• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Marilyn Horowitz

Marilyn Horowitz

Screenwriting Classes, Coaching, and Resources

212-600-1115
  • Home
  • About
  • Writing Services
  • Guidance
    • Writing Evaluation
    • Writing Guidance
    • Comprehensive Packages
    • Ongoing Coaching
  • Classes & Seminars
    • New York University Classes
    • Seminars
    • Free Video Tutorials
    • Movie Breakdowns
    • Online Stores
  • Books & Media
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Word of the Day
    • Word of the Day Cheat Sheet
    • Free Word of the Day Webinar
    • What people are saying about the Word of the Day Practice!

Advice for Wannabe Writers

March 25, 2016 by Marilyn Horowitz

Q: Besides keeping a stiff upper lip, what’s your best piece of advice for writers who get overwhelmed with the notion of getting down to work?

writercartoonA: The best thing to do is to take a practical approach and understand that writing is a muscle like any other. I have helped hundreds of people overcome writer’s block, and I find that one of the most effective cures is my one-minute writing exercise. You simply put a pad of paper by your bed and when you wake up in the morning you write whatever comes to mind. It doesn’t matter if it’s a shopping list and you write only a page, because after about a week you’ll start writing your story, without fear, regardless of whether or not it’s in proper format. The exercise works because the simple physical act of writing, even just a shopping list, makes you more accustomed to writing in general, so when you sit down to work on your screenplay or your novel or whatever it is you’re working on, your writing muscle is already in tip-top shape. The trick is to start in small amounts, like you would a new workout program: you don’t want to go to the gym too often right off the bat because you’ll pull a muscle and stop altogether. People that do this tend to write like crazy for three days and then they don’t write again for three years. It’s much more powerful to build your writing muscle slowly. You’ll know intuitively when you’re ready to tackle your passion project without fear or trepidation.

Primary Sidebar

Sign Up

for our Screenwriting Newsletter and Receive Our FREE Gift How To Write a Treatment.

Testimonials

Thank you. If it hadn’t been for you Marilyn, I don’t think I would have made the Woodstock film which… Read more “Nancy C.”

I’m very grateful to be able to learn from Marilyn, Her focus on the psychological and spiritual foundations necessary to… Read more ““…grateful to learn from Marilyn””

Marilyn’s techniques helped me stop overthinking and start writing! She gave me exercises to take the pressure off beginning a… Read more “The Word of the Day”

You are always a light. Thank you.

Desiree

“Working with Marilyn Horowitz has challenged every aspect of my creative process from conception to preparation, and most importantly, execution.… Read more “– Larry Lowry”

- Larry Lowry
Writer/Producer, Nickelodeon
View All Testimonials

Television Writing Evaluation & Guidance

Screenwriting Evaluation & Guidance

Classes & Seminars

Footer

Connect

Contact

CLASSES

Contact the office at 212-600-1115

MEDIA & SPEAKING INQUIRIES

Contact Marilyn Horowitz at 212-600-1115

PUBLISHING & FILM INQUIRIES

Contact Koehler Books at 757-289-6006

  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Home
  • About
  • Writing Services
  • Guidance
    • Writing Evaluation
    • Writing Guidance
    • Comprehensive Packages
    • Ongoing Coaching
  • Classes & Seminars
    • New York University Classes
    • Seminars
    • Free Video Tutorials
    • Movie Breakdowns
    • Online Stores
  • Books & Media
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Word of the Day
    • Word of the Day Cheat Sheet
    • Free Word of the Day Webinar
    • What people are saying about the Word of the Day Practice!
Copyright © 2023 · Marilyn Horowitz. All rights reserved.