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SimplyScripts Screenwriting Discussion Board    Discussion of...    Getting to know you, getting to know all about you...  ›  Writing, easy? Moderators: Administrator
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  Author    Writing, easy?  (currently 2898 views)
Seth
Posted: June 9th, 2007, 11:07pm Report to Moderator
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Am I the only one that finds it difficult to write a script? Each one is like a puzzle that I haven't the pieces to. This is, I think, one of the reasons I write (among others). It's a challenge. I come up with an idea, then have to execute it. It's not easy. The challenge is making it look easy. If it looks easy -- if every word is perfectly placed, then it's a success.

Maybe I am one of the few that struggle with it. I'm still learning. That said, I have to say, I am impressed with the many scripts, on these boards, that I have read that have been excellent. Anyway,  here's to those that write...

:::::raises glass::::::

Seth  


Scripts

Stranger Than Yesterday
Diplopia

And Sweetie XD


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bert
Posted: June 9th, 2007, 11:19pm Report to Moderator
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I cannot remember the thread -- it was some time ago -- but I do recall the interesting conversation related to this topic when the question was raised:

Is writing a choice you make -- "I think I'll write today" -- or is it a voracious biological urge that afflicts some and not others -- and are we fortunate or unfortunate to possess such a need that must be satisfied?

The question was not resolved, of course, but personally, I lean towards nature.

I just thought some of you newer, philosophical types on the board might like to kick that one around a bit.


Hey, it's my tiny, little IMDb!
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tomson
Posted: June 10th, 2007, 12:10am Report to Moderator
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Quoted from Seth
Am I the only one that finds it difficult to write a script?


I find it very easy. That, does not mean I think it's easy to write something great however. I have disciplined myself to write 3-5 pages/day no matter what. Like a chore that has to be done before I can go to bed. Good practice I believe, if you want to write seriously. Unfortunately, a lot of the stuff I write is far from gold, but I'm not worried about that at the moment. Right now, I'm just working on getting into the habit of writing at least one hour everyday regardless.

My next goal is to write good things when I write....
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Mr.Ripley
Posted: June 10th, 2007, 12:39am Report to Moderator
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I like that method Pia. I've been attempting to do that and will force myself to do so. Writing comes down to discipline. Can you discipline yourself to write?

Gabe


Just Murdered by Sean Elwood (Zombie Sean) and Gabriel Moronta (Mr. Ripley) - (Dark Comedy, Horror) All is fair in love and war. A hopeless romantic gay man resorts to bloodshed to win the coveted position of Bridesmaid. 99 pages.
https://www.simplyscripts.net/cgi-bin/Blah/Blah.pl?b-comedy/m-1624410571/
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mgj
Posted: June 10th, 2007, 12:41am Report to Moderator
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I tend to lean towards nature too.  Although, I don't write because it comes easy to me - it doesn't.  I write because it's hard.

The thing is I can never seen to walk away from it.  I'll get frustrated, think I'm not cut out for this writing thing, but then something always draws be back.  That's why, I guess,  I know I'm a writer.  

Growing up I suffered from ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder).  Writing was a way for me to organize all the thoughts that were jumbled in my brain.  It was therapeutic.  I'm a unique case that way though.  

You're right Seth when you say 'each script is like a puzzle I don't have the pieces to'.  We're like detectives.  The stories are already out there.  It's up to us as writers to find them.


"If at first, the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it." - Albert Einstein
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Death Monkey
Posted: June 10th, 2007, 2:14am Report to Moderator
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Writing is easy. Writing a script is hard.

I have probably around 300+ word documents with script ideas, plot outlines and treatments, but writing the actual script is discipline, like others said.


"The Flux capacitor. It's what makes time travel possible."

The Mute (short)
The Pool (short)
Tall Tales (short)
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MacDuff
Posted: June 10th, 2007, 2:38am Report to Moderator
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I should be writing...

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I can get through a 1st draft with only minor problems. The hardest part is getting to the stage where you are ready to write. When I know my characters. Have a bio/breakdown. Have a beat sheet. Maybe even an outline. Then I'm ready to write and it's easier... a lot easier.

Think about it, why get through 40 pages and realize something doesn't work when you could have realized that with a beat sheet or outline, or better yet, a treatment. It's this kind of discipline that helps you when you write the drafts of your script.

I love writing. I never knew I was a writer until age 26, but I'm happy I know now.


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mgj
Posted: June 10th, 2007, 2:59am Report to Moderator
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Quoted from Death Monkey


I have probably around 300+ word documents with script ideas, plot outlines and treatments.


Wow.  You mean 300 actual files?  Finding something that inspires me to write is rare and elusive.  I tend to pounce on an idea when it does come along.  Then once I get the ball rolling, it becomes progressively easier for me.

I never write outlines or treatments.  I know I run the risk of painting myself into a corner but I'd rather let my emotions be my guide.  My own experience is that I tend to run into problems when I overthink things too much.


"If at first, the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it." - Albert Einstein
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mcornetto
Posted: June 10th, 2007, 3:32am Report to Moderator
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Quoted from Death Monkey
I have probably around 300+ word documents with script ideas, plot outlines and treatments, but writing the actual script is discipline, like others said.


