This may get a little too esoteric for some of you. If you have no interest in hearing about how I have come along on my journey thus far and how I think what I have experienced can be of assistance to anyone out there, perhaps just wait for the next post, which I’m sure will be about how lame Knight Rider is.
Eight years ago I had a really tough time finding my current path. I was aimless and feeling trapped in my life. I wasn’t sure what I wanted or how to change my life in a positive way that made me feel like I was doing more than running on the hampster wheel. At that point in time, I had a mentor who dropped into my life rather unexpectedly. He tried to help me find my way, but I was so far down the well of despair that I couldn’t see the light at the top.
So I dug down.
Which is always the long way out of any situation. They tell you when you are digging yourself a hole, stop digging. Here’s the thing — sometimes, you can’t stop digging. And if you can’t stop digging, the next best thing is to start digging in a different direction or see if you can start digging up back to the surface.
That’s what I did. I overhauled my life. I got a job transfer, moved myself across the country and committed myself to following one dream — write a screenplay. And once I had done that, I wrote another. And then I started writing TV specs…well, if you’ve followed this blog at all you know that has led me here, with a pilot in development and lots of other projects bubbling along.
It’s not a fast path. If you are just starting on it, be prepared for that. Prepare to spend 5-6 years just starting to feel competent. I’ve been doing this for six years now and I just now feel like my writing might be good enough for someone to read (though obviously I’ve had lots of people reading my work before now). And there is still a long way to go. It’ll be another 5-6 years before I feel like I’m good at this. A recent study determined that it takes 10,000 hours of study or practice to become an expert at something. Talent helps, and may even shortcut you some hours, but you must sit in the chair and do the work. Don’t just think about writing. Don’t just talk about writing. Don’t just write about writing. A blog is a blessing and a curse. At its best it can serve as a warm-up to your “real” writing or help you sort out some thoughts as you spin through various story ideas. At its worst it is a procrastination excuse. You can’t let a blog rule your life, and while I do feel bad that I haven’t updated it as much as I’d like, I ultimately had to make a choice — write scripts or make excuses. Obviously, I went for Door number one.
The upshot is that once I started working on my scripts again, it has really lit a fire to write more overall. So, that’s why I’m back here updating the blog. A rising tide lifts all boats, or something like that.
Everything is Zen. Take a few moments to clear your mind of whatever is cluttering it and write for yourself a letter of what it is you really want to accomplish. Once you’ve had the honest conversation with yourself, you’ll feel better about moving forward.
At the very least, it gets you writing.
Posted under writing
This post was written by Shawna on December 3, 2008
It’s funny how one positive move begets another, and not always in the area you expect. I’m glad to hear that all of your cylinders are firing, and all is right with the world.
Writing down what I want. It’s a simple and scary exercise. Not only does it clarify what you’re after, but materializes it in some respect. Once it it written, it must be done.
thanks for that. The timing was perfect for me to read it.
Paths? Paths???
Where I’m going, we don’t need paths.
Just medication. Gobs and gobs of medication.
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B
Esoteric? Nothing could be more real. Thanks for sharing and making it happen.
I really appreciated this posting – it is really heartfelt and inspirational.