Ever run out of ideas?

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  • Ever run out of ideas?

    Lately I've been on a great run of interesting ideas I've fleshed into scripts. As of late, however, I got nothing. I've always read that writers doń need ideas from other people like non-writers. But if you're running out Is that a sign of someone who shouldn't be relying on his own ideas for a career? Or is this more common than I think and I'll get through this funk? Thanks.

  • #2
    Re: Ever run out of ideas?

    Yeah, you're just in a funk. Try not trying so hard to come up with ideas, and stimulate your creative side by watching films (maybe a genre you don't usually watch?) or plays or whatever.

    Sometimes I try to sit in a dark room and just let my mind go. It doesn't usually work.

    Usually my best ideas come when I can't sleep or am in the shower.

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    • #3
      Re: Ever run out of ideas?

      Joss Whedon: "Fill the tanks, fill the tanks, fill the tanks."

      http://www.fastcocreate.com/1683167/...om-joss-whedon

      Seriously -- if I were not only between projects but also out of ideas, it would be liberating. I would be free to watch or read absolutely anything and everything without feeling like I'm cheating my current projects of what little work time I have.

      Once you start consuming information, seeking out those subjects (no matter how odd) to which you're most naturally drawn, I'm sure your brain will start forming those inexplicable connections that turn into story ideas.
      "You have idea 1, you're excited. It flops. You have idea 99, you're excited. It flops.
      Only a fool is excited by the 100th idea. Fools keep trying. God rewards fools." --Martin Hellman, paraphrased

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      • #4
        Re: Ever run out of ideas?

        There was a classic thread way, way, back on the topic of Ideas and Writer’s Block that I was involved in. It had old DD contributors, such as the professional writer that went by the board name of Tao. It was an excellent thread, so I thought instead of just posting my opinion on this topic, it would be better to provide a link to that thread:

        (the link isn't working. let me check with the mods)

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        • #5
          Re: Ever run out of ideas?

          I like writing comedy.

          But I'm of the belief that while I can keep on filling my document of "script ideas" with logline after logline, most stories don't need to be told.

          Because small, inmate stories don't interest the writer in me. I like writing big. Something people have to see based on a one-liner.

          Well, that's hard. And rare. I'm never going to have a plethora of spec ideas to choose from.

          To me, the last "must see" comedy concept was The Hangover. Plenty of funny things released since then, but they're all movies I would have passed on in my own head from concept alone.

          Maybe you're kind of overly selective like me.

          Or maybe or like Mr. Craig Mazin. He said in some interview posted here that he just doesn't really like coming up with concepts from scratch, but it's more in his zone to work with existing ones. Worked out well enough for him.
          Last edited by Writerperson12; 08-09-2013, 06:21 AM.

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          • #6
            Re: Ever run out of ideas?

            Originally posted by dwest View Post
            Usually my best ideas come when I can't sleep or am in the shower.
            I'll try to not picture that.
            sigpic

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            • #7
              Re: Ever run out of ideas?

              (Error)

              See Emily's post for the link to a discussion on this topic in a 2004 thread.
              Last edited by JoeNYC; 08-09-2013, 04:14 PM.

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              • #8
                Re: Ever run out of ideas?

                Or, you can follow this link:

                http://messageboard.donedealpro.com/...ad.php?t=5446&

                Chicks Who Script podcast

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                • #9
                  Re: Ever run out of ideas?

                  Thanks, Emily.

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                  • #10
                    Re: Ever run out of ideas?

                    Originally posted by emily blake View Post
                    That is so 2004 Emily.

                    One question: Do you have a preferred genre?


                    Also, I am selling some of my ideas on EBay. So far, just one user by the name of BumpNeeded is bidding, very low bids I might add.
                    #writinginaStarbucks #re-thinkingmyexistence #notanotherweaklogline #thinkingwhatwouldWilldo

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                    • #11
                      Re: Ever run out of ideas?

                      Lately I haven't, but as of late, I have.

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                      • #12
                        Re: Ever run out of ideas?

                        Awesome, awesome replies. I hope you find that thread from a ways back. I think I just had a surge of ideas a few months ago, and now just hitting a creative dry patch which is suck for someone that has to rely on their creativity for their lively hood.
                        I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one -- shaudenfreuda hah.
                        Funny thing is that I came up with 2 story ideas just after starting this thread. Odd.

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                        • #13
                          Re: Ever run out of ideas?

                          I can't think of anything to say in this thread.

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                          • #14
                            Re: Ever run out of ideas?

                            I definitely get this a lot. I think it's natural. What happens to me is that I find myself writing a script for about 9 months, and then when I'm finished, I want to find that next idea in a few weeks or a month.

                            What I've found is that it's important to keep fleshing out ideas or searching for concepts even if you're in the middle of a time-consuming project. That way, when your big project is finished, you won't feel as pressured to get a new idea, since you'll already have some workable concepts.
                            The Screenwriter's Toolbox: Learn the 15 essential techniques every writer must know before beginning their screenplay
                            http://amzn.to/16oqehn

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                            • #15
                              Re: Ever run out of ideas?

                              I've run out of steam, but never ideas....

                              I have hundreds of them on file, making me feel even more like a lazy bum for not writing them. And then I come up with two more! And I'm still not in the mood to write them.

                              The funk is usually some personal problem that needs to be either resolved before you move on... or temporarily forgotten. I find one way to forget my (ever mounting) problems is to escape... into a fantasy world... of my own creation! So I write. One of those ideas. And get to live as someone else, without my problems, for a few hours a day.

                              PS: Joe has an awesome answer in that old thread!

                              - Bill
                              Last edited by wcmartell; 08-19-2013, 08:14 PM.
                              Free Script Tips:
                              http://www.scriptsecrets.net

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