Interview up at cecil vortex
I have a very long (and hopefully interesting) interview about creativity up at cecil vortex. While there’s a lot of material in it I’ve written about previously, this interview is a pretty good primer on my brain and work habits.
CV: How do you use your day-to-day life to feed your writing?
JA: When I was writing for my first TV show I found that I was sorting through life with a filter: what could be “in” the show and what would stay “out.” If I heard a song on the radio that I liked, I was mentally putting it into the bin for the show. If someone said something interesting — or something boring but in a particularly interesting way — I would literally stop to write it down.
That was probably necessary for the show, but I don’t think it’s particularly helpful for real-world sanity. I began living a large part of my life inside the show. That break from reality ultimately became one of the main story points of The Nines — what are a creator’s responsibilities to his creations? At what point was I allowed to walk away from the universe I’d created and get back to my real life?
I think I’m healthier now. I certainly always have my ears open for interesting phrases, but I don’t feel like I’m in constant collection mode.
You can check out the full thing here.
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June 8th, 2007 at 6:54 pm
Thank you, for posting that.
June 9th, 2007 at 8:39 am
That was a great interview! I am taking much away from it, but I think your comments about editing resonated with me most.
Writing scenes longhand prevents me from going back and editing. Editing is a sticky trap. It’s always easier to go back and rework old stuff than write new material.
I once read that Ronald Bass wrote longhand. I gave it a shot, but I think I was too new at screenwriting to fully grasp the benefits. I tend to want to edit and edit and edit (ad nauseam). After reading your comments I think I should give longhand another try.
June 9th, 2007 at 9:31 am
I’ve always felt guilty for “hating” writing, but you’re right, John… it’s work, and that’s the way it should be. I don’t think most contractors would say, “Golly, I sure do love hammering on an unfinished roof in the heat of the day!” but that doesn’t mean they hate their job as a whole. And there’s probably nothing better for them than standing back at the end of the project and looking at what they’ve built.
Here’s a question for you:
My favorite procrastination device is “research” (which can involve anything from very legitimate study of the time period to unneccessarily surfing imdb to find the perfect actor to play such-an-such character that I just introduced).
How do you avoid the pitfalls of research? It’s so easy to spend an inordinate amount of time learning way more than I need to know about the subject.
Thanks for such a helpful/inspirational site.
June 9th, 2007 at 9:33 am
And by the way… yes, johnaugust.com is my other favorite procrastination device… and yes, I’m currently procrastinating.
June 9th, 2007 at 1:21 pm
Thank you, thank you, thank you for admitting that writing isn’t necessarily an act of inspired euphoria. That truth has crippled me for so long, and now, hearing a writer admit it, I am re-inspired and my guilt is washed away.
June 9th, 2007 at 5:56 pm
Scott #3, I’d say that disconnecting the internet (or going somewhere without internet - I have a favourite bench in a park) would help to avoid researching the more trivial things like casting.
But, as a further question, if you are writing about a researchable topic, at point do you have enough research? Should you get it all together before you start writing or constantly keep looking for more information even as you’re working on the 40th draft?
June 9th, 2007 at 7:12 pm
Insightful interview. Best cure for procrastination… No sleep until one hits a certain page count (4-5 p/day works for me).
June 9th, 2007 at 7:29 pm
I really love your answer to the last question. As aspiring screenwriters we’re often told how great and perfect our scripts have to be to make it out of the pile. Which causes me to go over and over a sentence asking myself, “is this the best way to say it. How about this way? Or maybe that way?� It makes me a very slow writer. From now on I will still try to write my best, but take your advice and “be wary of needless perfectionism, which helps no one.�
Thanks for linking to the interview and having such a great site.
June 9th, 2007 at 9:36 pm
Thank you for hating it.
September 2nd, 2007 at 6:21 am
…the interview was as entertaining as it was informative. For newbie writers, this is pure gold-pressed latinum. The process you go through, to see “what you’ve written” is so well explained, I found myself reading along and flowing into the “zone”.
Stephen King compares writing to telepathy. Holographic thoughts and scenes stirring in our minds are deduced down to simple letter code, put on physical mass and then expanded back out in the readers head! The same can be said for standing close to a brilliant mind, you begin to rise to a new level of creative thinking. This is tangible, precious stuff John.