Inactivity is not an option. Especially with scriptwriting. Lack of action is stagnation. Sure, it's all right to rest and recharge one's author's batteries from time to time, but in the midst of all that, activity should still continue ... in some form or another.
My motto, my mantra, my recipe for success is, "You can't edit what ain't writ yet." It's corny, but it ever inspires me with its simplicity.
There's the old adage, "Writing is re-writing." When you readthrough a script, you know how true that is. Words you carefuly selected sound clumsy and clunky. Phrases you sweated over that sparkled when you read them now sound dull and predictable.
Welcome to the real world of writing. If it was all that easy, it probably wouldn't be worth the effort.
But it is worth the effort. And it isn't easy. The rewards keep the passion fires burning. But there must be something tangible to work on.
Many would-be writers I've known certainly do not lack creativity or imagination. They tell me refreshing and exciting ideas. What they lack is the discipline to get those wonderful thoughts recorded, whether digitally or on paper.
Tape or voice recorders are helpful tools, but until the script begins to emerge as typed words that can be shifted, printed, shared, and revised, it isn't a script at all.
In the play and movie, Tribute, with Jack Lemmon, his character Scottie Templeton is asked why he never wrote a book about his experiences, about his colorful and full life. Scottie replies that he tried, could talk it up at parties, but when it got down to the actual act of producing words, it was hard work and, most depressing to him, it was lonely. Scottie was a people person first, and didn't like the prospect of being all alone with blank paper.
We've all known people like that, who talked the talk, but couldn't walk the keyboard. And at times, I'm sure we've all ignored work that should be done, avoided deadlines until the last moment, or otherwise procrastinated writing in favor of housework or any other handy diversion. I have.
But I always keep that phrase in mind: You can't edit what ain't writ yet. Get something written down, even if it's only venting. It's better than nothing. And you never know, maybe some gem may be hidden among the grumbling.
