Happy Friday!
Private Class Rewriting The Screenplay in 6 Weeks
I was very excited to begin my private rewrite class on Tuesday with six extremely talented and focused students. It’s so wonderful to work with good, well-structured first drafts. It’s like going to a buffet and there are six luscious cakes to choose from.
I’m going to enjoy working on material created using my writing techniques. I’ll share how to only fix what’s broken and how to become a great self-editor. Also, these students have formed writing partnerships with one another, and I’ll be continuing how to share how to successfully collaborate and support the editing process.
I will look forward to sharing the highlights in my newsletter.
Word of the Day Redux
I hosted a webinar this week that reprised the WOTD techniques that I and my students have been using with great success since last February.
Here’s a review of the basic Word of the Day procedure:
1. The Word of the Day technique. As soon as you wake up, find the first word that comes into your mind. After you pick your Word of the Day, take a piece of paper and pen, and place the word in a circle in the middle of your page. Set a timer for two minutes. Free associate about the word for a minute or two. The goal is to feel happy and optimistic, whatever those words mean to you.
2. Create Your Wants. On a fresh page, labeled “Wants” and dated, write down at least ten things you want. This can include a cup of coffee, a new job, winning the lottery, or a walk in the park. Write fast for two minutes.
3. Create Your Beliefs. Next, take a fresh page and label it “Beliefs,” then write down at least five beliefs such as “I believe I can get to the gym today,” or “I believe that I will do a good job at work today.” This can take a minute or more.
4. Next, take a fresh page and label it, “My Daily Script As A Writer.” Set a timer for three minutes, and write about your day as if it has already happened – just the way you’d like it. Be careful NOT to be practical. Only think of what you wanted, not how you got it. For example, I might write: “Today was a great day! I worked on my new book for an hour and got five pages done.” Most importantly, imagine what your day could be like if you got your writing done every day.
5. The final step is to write a brief reprise of how the writing day actually went before you go to sleep. Be truthful, then add things that you wanted to have happened. Be outrageous, and don’t worry about anything practical. Have fun!
What you’ll start to notice if you take this on is that in a short time, your imaginary script and the reprise of the day begin to become increasingly similar! The best way to get something done is to plan.
Save the date for a new Webinar coming up on Wednesday, January 26, 2022, from 7:00-8:30 pm EST.
Here’s to your successful writing,
Professor Marilyn Horowitz
