Screenwriting : AM Rituals on Writing day. by Raymond J. Negron

I don't follow rituals and have this thing called a dayjob I have to go to for 45 hours a week. Still manage to write every day though.

Jody, I'm a composer, so maybe it's different. But I'd argue you can have rituals on some level.

I don't have any rituals. If I have to write or do a rewrite I just sit down and start typing.

The only ritual I have is whining whenever I have to think too hard. Then I lay in bed to think. I tried Emma Thompson's yoga pose and pacing thing but whining in bed works better for me. I get lightbulb moments and then I practically leap out of bed to type. The morning ritual thing can't work for me cause I go to the gym early in the morning.

Monday-Friday I'm up at 5:00-5:30, pour some coffee and write for an hour. I try to write during my lunch break and if I'm not too exhausted I write an hour at night. My largest chunk of writing is usually done on the weekends...up at 6:00 or 7:00 and write till 11:00. I also do CrossFit during the week (3 days) and run on Saturday or Sunday for balance and stress reduction. Everyone has a different schedule and responsibilities and should probably adapt accordingly. I'm happiest when producing pages.

The "forest bath" idea sounds fun, though - until the raccoon steals your pants with your car keys in them. "Hey! Hey...bring them back!"

Hey, we all have reason, consideration, and excuses to do something or not. It's up to you to set the presidence and reach providence. Botto line: "Do the work!' We complain about things that we can control.

My ritual is to do the work. The end. I think we can all run around and find reasons to avoid it, God knows I certainly have my moments. I also see lots of talk about writing without any actual writing being accomplished. If you want to produce any work, you have to do the work. It's that simple. I never have much sympathy for the excuses, as I work full time plus, have a freelance writing business, work out 7 days a week, keep my house, yard and garden up to speed, raise my kids and care for family, take care of my pets, entertain, travel and visit friends. Yet STILL write every day. You just have to make the commitment and follow through. There's no crying in screenwriting! Okay well there is, but keep writing through the crying. Lol.

Awesome comment Jody Ellis. You rock!

Jody is a machete, slices BS

Dan: Word on the Writer's Grapevine is that Jody once shot a producer in Re-no....jus' ta watch him die-ya........

Oh Bill, that's just a rumor (casually slips handgun into purse...) I don't know where you boys get these silly stories. Now grab that shovel and help me dig a hole in the desert.

Aw, Jody....I've dug more holes for you than Nicky Santoro. I hope it's for that guy who keeps asking where ya live. How deep do you want this one?

I have an UNHEALTHY (physical) relationship when it comes to my writing. My lack of a ritualistic approach to screenwriting is, what I like to call... "That's enough!" We all have met/witnessed "that Guy" in the bar, right? I've been "that Guy." You know, the one who drinks way too much and runs his mouth for, way too long? Yeah, so, you (me) can tell him, "okay, Pal" "I don't want any problems," or "Can I buy you a cab?" And yet, he insists on running his mouth - hindsight - conventional wisdom would suggest to leave the scene, leave the antagonist, remove yourself from the altercation but, NO! I stay, hell-bent on finishing my drink and choosing to ignore the a$$hole. Regardless, still, "that Guy" will NOT shut his mouth and now he's going to receive my official warning. "Listen to me... I'm sorry if I have triggered some type of aggression with you, for whatever unintended reason... but I have to tell you, if you keep walking down this path and refuse to take my suggestion to calm down, I promise you that I will NOT stop beating your face in until I'm peeled from your unresponsive body" BOOM I regain my bearing from a deep RED blackout and sit my happy ass down and attend to my drink. We all know what happens next, right? "Hey! F$% YOU, MAN! I'll beat the-

BOOM* Re-entry into the unhealthy Red blackout* Two minutes later, I find myself speaking to his companion... "I"m sorry. I tried to shut him out, I tried to warn him, I did everything but leave (screenwriters CANNOT walk away once bitten') but he, "that Guy" insisted on running his F&$%n' mouth and I had it. That's enough!" This is not healthy, it's not even sane. But this is how I respond. My ritual for writing is simply - I tell it to "shut the f&% up" and it NEVER DOES. Eventually, I get fed up and act.

Haha Fiona Faith Ross me too. I barely have time to write as it is!

Tiyan. If you are eating sausage eggs and grits with OJ you must be in prison. lol! Sorry I couldn't resist an OJ joke.

Hope eveybody has written at least 1 hour today. Just did 5am-8am. Now, heading to work :). Sometimes you have to let others fend for themselves if its what you truly love, lovebugs.

I have no ritual, but I get more done if I block out time dedicated to writing. Which I should be doing right now. I can procrastinate like a nobody! Shoot.

It's 930am here and I've been at work for 3 hours so no, haven't written for an hour yet.

Hey Jody, just wrote for another 2 hours and during lunch. WHen you take potty breaks. 5 minutes on a script, stretch it to 10. Write whenever you can r is it a dream? haha! Do whatever it takes? Sending you smiles and green lights. Awesome!

Booze or caffeine, sit and write . Only ritual is commitment.

I will write four hours tonight which is the norm for me if I am writing or working on a screenplay. If I don't have to write a screenplay or work on one I don't bother writing anything.

Raymond I work an actual day job that requires me to account for my time and be present. I write at night and on my days off. I already have a successful freelance writing business and have completed several scripts and a pilot, so writing is not "a dream". I write every day. I don't believe in rituals or overthinking the process, and I find talking endlessly about it annoying. I just write.

Maybe not so much coffee for you.

Jody, if there is no more dreams, where is the purpose? Again, music, maybe it's different here... but seriously, successful freelance shouldn't be the end game, it should be writing something that everyone loves.

More coffee for you might just be the solution.

Andrew you misread or misunderstood my post. I never said a successful freelance career was my end goal,, nor did I say I didn't have dreams. I said I wasn't just dreaming and not working, as Raymond's post seemed to infer.

I work my ass off. I write prolifically. I market myself and network. I've had several general meetings with fairly big (and not so big) name producers. I am f-cking relentless. There are a good number of people here who do the same. Work hard, write daily, all while juggling day jobs and families and that thing called life.

So forgive me if it find someone posting about how one can be a better writer if they just create a laundry list of daily "rituals" to follow a bit much. Most of us don't have time for that.

But you do have rituals, you just do them out of habit and don't notice. Humans like patterns, life is a pattern.

I'm an artiste so I don't have to get up until half past Tuesday, I mainline a quart or so of high octane coffee, stumble around aimlessly for awhile, shoot a few tabletop scenes, then write until I fall over. During warmer weather I take naps out in the hammock (beer helps.) During the spells in between, I write my brains out. I don't recommend my system to others - but, hey, it works for me.

Doug. That sounds perfect to me but I don't drink beer but the rest sounds good.