The trick to writing is not giving up. Truly. If it boils down to one single thing, it’s that. Just don’t give up. Because you will want to. Resistance will come hard for you, with all the hard questions that you don’t have answers for, at least not yet…and that’s where most of us stop. But if you keep going, answers come. Eventually. Little by little. Sometimes in a rush, but not usually. On the other side is something that works, something that can be finished. So, yeah. Don’t give up. Keep going. Find the answers.
I unstuck myself today through sheer determination. My goodness it took a lot out of me, but I am going again on this scene. I’m very, very happy with what I wrote. Took a pound of flesh to get it there, but it’s good. Found some stuff. Even outlining for the next book, found some stuff today, a certain storyline that’s gonna be fire. I understand, now, from writing a series, what the Trek writers meant when they’d say that an episode is never about the guest star, it’s always about how the guest star affects the main characters, what it puts them through. That’s good shit right there. It was the right lens to think through today.
Bumpy week in terms of, like, hitting daily page goals or anything like that, but a massive week in terms of getting me back on track. I’ve gone fallow over the last couple weeks, but I’m getting back. I’m sure it will be a fight again tomorrow, but that’s okay. I’m determined. I have more momentum. I can pick up right where I left off. That’s always so key.
I’m watching Heaven’s Gate. Reading this William Goldman memoir/treatise reminded me of it. We watched The Deer Hunter for the AFI list and remember talking about it—the film that took down an entire studio—but I’ve never seen it. And it’s out, now, in its originally-intended form, which is over three and a half hours; the full vision of its director. Well…I’m two hours in and, guys, nothing has happened. We’re still in Act One. Relationships and even locations are confusing. I enjoyed the beginning 30-40 minutes or so, but the last hour-plus has been a slog. Unnecessary. Sooooo much can be trimmed and sacrifice nothing. Anyway. Almost two hours to go, lol. It’s beautifully shot. Beautiful location scouting. Acting is all fine. Even the scenes themselves are fine. We’re just not driving the plot anywhere. We’ll see how it ends.
Night night.