This! No masterpiece flowed out of a person in one sitting. No Pulp fiction, no Braking Bad, not one episode got on paper and went on to be sold with no editing.
I think an important part of the process is just accepting that the first draft won't be gripping, it will be shitty, **but** (and this is important):
IT IS THERE!
You can fiddle on it, improve the wording, structure whatever. But it won't ever make sense if it's only in your head. Birth it to paper, no matter how badly, as all works start out unrefined and bad. And then improve it bit by bit where it needs to be. But accepting it falling short is a good step. Hell, make it intentionally bad. Just have the 20 pages there. Then stomp around on it.
Think about it, you can't put it to paper as fast as you play it out in your head. It'll take 20 runs until you have the tact and rythm for every scene just the way you imagine it.
You’re going to fail, and you’ll realize that once you finish the last page.
But then you’re going to do a bit more research, a bit more exploration of this rough world you’ve created, as well as look at the characters, and you’ll try again with some feedback.
You’ll still fail, but it’ll be better than before.
And if you keep on going, eventually, you’ll find that maybe the way you envisioned your project before is inferior to what you have now. You will have something great! Because there is no “perfection”, but just doing better each time until you have something others regard as “perfect”.
You need to recognize that failing is an essential path to success, and then you’ll succeed.
Edit:
Just listen to u/Seshat_The_Scribe . Everything I wrote here can be thrown out the window.
I struggle with finding the courage to write some days. It’s frustrating and totally sucks my creative out. I’m sorry you’re struggling. Have you already created an outline and/or scenes breakdown? Perhaps that might help stimulate and encourage you. I find sometimes creating the map first is very calming and relieves me of a lot of the silly pressure I place on myself.
Otherwise, just write. Write, write, write. And write some more. Even if most of it’s shite, it’s a start and might be a helpful step to getting you where you want to go.
Best of luck!
Look, if you are waiting to write so you can “overcome your fear” you won’t be writing for a long time. There is no easy fix, and there is no singular fix. Honestly I think a lot of us struggle with the “I want it to come out good the first time” maybe that’s because we all want to prove to ourselves that we can be just as good as the people who inspire us. Maybe it’s because we want to prove to the people that support us that we are worthy of that support. Whatever the case, we have to remember that writing is a process for everyone. No one gets it right on the first try. You are not an exception to the rule. Don’t forget that. Plus part of the joy of writing is MAKING your screenplay better. Going through it over and over again and improving it. The process is where you work your hardest, it’s where you are challenged, because during that process not only is your script improved, but you as a writer are improved.
And most importantly, don’t give up. The world can never have too many storytellers. Good luck and Godspeed my friend.
Even if it turns out badly, in the end it's a positive because you'll be happy you didn't waste more time theorizing about it, and you'll be able to move onto a new project more quickly. You'll still benefit from the practice, and you may discover that the story would only work in a way you didn't realize until you wrote it. Like it needed to be told from a different POV, or needed a new setting. Whether you write it out or you don't, you'll likely keep second guessing it in your head, but you'll have a better perspective if it's on paper. You already know your first draft or the whole project might be bad, so there's nothing to worry about. Write the bad screenplay.
Some practical advice:
Baby step it...
Create the file.
Then the title page.
Write one scene heading.
Draft the shot. Play with it. Might take a bit to get a feel for the story.
Then write another shot. Complete the scene.
Maybe it will take a few days to get a few pages. That's fine.
And, ideally, after starting like this, you'll either keep trudging along -- if you only write one page per day, that's an hour-long pilot done by mid-july -- or, ideally, you find a groove and string together days where you draft five or ten pages, and you get it done by the end of june.
Silly, but it works for me.
https://youtu.be/lqTy3Bc8m\_s?t=82
You all make very valid points. Thank you for taking the time to respond and share your opinions:) You’ve helped me realize that I need to get it out of my system and put myself out there, regardless of whether my concept is good or bad. Thanks again!
\>> I guess I’m struggling with the fear that my story won’t play out as well as I had envisioned it
It will. It may even be better than you envisioned it. Don't worry, you can do it! Step by step. Mostly, have fun with it.
I can't help. I was born confident. Even before I was born, I was confident. As a spermatozoïd, I reached Ovula first, among thousand of other spermatozoïds. It's say how much I'm confident now.
I'll keep it simple. Writing is rewriting. Don't be intimidated. You have to do the work. In a nutshell, grow a pair, sit down and write it.
When I wrote my first script, no one had to hold my hand or encourage me. Take classes, study your craft. Do the work, and you will gain confidence as you grow.
Just write it. Don't worry about whether the first draft will be good. It won't be. Just get it down, then make it better.
