For little over a year I’ve been working on two
different projects that are coming to an end, as far as my work is concerned.
In a way the end of a process can be difficult, it’s hard to know when enough
is enough and the script is better served by you stepping away than by endlessly
making changes. On the other hand it’s easier because there is already
something there to work with. And usually someone who tells you you’re not
allowed to make any more changes.
Starting on a new project and a new story can be
daunting. I suppose it’s the chance of actually making that magical, amazing
thing that you’ve dreamt up in your head and can feel in your body when you
close your eyes, coupled with the possibility of total failure. So the stakes
are high. As they should be. Once I’ve had the initial idea and the surge of
energy that comes with it I find that I usually end up in a slump. Any attempt
to write down any words or even letters, be it in a notebook or in a document
on the computer, seems futile and hopeless. Nothing comes close to capturing
that idea and that surge of energy I experienced thinking about the play
earlier.
Even though I’ve written plays before it’s always the
case that I’ve never written this particular play and story before. So while
all that experience is really helpful in a way it’s still not the same as
knowing how to do it this time around. For me the writing process changes from
project to project as well. Sometimes doing research helps, sometimes it’s just
procrastinating; sometimes reading other plays helps, sometimes it makes me
even more scared of writing; sometimes just forcing myself to write lines of
dialogue without even knowing the characters is the best way of getting
started, sometimes I need to develop the characters before I start thinking
about dialogue. So there are no shortcuts, there’s just the long road of work
and despair leading to the first draft.
Getting the first draft down on paper can feel like
the biggest challenge. To try and fool my brain and get around the frustration
and stress of it I now start with a version 0, before the first draft and somehow
that helps. At least for now.
So I should really get back to trying to get some
words down on paper for the version 0 I’m working on right now. But I’m being
kind to myself at this stage. If I can get a page of shitty dialogue down in a
day, that’s a win! I always write shitty dialogue at some point in the process,
so might as well get it over and done with early on.
