2025 Zero Draft Thirty March Challenge: Day 8

One month. FADE IN to FADE OUT. Creativity meets Productivity.

Zero Draft Thirty: Day 8.

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.

Join the Zero Draft Thirty Facebook Group: Here. 5,000+ members strong.

Today’s Writing Quote

“I sit in the dark and wait for a little flame to appear at the end of my pencil.”

— Billy Collins

Today’s Inspirational Video

Of course, the Zero Draft Thirty community has our very own inspirational critter: Scamper the Hamster.

Today, we welcome another inspirational critter: Motivational Lizard.

Hey, there friend. I know you’ve been having some troubles lately. Be the person I know you can be. Don’t leave anything up to chance. I believe in you, pal. We ALL believe in you. UR a winner, kiddo. Don’t you ever forget.

Today’s Daily Dialogue Inspiration

I have dedicated the 2025 Zero Draft Thirty March Challenge to memorable movie dialogue. Today: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.

Interesting to note some changes from script to screen. In the script, McMurphy controls the television set. In the movie, it’s Nurse Ratchet. It works better that way as it removes McMurphy’s ability to physically control the TV. But it both the script and movie, nothing keeps McMurphy from controlling the narrative. How does he do it?

He tells a story. A baseball game. Pitcher versus batter. And in recounting what’s transpiring in his imagination, he implants that imagery in the minds of his fellow ward mates.

That’s the power of story.

Remember that as you write.

Today’s Dalton Trumbo Award winner: Mark Mackey.

Over at the Zero Draft Thirty Facebook group, Mark posted this:

A reminder: With a zero draft, it’s all about pounding out pages. Daily page count. Moving page by page toward Fade Out.

Rest assured, your draft is not going to be perfect.

But it’s going to be done.

When you type Fade Out, you will have an actual story in your virtual hands. It will exist. And once it does, you will have broken through a psychological barrier.

Instead of, “I’m going to write this script,” you can say, “I have written this script.”

Well … this draft. It’s a zero draft. But it is still a draft.

Something … instead vapor.

All because you pounded out pages to get there.

Just like Mark Mackey. And for that, Mark is today’s recipient of the Dalton Trumbo Award!

Congratulations, Mark!

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

Now Zeronauts …

Can you produce seven pages today like Mark?

Push yourself.

Write more pages than you think you can do.

Surprise yourself with your creative output!