by Jenna | Jan 17, 2014 | Science Fiction, ScriptMag Articles
Here's a new interview over on the ScriptMag blog with Adam Pachter about landing a deal with Amazon Studios with his sci-fi script:
Besides some of the standard approaches to breaking into the spec market, like querying agents and managers, attending pitch fests, or submitting to contests, what else is there for a sci-fi spec writer looking to get a little industry traction? Amazon Studios has been relatively new to the industry. They’ve undergone a number of changes… [read more at ScriptMag]
Image by Stefan Keller from Pixabay
by Jenna | Dec 20, 2013 | Science Fiction, ScriptMag Articles
Here's a new article on ScriptMag about writing low budget sci-fi, including looking at some recent low budget sci-fi productions (Moon, Another Earth, Sleep Dealer, and Safety Not Guaranteed) and what works about each of them.
If you’ve been following this column for a while, you’ll have seen the many recommendations about focusing on writing low-budget spec scripts from both screenwriting gurus like Chris Soth and Scott Myers, as well as sci-fi screenwriters who have been successfully breaking into the sci-fi market, like Dan Gordon and Shane Joseph Willis. Since… [read more at ScriptMag]
Image by ImaArtist from Pixabay
by Jenna | Dec 4, 2013 | Writing Articles
If you're struggling to claim your creative identity as a writer -- or to reclaim it -- there are a few things to keep in mind.
- Write regularly. Consistent daily writing will help you find your way back to your writing identity. Binge-bust writing patterns don't create a sustainable sense of identity. Writing on a regular basis does.
- Introduce yourself as a writer. Decide that you are a writer and say so when you talk to people. If you're on social media, put "writer" on your account profiles.
- Validate yourself as a writer. Stop looking for permission outside yourself to known or validated as a writer. Reward yourself for overcoming the resistance to writing EVERY DAY.
- Be clear about what it means to be a writer. Try on the idea that writers write. And then make sure you're doing that. Try letting go of the idea that you have to be paid before it "counts". Or published. Or on the big screen. Writers write.
- Take your dream of writing seriously. Don't treat it as something to be shoehorned in around the edges. Design your life around your writing -- not the other way around. Align all your levels of experience (surroundings, beliefs, values, actions, etc.) with your writing.
- Look for positive messages about writing. There are lots and lots and LOTS of people out there ready and willing to tell you how impossible it all is, that you/they will never make it, and it's too hard. Choose to put yourself around people who know there is always a way in, even if you/they haven't found it yet.
- Surround yourself with other (positive) writers. Your consciousness is affected by the people around you. Put yourself in situations where other people see you as a writer (classes are a great place to start). If you're on social media, fill your feed with writers. Hang out with writers -- but make sure they're the writers that know that succeeding as a writer is possible.
Thanks for reading!
I always love to hear what you think in the comments.
Warmly,
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by Jenna | Nov 26, 2013 | Writing Articles
I've seen a number of debates and blog posts and flow charts on the internet over the last few months about how to tell if you are a "real" writer or not. This is something people struggle a lot with when it comes to their creative identity.
The bottom line of these conversations is this: Writers write. If you're a writer, you're writing. And, if you're paid to write, you're a professional writer.
As a general rule, I agree with these notions.
However!
And this is a big however: I believe these ideas are doing a grave disservice to people who WANT to write but haven't found their way to it yet. And to the writers who have written — but for whatever the reason — aren't writing right now.
It's pretty discouraging.
As a coach, I hate to see discouragement happening out there in the world.
I hate to think of all the people NOT writing right now because they've bought into this notion that since they're not writing YET, they must not be writers -- at least not in the core sense of who they are and who they can become.
Even one of my former writing idols, Joss Whedon, practically undid me when he said, "You either have to write or you shouldn't be writing." Since I wasn't writing "enough" at the time, I thought, "Wait, does this mean I'm not a writer? Or that I can't be a writer?"
So there are all these intense messages out there in the world telling you that you're not a writer if you're not writing. And okay, again, I see the point.
But, what if:
- You have a massive amount of fear and resistance about writing, even though you've always dreamed about writing, and you don't know how to deal with it.
- You're stuck with your project and you don't know where to go next.
- You're blocked, you can't pick a project to focus on, or you're paralyzed by performance anxiety or perfectionism.
- You've just suffered a major loss of a loved one or gone through a horrific breakup and you're in the throes of grief, and you can't find your way back to the page.
- You're caught up in the myths about writing (like not having enough time or money so you think you can't write).
- You haven't yet built your writing habit skills, and you're writing irregularly or inconsistently at best.
- You've bought into the belief that you have to be naturally talented to be a writer so you aren't even giving yourself a chance.
- You believe you need more training or skills before you can write.
In my opinion, you are still a writer — at your core — even under these conditions. Yes, a writer who needs support, discipline, and structure to help get back on track. But still a writer. It means you are a writer who needs a jump start, or maybe a little coaxing to come out of your cocoon and into the world.
The thing is, if you're called to write, you must write. And if you're buying into this story, "I guess I'm not a writer because I'm not writing", you will NEVER write. That's not okay with me. I believe that our souls speak to us about what we are meant to be doing -- they know WHO WE ARE at a deep level. And so even if you haven't CLAIMED that dream yet, it's still yours for the taking.
So let's help you claim that dream and start writing. It's your soul calling to you, after all.
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by Jenna | Nov 22, 2013 | Science Fiction, ScriptMag Articles
Here's a new article over on the ScriptMag site about breaking into the market as a sci-fi screenwriter.
By now you know how fascinated I am in not only how to write a great sci-fi script, but also in what it takes to break into the market as a sci-fi screenwriter. So when I heard that screenwriter Dan Gordon had recently had a sci-fi screenplay optioned, I reached out to him to… [read more at ScriptMag]
Image by Angela Yuriko Smith from Pixabay
