Screenwriting - Respecting Ourselves & Others

The entertainment industry is filled with "dream killers," those who shoot down others talent because of their own failures or need to control others.  Commit to be true to yourself and your talent.  And remember to be nice.

MDJ


There is no respect for others without humility in one's self.

-- Henri Frederic Amiel

Screenwriting - Write What You Want!

It's amazing that when we stop trying to please others with our writing and become the writers we were meant to be that everything seems to change.  I first need be true to myself.

MDJ


Enjoy the journey, enjoy every moment, and quit worrying about winning and losing.

-- Matt Biondi

Screenwriting - Today I Focus...

Today I focus on what I can do to be a better person.  A better writer. A better story teller.  A better partner.  A better listener.  A better friend.  A better neighbor.  A better member of my community.  If I remember this,  the rest of life will take care if itself.

MDJ

Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.

-- Henry David Thoreau

Screenwriting - Success Secrets...

Why as a writer am I looking for the secrets to my own success outside of me?  This is a good question to examine.  No two famous writers ever took the exact same path to their success.

MDJ


Look within!... The secret is inside you.

-- Hui-neng

Screenwriting - Pain or Pleasure

A happy and peaceful life requires self-reflection.  If one area of life is causing me undue pain, maybe I should make some changes.  Increasing pleasure and decreasing pain should be our constant focus during the pursuit of a happy life.

MDJ


Be absolutely determined to enjoy what you do.

--Gerry Sikorski

Screenwriting - What To Write...

Ultimately, we need to write that which makes us most happy.

MDJ

Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted.

--Albert Einstein

Screenwriting - Honoring Our Strengths

We writers are talented people.  It is in our best interests to let our works reflect this.  Humility and respect go a long way in the entertainment business.  Practice being the type of person who shows more interest in others rather than oneself.

MDJ



We confide in our strength, without boasting of it; we respect that of others, without fearing it.

--Thomas Jefferson

Screenwriting - Love Is An Action

Something that belongs in almost any script is love.  The big question for us writers... How do I show it?  It is in one's behavior that this is best translated.   And it doesn't matter if it's in a movie or real life.  Choose the more powerful option.  Show the love.

MDJ




One word frees us of all the weight and pain of life; That word is love.

--Sophocles

Screenwriting - Writing for the Future

If we believe that our writing is bigger than us, we have been given more than talent.  We have been given the ability to create works that heal our world and make things better for the next generation.

MDJ


You must work, we must all work, to make the world worthy of its children.

-- Pablo Casals

Screenwriting - Do I Believe?

Ask yourself, "Do I believe I am a successful screenwriter?"  Take some time and write spontaneously your answer to the question.  The answer may hold clues to where we are today in comparison to where we want to be.  We have all the answers if only we would listen.

MDJ



Man, alone, has the power to transform his thoughts into physical reality; man, alone, can dream and make his dreams come true.

-- Napoleon Hill

Screenwriting - Consistency Brings Power

Internally we all possess infinite power.  The type of power that makes dreams into realities.  As a screenwriter the best way to access this power is to keep on writing.  Whatever our writing schedule, we stick to it.  We see our dreams as if they have already happened because our determination makes them so...

MDJ



It's the constant and determined effort that breaks down all resistance and sweeps away all obstacles.

-- Claude M. Bristol

Screenwriting - The Screenwriter's Focus

Every screenwriter should be aware of the business side of entertainment.  Knowledge surrounding the inner workings of Hollywood and the movie business is beneficial to one's career.  Ongoing education and practice when it comes to the craft only enhances one's ability to become the best screenwriter one can be.  What steps can I take today to enhance my craft?

MDJ



If money is your hope for independence you will never have it.  The only real security that a man will have in this world is a reserve of knowledge, experience, and ability.

-- Henry Ford

Screenwriting - Pressured Writing

The days writing flows from our fingertips are masterful times.  How do we create this environment within ourselves?  It is great to develop an individual practice so that under stressful times we can return to the calm, inviting, free writing environment.  The one in which our best writing occurs.  This is an internal job and unique to each person.  If we don't have access to this tool it would be in our writings best interest to create it.

MDJ


Everything that is really great and inspiring is created by the individual who can labor in freedom.

-- Albert Einstein

Screenwriting - Creating Greatness

We need to acknowledge that we have all of the tools necessary to create greatness each and every single day.  When we take the time to look deep enough we find that they are within us.

MDJ


Life isn't about finding yourself.  Life is about creating yourself.

-- George Bernard Shaw

Screenwriting - Write Today. Write Tomorrow. Write Everyday...

Showing up is the key to success in any field.  Writing requires us to practice our craft, day in and day out.  When we continuously practice our craft we naturally improve upon the talents with which we were so blessed.  Consistency brings many rewards.

MDJ

Continuous effort, not strength or intelligence is the key to unlocking our potential.

--Liane Cardes

Screenwriting - Believing Is Seeing

To eat, sleep and drink screenwriting points out our passion.  To touch, smell, hear, feel, and see our story and our success is yet quite another.  When we embody our current work, the outcome will astound us.  Success is internal.

MDJ


To believe in things you can see and touch is no belief at all.  But to believe in the unseen is both a triumph and a blessing

--Bob Proctor

Screenwriting - Levels of Writing

I remember questioning one of my college professors years ago regarding the meaning of some literature that we had read.  He would ask our small group what the deeper meaning was within each chapter.  Hands flying in the air became nonexistent after a few classes. Why?  He used to publicly ridicule the student (and me being one of those) if their interpretation was not exactly how he had understood the reading.  Today... I know some of the best writing has different meanings for different people.  It operates on many levels and is open for interpretation.  I also know that sometimes, "A glass of water is just a glass of water."

MDJ

The miracle is not to fly in the air, or to walk on the water; but to walk on the earth.

-- Chinese Proverb

Screenwriting - Action Is Power

The most boring type of movie is the "Talking Head" type film.  We want to see our larger than life heroes taking bold larger than life actions so that we can live through them.  In our own lives as writers, we can do the same thing.  It is easy to hide behind the keyboard and pound out a story.  The challenge comes when we want to sell it.  What innovative and bold actions can I take today to make my script sell?

MDJ

If doubt is challenging you and you do not act, doubts will grow.  Challenge the doubts with the action and you will grow.  Doubts and action are incompatible.

--John Kanary

Screenwriting - One Excellent Character Trait

I was recently in a restaurant out of town with a group.  While there that night we discussed plans to celebrate the birthday of one of our friends two nights later.  Birthday night arrived and we ended up in the same restaurant for dinner.  After our meal we noticed that the entire staff was approaching our table with a birthday dessert, a candle burning on top.  Happy Birthday was written on the plate along with the name of our friend.  The employees sang happy birthday and all the while I was trying to figure out who had tipped off the wait staff.  Little did I know we were all contemplating that simultaneously.  After the staff left we all questioned each other as to who had spilled the beans.  It was none of us.  The wait person we had two nights previously had told her coworkers about the birthday, even remembering our friend's name.  We were all amazed and surprised beyond belief.  This was a true life movie moment.  The extreme act of kindness was now forever imprinted on all of our souls.

MDJ



Giving is the secret of a healthy life.  Not necessarily money, but whatever a person has of encouragement, sympathy and understanding

-- John D. Rockefeller, Jr.