As a screenwriter who's earned a bachelor's degree in Psychology and a graduate degree in Filmmaking, I have always been truly interested in understanding the creative process from a scientific perspective. Here is some advice to get into the creative process and get those pages done.

Getting over the Hump

One of the bit challenges in writing is sitting down to write. Usually, we have plenty of excuses not to do so. And often, we make them because of the anxiety that writing can generate. Seriously, we know writing can be hard work, so here are some tips I use. 

The first is what I call the five-minute rule. Instead of trying to give ourselves a few hours to write, let's give only five minutes. Everyone can take out five minutes of their day. Often when we allot ourselves five minutes to work, we bypass the anxiety that overwhelms us, and before we know it, we are already 10 minutes into writing our pages.

The second tip is what writer Neil Gaiman does to help him write – the write or do nothing rule. When Neil goes to a café, he can’t do anything – scroll on social media apps, make a phone call, pay a bill online – except do nothing or he can write. He likes this rule because it forces him to think of writing as a choice. Neil can sit down for three hours to do absolutely nothing, or he can choose to spend that time writing. At some point, he realizes that writing something is more fun than sitting around doing nothing. Setting some of these rules that minimize distractions is a great way to get over the creative hump.

Creating: Soundtracks to Your Writing

Our minds need to be primed for writing. We also need to find easy ways to enter those fantasy worlds that live inside our imaginations. I do one of two things when I need to get into the groove. Either I listen to a film soundtrack or I play a movie or television in the background. These pieces of media often reflect the scene or movie that I am writing. If I am writing a mafia screenplay, then I play a film like Road to Perdition or The Godfather. If I am writing a romantic television show, I play Nothing Hill or Dawson’s Creek in the background. Movies can help us write dialogue that shares the same tone as the genre we're are writing. Music and movies help create a rhythm to our writing, much like a metronome does to help add rhythm for a musician. And like a metronome, music and movies pace our writing (I once wrote 30 pages of my script in three hours by playing Road to Perdition and they were in fact the best pages I ever wrote).

Overcoming Writer’s Block: What vs. How

We get writer's block because our brains are performing to two different processes at the same time. On the one hand,  they're trying to figure out what to write (the content), and on the other, they're calculating how to write it (the creative, poetic side). When we strike inspiration, these two processes suddenly have caught up to each other. But before then, our brains have been trying to figure out how to make the two work. Unfortunately, we can’t rely on inspiration to come, and we just need to write something down regardless (otherwise, we’ll never get any writing done). So, the best way to do get writing done is to separate this process. 

So, what I do first, is figure out what I want to write. I break down every scene into the smallest beats. I even write down what I would like in my description of the scene in point form and write down what I would like my characters to talk about in the scene. Then, I go in and start ‘translating’ the beats into a creative style. And most important things is that I shouldn’t care whether it is perfect. It’s more important to just get pages done, than trying to get things done perfectly. You can always rewrite and redraft.

Building It Out Step by Step

The best way to not get overwhelmed by the amount of work need to do is trying to break down each step of the writing goal into very small writing goals. For example, try writing only three to five scene per week (by the end of two or three month you would be done with your first draft). Trying to break down each goal into the smallest steps will make you focus on those steps knowing that it’s getting that much closer to your goal.

Not Writing Linearly

The other tip I have in writing screenplays is not writing them linearly. Lean into those scenes that you would enjoy writing and those you have already figured out first. Often, I have already figured out what my opening scenes are and how they end. And by knowing my ending, it gets me excited in writing my story as I know what direction it is heading. Then, I write out scenes that are clearest to me. And while doing so, I break down all my other scenes that I am not too sure what they are. That way I continue to write, and I'm never really stuck in what to write, because by the time I have finished writing the scene I know, I'll have figured out the other scenes that are left to write.

Creating a Fun Environment

In high school, we had an art studio that we could go to and paint for our art class. I remember how fun it was because we could just blast music and just have fun painting our projects. The same goes for writing. It should be fun. We often come up with our best ideas in the shower because that is when we are most relaxed. So, creating an environment where you are relaxed is very important. Like the above tip (listening to music or playing movies in the background) try and create a fun environment with audio. Also, try to breakdown your creative process in different locations. I go to the café when I want to just explore ideas, so it is more fun. And when I need to do more serious work, I do it in my office space and at a desk.

Growing the Garden

The fun aspect of our jobs is watching movies and reading. It’s important to grow that library of knowledge and grow that garden of imagination. So, make that excuse to go out to a show or join a book club for the sake of your profession.

The main take way is that we all need to find our own unique creative process that works for each of us. To find our own style, read up on the creative process for other creatives, and see if that works for us. It’s like trying on clothes. Not every style works for everyone, and we'll like some better than others.

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Note From Tongal: This blog is part of a series of Tongal Community-written blog posts that were originally sourced in the Tongal Blog Open Call Project. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Tongal. Read more Tongal Community-written posts here!