2021 Zero Draft Thirty September Challenge: Day 29
One month. FADE IN to FADE OUT. Creativity meets Productivity.
One month. FADE IN to FADE OUT. Creativity meets Productivity.
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 29.
Write an entire draft of a script in September — FADE IN. FADE OUT. Or any sort of creative goal you have in front of you.
Feature length movie screenplay. Original TV pilot. Rewrite a current project. Break a story in prep. Generate a month’s worth of story concepts.
Whatever you feel will ratchet your creative ambitions into overdrive…
DO THAT!
September 1: You type FADE IN / “Once upon a time…”
September 30: You type FADE OUT / “…They all lived happily ever after.”
It’s free! It’s fun! It’s Fade In to Fade Out!
For everything you need to know to join, click here.
To download your copy, click here.
On Twitter, use this hashtag: #ZD30SCRIPT.
Zero Draft Thirty Facebook Group: Here. 4,300+ members strong.
Today’s Writing Quote
“It’s all about what happens next, what happens next. It’s speed chess, not chess.”
— Richard Price
Today’s Inspirational Video
I recently discovered the composer Akira Rabelais whose work extends over quite a bit of musical geography. His last album “the little glass” is primarily comprised of ambient keyboard pieces. This one is especially contemplative and I find great for writing.
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 1
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 2
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 3
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 4
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 5
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 6
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 7
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 8
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 9
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 10
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 11
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 12
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 13
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 14
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Zero Draft Thirty: Day 17
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 18
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 19
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 20
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 21
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Zero Draft Thirty: Day 24
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 25
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 26
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 27
Zero Draft Thirty: Day 28
Each day this month, I’ll post a Zero Draft Thirty Challenge post here at Go Into The Story. And as I’ve done with every past Challenge, I will hand out an award for a notable Tweet, Facebook post, or comment here on the blog. This cycle, the winner will receive the Anita Loos Award!
Today’s Anita Loos Award winner: Cam Deaver.
Over at the Zero Draft Thirty Facebook group, Cam posted this:
A pairing of quotes (which should then be followed by Michaela Cole’s Emmy speech):
* * *
“My definition of a devil is a god who has not been recognized. That is to say, it is a power in you to which you have not given expression, and you push it back. And then, like all repressed energy, it builds up and becomes completely dangerous to the position you’re trying to hold.”
Joseph Campbell, An Open Life, p.28–29
* * *
“Our inner ugliness is actually beauty that’s been compressed and twisted over time. Let’s take it out and untwist it.”
Ben Hopkin, an actor/writer/teacher friend of mine who died from cancer last year at age 48
* * *
“Write the tale that scares you, that makes you feel uncertain, that is uncomfortable. I dare you.
In a world that entices us to browse through the lives of others to help us better determine how we feel about ourselves, and to, in turn, feel the need to be constantly visible, for visibility these days seems to somehow equate to success.
Do not be afraid to disappear, from it, from us, for a while, and see what comes to you in the silence.”
Michaela Cole, Emmy Award acceptance speech, 2021
These are some powerful observations. In terms of the Protagonist’s journey, it speaks to the fact that there is a deepest need — what I call the character’s unconscious goal — which not only cries out to be seen and heard, it also in a mysterious way precipitates the very journey itself — what I call the story’s narrative imperative. That is, the journey the Protagonist takes is the one they need to take.
The quotes also pertain to the writer’s experience in birthing a story. Often what is required is for us to go deep into our own Self to tap into our own fears and inner “demons” in order to explore them through the context of the Protagonist’s journey. And so in a way, the journey the writer takes is the one they need to take.
For this inspiration, the recipient of today’s Anita Loos Award is Cam Deaver!
Today, go deeper into your Protagonist. Ask yourself: What is their deepest need? What is their unconscious goal? Why do they need to go on this journey? Then ask yourself: Why do I need to go on this writer’s journey?
Only today and tomorrow until the end of the current Zero Draft Thirty Challenge. Go! Be! Do! Write!
Onward!