I need to get away from the Casino, actually...  

I've been having the urge to write a script, but I have nothing to write about! I've tried concentrating on everyday things, but I guess my life isn't that interesting.

How do I defeat this evil thing? Lol.

Sean

Just chill out for a while. You'll come up with something. Forcing ideas isn't the best thing to do.

Write something else.  Even if it's two or three pages of crap.  You may end up throwing it out, but it'll get you started.

If you're in the middle of a scene in something you're writing, delete the last five pages your writing and resume from there.  That works too.


Phil

It seems like I always have writers block. But I do what Phil said, I either write a bunch of junk or I rewrite some of my current script to get on a role, and hope that it never stops, so I can finish the script.

My advice would be to never stop writing even if you have no clue what your writing...just write.

I find that taking a break is effective. You can also just read (which can lead to inspriation). Watch movies from your favorite genre. Just because you want to be a writer doesn't mean you have to write all the time. I will go on kicks where I will write non-stop for awhile and then turn out nothing for a few weeks. Why? Not inspired to do so.

Sometimes I will go back and tinker with older ideas. I might reread those unfinished drafts and see if they can be improved. That way, instead of forcing new ideas, I'm refining old ones.

Everyone is different, but this is what I do when I have nothing to write about.

The way I see it, is this is what I hope to be doing as a job. So, I'm treating it like a job. You can't just do it when you feel like it, you have to stay at it no matter what. Though it may not be true, I look at it like this. You don't write you don't eat, watch TV, or anything else. Because if it was a job and you just stopped doing it, you wouldn't have the money for all those things.
I'm pretty sure this is, unless something happens, what I'm supposed to be doing. Something in the movie area, even if it isn't writing. (I want to Direct and edit!)

So, I treat it like a job.

Whehn I working as a writer (I developed training materials for a call center), I did not spend 100% of my time writing. Sure, I was supposed to come up with something, but I did not necessarily turn out something every single day. As long as I showed some kind of progress, my track record of quality spoke for itself, and I was left alone. I never missed a deadline.

Screenwriting is not an every day job. It's a job where you create something wonderful and sell it.

I also try to treat writing like a job - but I also know that sometimes ideas just won't come.  That's why I keep a journal of plots and loglines and characters from various stories so I can just work on something else until I can return to my original idea ready to write.  

Try to write everyday even if it does come out like crap, because you'll be writing twice as bad if you wait a month, or a week even.

From my experience when I have a general idea for a story but I'm crap for inspiration there is an assortment of things that are  helpful. Write what you know isn't the worst thing. Think about experiences in your life that were really important to you, you have to believe in what your writing (or atleast be fairly personal to you) or else it will be just a half baked story.

Watching movies can help but then I find myself too distracted to relate them to my script. Reading is excellent, even if it isn't related to your story, reading novels can spark just small thoughts or ideas in your head that can explode into the base of your script. Being with people and hanging out helps me a lot too. Looking at photographs (whether personal or in those large photography books) can conjure up new ideas. Newspaper and magazine articles in addition can inspire ideas or just small situations.

Research. Even if you're writing fantasy or horror. Research abadoned houses or legends if your doing some creepy haunted house thriller. Research is so crucial when writing anything where the setting is an important part of your script. Almost any idea you have can be researched. Just small things I've found can inspire a whole scene in your script.
If you just collect what other films have done and build on them you don't fully understand what your writing and where it comes from. This is a problem with many scripts these days.

Keeping busy with others and research is good. Then when it's time to sit down you have a slate full of ideas in your brain. If your writing and can't move further get up and get fresh air. George Lucas hates writing scripts. The past two Star Wars movies he said he had to force himself to write every day. Although it's important to keep some self disipline while writing, you have to want to write it. When you sit down knowing what you want you'll find yourself better off.

Tony Tuff Nutz makes some good points, though I don't particularly agree upon writing what you know (I don't think any one has actually ever time traveled, met a giant gorilla, sought out to destroy a mystical ring or fought terrorist with gunfight after gunfight) - but I guess he means themes that you know?  I'm not sure.

Outlining always helps though.  Knowing your entire story to where you've got it to memory is good - if you've got writers block.  If not, it can get annoying and make you hate the story or not feel like writing something you already know.

But outlining is good.

So is watching movies, reading books, and articles from the news and magazines.  Anything might give you that thing you need to suddenly know what happens next.

Quoted from Stephen Wegmann Tony Tuff Nutz makes some good points, though I don't particularly agree upon writing what you know (I don't think any one has actually ever time traveled, met a giant gorilla, sought out to destroy a mystical ring or fought terrorist with gunfight after gunfight) - but I guess he means themes that you know?  I'm not sure.

Tony does make some great points. In a way all writers write what they know, subconsciously at least. Every character you create is either an extension of yourself or someone you know. The themes you explore are themes that are important to you, themes that you care about. If you're not passionate about your story, why should anyone else be passionate about it?

If you work in Burger King, that doesn't mean you have to write about Burger King, but when you go about writing that epic sci-fi fantasy, why not take the traits of your tyrannical Burger King boss and use him as a model for your intergalactic villain? Or take the class clown you knew at school and use him as your hero's sidekick. Subconsciously we do this all the time. Writing what you know means writing characters that you know in situations you can understand.

Doctor, that was a perfect explanation.  Many because I love Burger King, but also because that example truly explains write what you know.  

Thank you all so much. I've finally started writing cr** like you've all said, and it's because I got it from Driver's Ed (my teachers like to tell stories and they're funny stories sometimes so I just put all together and see what kind of formula I can make) so I will see how I am going, and, hey, I might actually continue and make it good!

Thanks again everyone. Maybe I shouldn't worry next time...

Sean

Why don't you write a script about driving lessons with a tutor at High School.. Everything that could go wrong - does!

Good idea for a scenario..

Have two bank robbers get into the car wielding guns and take the tutor and driver hostage.. The poor guy or girl, having driving lessons has to contend with this situation,  driving way too fast, driving on sidewalks, crashing into trashcans, jumping traffic lights and other very bad stuff you're not supposed to do as a learner driver.. All to the consternation of the tutor who pulls his hair out.. All the time the tutor tries to have the learner drive the correct way and the robbers tell him otherwise..

You’d need to set-up a proper scenario to fill out ACT II and think of a reversal entering into ACT III but hey, this idea is a starting point, right?

DRIVING MISS CRAZY

DRIVING ME CRAZY

DRIVING TO THE LIMIT

Few titles ideas there too..