What happens when you’ve got writing exhaustion? I usually hit that towards the end of a script.
Let’s diagnose it first. You know you’ve got writing exhaustion when you sit down to write your seven pages, and suddenly you want to edit.
Hint: Your brain is procrastinating. Editing comes AFTER the writing is done. As a movie or TV writer, you have LOTS of time to edit. 75% of your time is editing. But you’ve got to write before you can re-write.
Pulling my beat cards off my beat board last night, I was staring at script #3’s beat sheet. And staring. And staring.
Okay, brain is overtired. I’m going to allow myself ONE DAY to stop.
So, today, is my beat sheet day. Hopefully, by tomorrow night, I’ll have the beat board done. Then do it in Final Draft, then LIbreOffice Calc.
I should be writing the script, at seven pages a day by the time you read this. Because I’m writing this Saturday morning.
My producer thinks I’m a writing machine. I’m right at on the last script the same pace I had back in the 80’s, writing a full length screenplay in 10 days. WGA guidelines require I do it in 90.
So I think I can allow a day or two to let my brain recover.
