you get a completed script under your belt, you'll gain a tremendous amount of self confidence in knowing that you're a writer who can start and finish a script, if you keep starting and stopping all the time, you'll begin doubting your ability as a writer. So let go of any expectations and just finish it.

I agree with Takeshi, but sometimes after the first excitement for having finished your script, you may be falling into what I call the "script blues". I explain: after having let my script down for few days or few weeks, I read it again, and then, the excitement is gone and you find yourself facing your script and find it awful. And yet again, you lose your motivation and promise yourself never write again. Till the next one, and so...

My technic today is to write my script, pass to another one and come back to the first and read it and correct it. Then, I come back to the second and do the same. Until I do this way, my work is better instead to try to kill myself digging in the same "mud" for weeks

Michel  

Write what interests you.  The hardest scripts I've written have been those I think I should take a shot at just to do something different, and they've never turned out well.  

My best work comes from the heart.  That's where you'll find your voice.  Let your heart lead your brain and with a little talent, knowledge, and luck, the sky is the limit in this business.

jc

Another way you could look at it...

If you choose not to heed the advice already given by others here -- and you should heed it, because it's wonderful advice garnered from years of experience be it amateur or professional, it's tried and true and it's really the best thing for you -- then motiviate yourself by saying, "If I complete this script and give it my all and make it the very best I can, I could end up making a couple dozen thousand bucks off it.  Hell, maybe even a million."

Money, money, money.  Venal, perhaps...but whatever gets you to show up at your keyboard and do the best writing you can.

I have the exact same problem, and I'm just at the beginning of my script (actually, I'm still in the planning phase).  What I do is set myself deadlines:  Finish this scene by the end of the week, get to here by the 19th, etc.  I don't complete them cause my discipline still stinks, but I do about half the goal, which is half more than I would do without the goal.

Btw, the 90%/10% quote was originally said by Thomas Eddison; just giving credit where it's due.