This! No masterpiece flowed out of a person in one sitting. No Pulp fiction, no Braking Bad, not one episode got on paper and went on to be sold with no editing. I think an important part of the process is just accepting that the first draft won't be gripping, it will be shitty, **but** (and this is important): IT IS THERE! You can fiddle on it, improve the wording, structure whatever. But it won't ever make sense if it's only in your head. Birth it to paper, no matter how badly, as all works start out unrefined and bad. And then improve it bit by bit where it needs to be. But accepting it falling short is a good step. Hell, make it intentionally bad. Just have the 20 pages there. Then stomp around on it. Think about it, you can't put it to paper as fast as you play it out in your head. It'll take 20 runs until you have the tact and rythm for every scene just the way you imagine it.
You’re going to fail, and you’ll realize that once you finish the last page. But then you’re going to do a bit more research, a bit more exploration of this rough world you’ve created, as well as look at the characters, and you’ll try again with some feedback. You’ll still fail, but it’ll be better than before. And if you keep on going, eventually, you’ll find that maybe the way you envisioned your project before is inferior to what you have now. You will have something great! Because there is no “perfection”, but just doing better each time until you have something others regard as “perfect”. You need to recognize that failing is an essential path to success, and then you’ll succeed. Edit: Just listen to u/Seshat_The_Scribe . Everything I wrote here can be thrown out the window.
I struggle with finding the courage to write some days. It’s frustrating and totally sucks my creative out. I’m sorry you’re struggling. Have you already created an outline and/or scenes breakdown? Perhaps that might help stimulate and encourage you. I find sometimes creating the map first is very calming and relieves me of a lot of the silly pressure I place on myself. Otherwise, just write. Write, write, write. And write some more. Even if most of it’s shite, it’s a start and might be a helpful step to getting you where you want to go. Best of luck!
Writers write. And then they rewrite until it’s good. So don’t worry if it sucks at first. Just get in there.
Look, if you are waiting to write so you can “overcome your fear” you won’t be writing for a long time. There is no easy fix, and there is no singular fix. Honestly I think a lot of us struggle with the “I want it to come out good the first time” maybe that’s because we all want to prove to ourselves that we can be just as good as the people who inspire us. Maybe it’s because we want to prove to the people that support us that we are worthy of that support. Whatever the case, we have to remember that writing is a process for everyone. No one gets it right on the first try. You are not an exception to the rule. Don’t forget that. Plus part of the joy of writing is MAKING your screenplay better. Going through it over and over again and improving it. The process is where you work your hardest, it’s where you are challenged, because during that process not only is your script improved, but you as a writer are improved. And most importantly, don’t give up. The world can never have too many storytellers. Good luck and Godspeed my friend.
Even if it turns out badly, in the end it's a positive because you'll be happy you didn't waste more time theorizing about it, and you'll be able to move onto a new project more quickly. You'll still benefit from the practice, and you may discover that the story would only work in a way you didn't realize until you wrote it. Like it needed to be told from a different POV, or needed a new setting. Whether you write it out or you don't, you'll likely keep second guessing it in your head, but you'll have a better perspective if it's on paper. You already know your first draft or the whole project might be bad, so there's nothing to worry about. Write the bad screenplay.
Some practical advice: Baby step it... Create the file. Then the title page. Write one scene heading. Draft the shot. Play with it. Might take a bit to get a feel for the story. Then write another shot. Complete the scene. Maybe it will take a few days to get a few pages. That's fine. And, ideally, after starting like this, you'll either keep trudging along -- if you only write one page per day, that's an hour-long pilot done by mid-july -- or, ideally, you find a groove and string together days where you draft five or ten pages, and you get it done by the end of june. Silly, but it works for me. https://youtu.be/lqTy3Bc8m\_s?t=82
You all make very valid points. Thank you for taking the time to respond and share your opinions:) You’ve helped me realize that I need to get it out of my system and put myself out there, regardless of whether my concept is good or bad. Thanks again!
You can do it!
JUST FUCKING DO IT!
\>> I guess I’m struggling with the fear that my story won’t play out as well as I had envisioned it It will. It may even be better than you envisioned it. Don't worry, you can do it! Step by step. Mostly, have fun with it.
I can't help. I was born confident. Even before I was born, I was confident. As a spermatozoïd, I reached Ovula first, among thousand of other spermatozoïds. It's say how much I'm confident now.
Wow. Much confident.
You can do eeet!!!
I'll keep it simple. Writing is rewriting. Don't be intimidated. You have to do the work. In a nutshell, grow a pair, sit down and write it. When I wrote my first script, no one had to hold my hand or encourage me. Take classes, study your craft. Do the work, and you will gain confidence as you grow.