2025 Zero Draft Thirty March Challenge: Day 14

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!

As for me, I will spend the month rewriting a feature film comedy spec script. I’m spending most of the month working out my revision plan, then heading off for an extended writer’s retreat to knock out this draft.

If you join the Challenge, I will be right there with you writing each and every day in March! Let’s do this together!

Download your very own Zero Draft Thirty calendar — designed and created by Steven Dudley — and track your daily progress!

Use this hashtag: #ZD30SCRIPT.

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Today’s Writing Quote

“Reprogram your brain so THE END isn’t a giant finish line. You got pages done today. You’ll do more tomorrow.”

— Eric Heisserer

Today’s Inspirational Video

Listen. Be inspired. And write.

Today’s Daily Dialogue Inspiration

I have dedicated the 2025 Zero Draft Thirty March Challenge to memorable movie dialogue. Today: The Natural.

Biggest game of the year and the Knight’s manager Pop is lamenting how close the squad had come to making the World Series. His line about becoming a farmer is a callback to the very beginning of the story watching his sad sack team losing yet again.

Who show’s up? Roy who’s made a miraculous recovery after having been poisoned and nearly dying.

Pop’s line — “You’re the best goddam hitter I ever saw” — is a sign about how far Pop has come in his attitude toward Roy. The first exchange the pair when Roy showed up out of the blue.

Of course, all this chit chat is just my way setting the scene for the inspired ending of the movie.

If THAT doesn’t inspire you … well then, you need to get your inspiration-meter checked out!

Today’s Dalton Trumbo Award winner: Kripá Allan Pizzorno.

Over at the Zero Draft Thirty Facebook group, Kripá wrote this:

It’s a good reminder that when we break story, the goal is NOT to end up with a perfect outline. Rather, we should aim to have a document which gives us the confidence to type Fade In.

In other words, an outline is not an end point, rather it’s a means to an end.

The other thing is this: We can spend so much time on an outline, we can use that as an excuse to avoid shifting into the page-writing part of the process.

So yes, Kripá, it’s time to dive in! Remember, a zero draft is by definition an imperfect document. You know that going in when you type Fade In.

That should free you up to cut loose and — dare I say it — have fun as you pound out pages.

Let the outline serve as a guide, but you certainly will discover bits and pieces, and even significant story elements which divert you from your outline.

That’s not only okay, that’s a good thing. It means your characters are taking you into the story you really want to write.

For that reminder, today’s recipient of the Dalton Trumbo Award is Kripá Allan Pizzorno!

To learn more about Dalton Trumbo and his fascinating career as a screenwriter, go here.

For your chance to win the Dalton Trumbo Award, post something inspiring, here on the blog or the Facebook group.

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

Now Zeronauts …

Be like Roy Hobbs in The Natural.

You can’t hit a home run unless you step to the plate …

And take a swing.

That’s your Zero Draft … you taking a whack at your story.

May you hit a home run by reaching Fade Out!

Onward!