How long will it take to write your script? Obviously, any writer would like to speed up the process, but writing just doesn't work that way.
How long will it take to write your script? How much time should you budget to finish your first draft? Can it be completed in a few weeks? Or a couple of months? Obviously, any writer would like to speed up the process, but writing just doesn't work that way. It has to be created one word at a time, and many times, those words are not easily forthcoming.
I have completed a 17-page one-act in a single sitting. I've also taking more than a year to complete full-length scripts.
Ordinarily, storytelling advice says to start and the beginning, and when you reach the end, stop. And that's not bad advice. However, in today's competitive world, there are boundaries that producers and directors want: 90 to 120 pages for full-length plays and feature-length movies. I have heard of script readers being directed to check the number of pages before reading, and if the script doesn't fall in that range, to relegate it to the slush pile.
An 80-page script may be terrific, as may a 150-page script. But there are certain requirements that must be fulfilled in order to be considered among the hundreds or thousands of scripts that are submitted. And you, the scriptwriter, must determine how you're going to approach the tasks involved in creating that script of the required length.
As with any worthy endeavor, good planning is an essential ingredient. Without a road map, it's hard to tell if one is moving in the right direction, and even more important, it's hard to tell if the destination has been reached.
Each writer's road map will be unique. One may be able to write five pages a night; another five pages a week. It's also difficult to judge how complete those five pages are. The completion of a first draft is generally where the work really begins. Far too ofter, writers may be tempted to fall in love with their initial words, without realizing where a character fails, or where a story line takes off on a unnecessary tangent.
In the next few articles, I will present planning techniques and ways to help your scriptwriting stay on track.
