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08/31/2007: Notables


A far-reaching question comes to us today, Gentle Readers, from acquaintance-of-the-blog Michael. He actually asks a whole network of questions, about getting feedback and constructive criticism from others, and about how to respond to the note, "make it more 'special,'" and about what it means when a script you like is rejected in some way.

Okay. Well, first the basics. Get notes. Absolutely. Seek out readers whom you trust and take their advice seriously. Ask them open-ended questions about what worked for them and what didn't work. If you get a strange note like "make it more 'special,'" ask what they mean. Don't argue with them or defend what you've done. Just take in their suggestions and reactions, and then sort through them to find the ones that help and discard the rest.

Usually, writers have a hard time making recommended changes that they really need to make, but Michael's questions bring up the other side of that page. It is possible to put too much stock in notes. One person's opinion isn't necessarily right, and not winning a competition is even more meaningless -- how do you know you didn't lose by a coin flip to the equally-amazing script that won? So don't feel that you have to make a bunch of changes that you don't agree with, in order to aim at some mysterious target in the mist. The target is not mysterious at all. The target is a tight intelligent script that you like. You will be able to recognize it when you've written it. That's the key: Notes are there to help you write something you like more than what you wrote unassisted.

If you've lost sight of whether you like your own script and whether or not the suggestions you're getting will make you like it more or less, then set the whole mess aside for two weeks while you write something else. When you pick it up again, you'll probably be able to look at it more objectively and you'll be able to make those decisions.

Thanks for the question, Michael -- hope this helps!

Lunch: Mulholland Grill. Chilled gazpacho and a beet salad. Excellent, although there should've been more beets.