Thoughts On Being A Screenwriter

After writing a few screenplays, I started gaining momentum and expert knowledge on the expectations and demands of the industry. The art of writing a screenplay is still one that eludes and mystifies most ordinary people.

Perhaps the most commonly asked question is whether or not the act of writing a screenplay and of being a screenwriter in general is easy. Essentially, the answer to those questions is, no. Neither is easy, but the art of writing flows as expressively and intrinsically from a writer as dancing flows from a professional dancer.

Perhaps the component of the process that provides the most challenge for me is the concept of securing a literary agent. At some point, through the proper processes and channels, I will meet in a perfectly harmonious relationship with an agent who loves my writing as much as I did while I was typing lines of dialogue which I earnestly hope will bring as much meaning to those listening to and reading them as they were intended to carry and imbue.

Am I the world's best or strongest author. Only a network of individuals could ever provide an answer to that question. I am always endeavoring to find a truer and more picturesque stance on the world and its complexities though.

Many authors will provide long and detailed glimpses of their life challenges as an explanation as to why they began writing. Honestly, I was reading 800-page graduate level textbooks and writing top-grade research papers before I ever completed my first screenplay or children's book. I had spent years meeting one-on-one with professors and scholars before ever creating my first character or trying to perfect my plotlines, settings, and archetypes. Perhaps this is why these characters and events are so important, vividly meaningful, and resonant with me as well as with my readers.

So, what is the world of a screenwriter like?

Meetings with film producers, directors, agents, scene stylists, and wardrobe consultants occupy much of one's schedule. Consultations with industry professionals, lengthy questions and answer sessions, and appointments to travel to and meet at the favorite landmarks, locations, and cities are as important as the act of writing out those hundreds of pages.

Truthfully, I have a long road ahead of me. There is still so much work to do.

There are days when I wonder would it not have simply been so much easier to carry out an average and ordinary existence away from the glamour of being an author and screenwriter.