If you're signed up to get Pep Talks this one will be delivered personally to your inbox with zing later today.
Dear Script Frenzy participant,
Tonight—as the second-hand waves goodbye to March and hello to April—a couple wonderful things are going to happen:
- You will become a writer on a very scary deadline.
- The Script Frenzy page counter will turn on. Log in and click the My Script Frenzy tab > Edit > Writer Info. Input your page count in the Page Count field. For now, the process works on the honor system. Toward the end of April we’ll have a supercomputer page-o-meter in place for official winner validation. You will also see a place to input a script excerpt.
And so it begins.
This is my second year as a Script Frenzy participant. Last year, I heard about the event a few days before it started and wasn't able to start writing until Day Three. I jumped in late, but managed to complete a feature-length script that I'd wanted to write for years. Setting that goal and achieving it was like finding gold at the end of the rainbow, a perfect summer day, and a lucid dream all rolled into one.
Having survived the Frenzy last year, I am here to assure you: You can do this. And, too many cups of coffee later, you’ll be happy for every sleep deprived moment you dedicated to your story. Tackling an entire script (or, for you TV and short script writers out there, set of scripts) in one month truly is a whirlwind adventure. For one beautiful month, procrastination ebbs, our daily schedules shift, and we tap into reserves of time, energy, and creativity that never seem to make a cameo unless a deadline is looming. Our scripts will be flawed and perfect because they will be done.
But Script Frenzy is powered by something much bigger than a deadline. It's powered by you. And me. And the 6,500 other writers around the world who have signed on for this crazy challenge. When the going gets tough in April, we'll meet up in the Script Frenzy forums and cafes (check your regional lounge for updates!) to help keep our scriptwriting spirits high.
Because when the goal appears just beyond reach, there's nothing like a pat on the back or kick in the pants from a fellow Frenzy participant who knows exactly what you're going through. I'll also be checking in with you every week via email, and the Script Frenzy staff has marshaled a small army of experts to offer tips and survival strategies in the Writer's Resources block of ScriptFrenzy.org.
In April, amidst every cup off coffee, and chocolate truffle treat, remember the important fact that writing is something you can do. There is nothing magical about it. The only trick is setting aside the time to do it, and making a promise to yourself to get it done.
You made that promise when you signed up. Now it's time to get it done.
Here’s to Script Frenzy 2008!
Jennifer Arzt
Program Director, Script Frenzy
