How long of a break do you take between scripts?

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  • #16
    Re: How long of a break do you take between scripts?

    I don't.
    Chicks Who Script podcast

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    • #17
      Re: How long of a break do you take between scripts?

      I don't.

      By the time I'm polishing a script, I hope to be somewhere heavily in the planning stages of the next one.

      Life is too short to not be writing.

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      • #18
        Re: How long of a break do you take between scripts?

        Breaks? What are those?

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        • #19
          Re: How long of a break do you take between scripts?

          It used to be that I'd finish a script and then take the next day off. Then it's time for a new script.

          That was leading to burn out and I stopped looking forward to working on new ideas. If only for the sake of sanity a couple of weeks away from writing is a decent break.

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          • #20
            Re: How long of a break do you take between scripts?

            Originally posted by ted zarro View Post
            I am the same way. I've only got one completed script so far. I'm going to keep rewriting and polishing it until I can get it sold or optioned. That's probably when I'll feel comfortable enough to completely move on from it and officially start the next.
            As much as our first script means to us (I still think one day I'll redo my first script knowing what I know now and that's 10+ scripts and almost 5 years ago) don't do yourself a disservice by getting stuck on one script.

            You may tweak it for the rest of your life and it never sell. If you want to be a writer you have to continue to put out new product. If you ever get the chance to sign with a rep they may not want to know that one script was a product of years of labor and you have no more to show for it -- how do they know you can do it again and this time in a timely manner?

            Get it to a good place, move on and write something else and as time passes or you explore other stories you may find answers you were looking for.

            And as for the original question -- I typically take a week or two to start on a new project. I don't necessarily type fade in but hopefully I've figured out what I'm writing next with my reps and I can start outlining and beating out the story.

            I typically don't take breaks on rewrites on the same project, I jump right into those but if I'm switching stories then I'll give myself a few days to get back in that head space.
            Quack.

            Writer on a cable drama.

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            • #21
              Re: How long of a break do you take between scripts?

              I took a 23 year break between scripts... since then it has been one-two weeks (spent reading scripts - duh) between the last three.
              "The most terrifying thing is to accept oneself completely." ~Jung

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              • #22
                Re: How long of a break do you take between scripts?

                No time off. Usually by the time I've finished a script I'm so ready to be done and also excited by some new idea I've outlined that I'm more than happy to dive into the next one.

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                • #23
                  Re: How long of a break do you take between scripts?

                  I take about 3 days off to sit around in my pajamas eating cheese nips and binge watching whatever show has been piling up on my DVR.

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                  • #24
                    Re: How long of a break do you take between scripts?

                    It was explained to me many years ago this way: If you're a writer, you write. There are no breaks. Writers write.

                    I pump out about three scripts a year, while polishing up either the works in progress, or works I've already completed years ago.

                    I write every day. There's always time to do it.

                    I can't say I'd recommend taking "breaks" as to what I believe you mean: "Taking a month off because I just finished that Thriller. ****, that drained me."

                    Finish a script and take a break from it by outlining a new script. When you're sick as all hell with the new one you're writing, go back to the one you previously finished. Read it over ten times and fixes what's wrong. There's something always wrong. Always something a little rotten about one's work.
                    "...it is the thousandth forgetting of a dream dreamt a thousand times and forgotten a thousand times."
                    --Franz Kafka "Investigations Of A Dog"

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                    • #25
                      Re: How long of a break do you take between scripts?

                      Take a break if you need to.

                      Writers write, fish swim, and physicists physit. But they all go bowling once in awhile so take a break if you need to.

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                      • #26
                        Re: How long of a break do you take between scripts?

                        Originally posted by Richmond Weems View Post
                        Take a break if you need to.

                        Writers write, fish swim, and physicists physit. But they all go bowling once in awhile so take a break if you need to.
                        Thanks. Now I want to go bowling with fish.

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                        • #27
                          Re: How long of a break do you take between scripts?

                          We don't really take breaks but we switch things up by working on different projects. We run an audio drama production company, so we're usually working on something related to that (writing/editing/getting something into production). We also write screenplays, TV specs, pilots, comic pitches, and the occasional short script for our audio anthology show.

                          Right now we're finishing a screenplay and then we'll turn around and adapt it into a graphic novel project that we're planning on funding ourselves.

                          So yeah, we keep busy.
                          writertypepeople.tumblr.com
                          twitter.com/susanlbridges
                          pendantaudio.com

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                          • #28
                            Re: How long of a break do you take between scripts?

                            I alternate. So, once I finish the first draft of one I move on to the next... and then come back and do the second draft later. That way my mind has a chance to "rest" from that story... and develop a little objectivity. Also, working on another script often uses (and exercises) different muscles... so there's a "cross training" element.

                            - Bill
                            Free Script Tips:
                            http://www.scriptsecrets.net

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                            • #29
                              Re: How long of a break do you take between scripts?

                              Rest is just as important as working

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                              • #30
                                Re: How long of a break do you take between scripts?

                                Originally posted by titans View Post
                                Rest is just as important as working
                                This brings me to a note: "rest" is different for everyone, is it not? I think if you're feeling overburdened, maybe a day or two rest is more conducive to the professionalism of your writing.

                                I always feel stale after a day I'm not writing something. So a rest for me is taking a nap after two or so hours. That's enough of a refresh for me.

                                It would be interesting to find some hard data on whether or not a good writer equates to the writer who properly balances rest and work.
                                "...it is the thousandth forgetting of a dream dreamt a thousand times and forgotten a thousand times."
                                --Franz Kafka "Investigations Of A Dog"

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