{"id":3194,"date":"2011-01-10T11:10:39","date_gmt":"2011-01-10T11:10:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/\/?p=3194"},"modified":"2011-01-10T11:10:39","modified_gmt":"2011-01-10T11:10:39","slug":"it-never-gets-easier","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/it-never-gets-easier\/","title":{"rendered":"It Never Gets Easier"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"sorkin\"

No matter how much you’ve written or how long you’ve been writing or how famous you are that blank page still is heart-stopping. \u00a0The blank page humbles everyone and is a perfectly level playing field. \u00a0It affords a special advantage to no one.<\/p>\n

Here are a couple of quotes from an article in the Hollywood Reporter about writer Aaron Sorkin<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n

Despite the accolades earned since his play\u00a0A Few Good Men<\/em> was brought to the big screen in 1992, Sorkin admits: \u201cWriting never comes easy. The difference between Page 2 and Page Nothing is the difference between life and death.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The blank page is nothingness. \u00a0The first and second pages are the beginning of life– the life of the characters and the life of the story. \u00a0So where do you start? \u00a0You start where ever you can get a foothold.<\/p>\n

\n

Sorkin says: \u00a0\u201cI\u2019ll take anything that gets me started,\u201d he says. \u201cSometimes it\u2019s finding a particular moment, remembering that you want to begin your story as close to the end as possible. If there\u2019s a structure that seems pretty cool, I think about that.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

I believe the key is giving yourself complete freedom to explore and writing with no self-judgement or self-criticism. Never go back, read what you’ve written or start editing until you’ve finished the first draft.<\/p>\n

The number one reason scripts, \u00a0novels or plays remain unfinished is the writer became paralyzed. \u00a0The writer stopped writing after being overcome by self-doubt, second-guessing and the vicious voice of that inner critic inside every writer’s head.<\/p>\n

Let all that go and just power toward the end of the first draft. \u00a0The greatest paradox about writing is: \u00a0You don’t know what you are writing until after you’ve written it. \u00a0Let the story flow. \u00a0Let the characters speak their mind.<\/p>\n

Here’s is how Sorkin describes his own launching pad to becoming a writer:<\/p>\n

\n

Shortly after earning a bachelor\u2019s degree in theater from Syracuse in 1983, Sorkin, an aspiring actor, was crashing in an ex-girlfriend\u2019s postage-stamp-sized apartment and working multiple part-time jobs \u2014 including handing out leaflets dressed as a moose. With all of his friends away, a broken TV and not a dime to go out, he was stuck.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was one of those Friday nights where it feels like everybody\u2019s been invited to a party and you haven\u2019t,\u201d Sorkin says.<\/p>\n

Instead, he turned to the typewriter a journalist friend had entrusted him with, inserted a piece of paper and began pecking out a play \u2014 about a struggling actor working with a touring children\u2019s theater \u2014 that mirrored his life.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was the very first time I wrote for pleasure, for any reason other than a chore,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

The session lasted till dawn and put Sorkin on a path to becoming one of Hollywood\u2019s most esteemed writers.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

What if you you don’t know how to turn of your inner critic? \u00a0What if you can’t write in marathon sessions that last until dawn? \u00a0What if you don’t know how to get yourself \u00a0moving on a project that has stalled? \u00a0What if you’re stuck or stymied or don’t know how to start or what to do next? \u00a0The One Hour Screenwriter eCourse<\/a> can help.<\/p>\n

\n
Shortly after earning a bachelor\u2019s degree in theater from Syracuse in 1983, Sorkin, an aspiring actor, was crashing in an ex-girlfriend\u2019s postage-stamp-sized apartment and working multiple part-time jobs \u2014 including handing out leaflets dressed as a moose. With all of his friends away, a broken TV and not a dime to go out, he was stuck.<\/div>\n
\u201cIt was one of those Friday nights where it feels like everybody\u2019s been invited to a party and you haven\u2019t,\u201d Sorkin says.<\/div>\n
Instead, he turned to the typewriter a journalist friend had entrusted him with, inserted a piece of paper and began pecking out a play \u2014 about a struggling actor working with a touring children\u2019s theater \u2014 that mirrored his life.<\/div>\n
\u201cThat was the very first time I wrote for pleasure, for any reason other than a chore,\u201d he says.<\/div>\n
The session lasted till dawn and put Sorkin on a path to becoming one of Hollywood\u2019s most esteemed writers. His unique style has been present throughout.<\/div>\n
\u201cPart of what makes Sorkin is not just the tonnage of words but the fact that you\u2019re watching a person navigate the jungle of their self-doubt, the jungle of their thought process,\u201d Social Network director David Fincher says.<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Here is the good news and the bad news about being a writer– “It never gets any easier.” Every writer from an Academy Award winner to a complete beginner face the same challenges, obstacles and terrors<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":11959,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"nf_dc_page":"","_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[47,78],"tags":[996,109,110,25,26,27,28,30,31,32,33,34,113,35,36,37,38,39,40,41,42],"class_list":["post-3194","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-random-thoughts-pop-culture-political-movie-television-blog","category-writing-tips-tricks-advice-help-script-screenplay-screenwriting-blog","tag-aaron-sorkin","tag-academy-award","tag-academy-awards","tag-character","tag-characters","tag-emotional-toolbox","tag-etb","tag-film","tag-films","tag-laurie-hutzler","tag-movies","tag-nine-character-types","tag-oscars","tag-screenplay","tag-screenplays","tag-screenwriting","tag-script","tag-scripts","tag-scriptwriting","tag-tv","tag-writing"],"acf":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n.jpg",960,720,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n-300x225.jpg",300,225,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n-768x576.jpg",768,576,true],"large":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n.jpg",960,720,false],"ttshowcase_normal":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n.jpg",125,94,false],"ttshowcase_small":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n.jpg",75,56,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n.jpg",960,720,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n.jpg",960,720,false],"Image Size 500x500":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n.jpg",500,375,false],"woocommerce_thumbnail":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n-300x400.jpg",300,400,true],"woocommerce_single":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n-600x450.jpg",600,450,true],"woocommerce_gallery_thumbnail":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n-100x100.jpg",100,100,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Laurie Hutzler","author_link":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/author\/admin\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Here is the good news and the bad news about being a writer-- \"It never gets any easier.\" Every writer from an Academy Award winner to a complete beginner face the same challenges, obstacles and terrors","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3194"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3194"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3194\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11959"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3194"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3194"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3194"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}