The Screenwriter's Workbook - Chapter 15

I've never really had what you could call writers' block. I always have something to write, my problem has always been focus - which is maybe what writers' block actually is. Rather than simply having nothing to say it's a lack of focus.

Act 3 should be the easiest part of the story for me. I've done the set up in Act 1, I've built it up in Act 2 and I've got a good idea on what will happen and when with my structure. So why haven't I started it? I've experiencing a tremendous amount of procrastination around this. It's driving me nuts. Fortunately, Syd Field pretty much predicts this response in me. He explains:

".. you might feel strange, find yourself suddenly going 'blank', not knowing what to write or feeling that you have no desire or enthusiasm or ambition to complete the screenplay. You'll look for, and find, every excuse you can to avoid writing," Field, p. 261.

"...this seems to be a somewhat common experience among writers....Emotionally, you don't want to finish your screenplay. You want to hang on, not finish it. It's like a terrible relationship - no matter how bad it is, it's better than no relationship at all.... It's hard to end. It's been a great part of your life," p. 262.

Field suggests that you're afraid to end your relationship with the screenplay, that you'll miss the writing process, the characters, and the direction in life it has given you. This all resonates with me, especially as that's how I tend to feel when a TV show or comic book I love ends. I miss the experience I was having and strangely I miss the characters as if they were real people. And on a more directly personal note, I started writing this almost directly after my last romantic relationship ended.

However, for me I feel that something else is at work as well. I think there's a fear that the script won't be any good and that I will discover this once its finished. This is clearly an unfair way of thinking as almost no one will ever write a successful screenplay on the first draft of their first try. It's simply madness to suggest otherwise.

It's Syd Field's pre-empting and responding to potential writer's emotional reactions that makes this book so invaluable to me. I remember a lot of the hesitation I approached this book with in my review of the opening chapter but now, as I near the end, I feel that this is an essential book for anyone interested in screenwriting.

I also heard some great advice on tackling writers' block: If you're ever in a position where you feel stuck. Where you come with excuses not to write. Then write about what's blocking you. Write it as a blog or personal essay. Get it out of your system. Then go back to writing on your project. 


That's exactly what I've done here, with your kind indulgence, and I will drink my coffee and get back to work on my screenplay.