I wrote a database for mine - it categorizes them for me and I can search for keywords to find ideas.  I'm thinking of adding a character function, so I can keep track of the characters I think up and match them to the ideas.

As far as the writing goes I usually outline features extensively, so mostly it is mechanical.  There are some scenes that I just agonize over.  But it isn't usually the first drafts that give me problems - it's the rewrites that I tend to dread.

I don't outline the shorts I write - sometimes they are quite quick and painless (a couple of hours) sometimes they can take much longer and some of my hair along with them.
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Death Monkey
Posted: June 10th, 2007, 3:55am Report to Moderator
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Quoted from mgj


Wow.  You mean 300 actual files?  Finding something that inspires me to write is rare and elusive.  I tend to pounce on an idea when it does come along.  Then once I get the ball rolling, it becomes progressively easier for me.

I never write outlines or treatments.  I know I run the risk of painting myself into a corner but I'd rather let my emotions be my guide.  My own experience is that I tend to run into problems when I overthink things too much.


They're not necessarily 300 separate ideas for films, some times they are variations of an idea, but when I get an idea, which is quite often, I scribble it down in as much detail as I can, and then return to it later.

I think usually not outlining your script is considered a mistake, and I understand why. A script is very much about structure, and being able to nail that structure by putting yourself right in the thick of it without an overview is quite a feat.

If you know exactly where your story goes, and exactly what happens at what time, it affords you a greater freedom to be creative and make changes to the structure later, I think. It's like a puzzle. I can move and re-arrange scenes, change them and add new ones, without breaking the overall structure of the script.

I'm not saying this is what works best for all writers but personally I couldn't live without a treatment or outline.


"The Flux capacitor. It's what makes time travel possible."

The Mute (short)
The Pool (short)
Tall Tales (short)
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tomson
Posted: June 10th, 2007, 6:46am Report to Moderator
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Wow!! 300 that's a lot! I should probably start to organize myself a little more too.

One funny thing that I can't seem to get over is that if I use a scene or character or dialogue from one scripts and reused it in another, I always feel guilty. Like I'm stealing the idea, even though I wrote it myself in the first place....  
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Death Monkey
Posted: June 10th, 2007, 7:17am Report to Moderator
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Quoted from tomson
Wow!! 300 that's a lot! I should probably start to organize myself a little more too.

One funny thing that I can't seem to get over is that if I use a scene or character or dialogue from one scripts and reused it in another, I always feel guilty. Like I'm stealing the idea, even though I wrote it myself in the first place....  


I do that too! I feel unoriginal somehow...

My word documents aren't organized though. they're on differennt hard-drives and difference folders. They spand a period of 4-5 years too.
Sometimes all I have is a title and a few lines of dialogue and then an instruction to myself: "Write a story about this!"



"The Flux capacitor. It's what makes time travel possible."

The Mute (short)
The Pool (short)
Tall Tales (short)
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Seth
Posted: June 11th, 2007, 2:37am Report to Moderator
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Quoted from bert
I cannot remember the thread -- it was some time ago -- but I do recall the interesting conversation related to this topic when the question was raised:

Is writing a choice you make -- "I think I'll write today" -- or is it a voracious biological urge that afflicts some and not others -- and are we fortunate or unfortunate to possess such a need that must be satisfied?

The question was not resolved, of course, but personally, I lean towards nature.

I just thought some of you newer, philosophical types on the board might like to kick that one around a bit.


I, too, believe it to be nature. I am compelled to write. Am I fortunate to possess such a need? Maybe, but those around me, my g/f, for example, isn't. I know, at times, I am very single minded, focussing only on what I'm attempting to write. But these times are, to me, special, almost magical. Like MGJ, such times allow me to clear my head of the all clutter -- and when an idea does click, it's the best high there is. There are lows though and many of them!  

Seth



Scripts

Stranger Than Yesterday
Diplopia

And Sweetie XD


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Old Time Wesley
Posted: June 11th, 2007, 6:42am Report to Moderator
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Quoted from Death Monkey
Writing is easy. Writing a script is hard.

I have probably around 300+ word documents with script ideas, plot outlines and treatments, but writing the actual script is discipline, like others said.


I have put better use of all the ideas that I write down. I figure instead of having them sit and waste away, just use them in my series. Thus creating more opportunities to expand on every aspect.

It's also a lack of focus.

Writing is easy, people do it every day. Writing something good and memorable is not. I'm not talking about the scripts that people are like "This is the best script on this site" because generally those people are marks.

The only real and true way to get better on this site is to find people who either don't care about you in any way or someone you just don't know. Otherwise, you will leave thinking you're the best writer since the guy"s" who wrote the bible.


Practice safe lunch: Use a condiment.
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Helio
Posted: June 11th, 2007, 2:41pm Report to Moderator
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Like DeathMonkey I have lot of word files with lot of ideas for short scripts, plays, books and feature scripts. Unfortunatly I haven't any discipline to write. and I know it is very bad and because of this I have a file named Unfinished Projects in order to put any script, play I started and didn't finish. One of them I started in 1994 and I don't end it yet.
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