Do what you need to do to make your script(s) as it can be. Never say, it's good enough. At one time Michael Jordan was considered the best ball player in the world, but I'm sure if you asked him he would tell you 3 things he could do to improve his game. You have to think this way too. We're not competing against the amateurs HERE. We're competing against the David O. Russell, Aaron Sorkin, Diablo Cody, Richard Linklater, Nancy Meyers, John Ridley, Tarrantino, etc... The list is long and wide. Too often people convince themselves that their script is good enough. That's a crap attitude if you ask me. You gotta think like Michael Jordon and keep pushing to be better and better. That's what the real pros do. You wanna be a pro? You gotta act like a pro? It doesn't matter if you've won a screenwriting contest, or had a script optioned, or sold a script, or whatever... and we know that most people here have not even done that much. How can thinking, "it's not good enough yet. I can make it better." be a negative? That should be motivation to push you on. If you're not willing to work as harder... no strike that. If you're not willing to work harder than the next gal or guy then you will not succeed. Only YOU have the power to push yourself to the top of the pile. Okay -- I'm done babbling... for now. Write on! Sound off with what makes YOU want to BE LIKE MIKE!
Screenwriting : Be Like Mike by Lisa Scott
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Great mentality to have
1 person likes this
So true, Lisa.
Exactly, Lyse. That's a post option/sale thing about making it "perfect". ie -- Total Recall started out with Richard Dreyfus and Amy Irving as the leads. After several rewrites... it was eventually cast with Arnold Swartenegger and Sharon Stone... a completely different take on the characters needed to be created. Ultimately, it's never finished... until the director says, cut... and then the post editor takes a stab at it with cuts too. But what I'm really talking about is before that time. So many people write a few drafts and declare their script finished. They get anxious and on the lookout for an agent before they've even tested the waters. And/or ignore the feedback people tell them OR just listen to one voice and declare, well if this one person said it then I've done that fix and it's perfect now. lol! Ridiculous!
Totally agree Lisa. I adopted that concept once I figured out that my strongest competition is myself. Not in an arrogant way but in that my goal is to be the best writer I can be and to focus on getting better. Write on writers! Be your best Mike.
The more you learn, whatever it may be, the more you find out how much more there is that you don't know yet.