Screenwriting Mantra

As a writer, you read different stuffs in order to hone your skills but I was attracted to read Linda Seger's book, 'making a good script great' because the title itself sold itself and it turns out to be a good resource. I recommend it to every screenwriter.


There is a screenwriting mantra she emphasized in her book and that is...writing is rewriting. I recently came in contact with an aspiring screenwriter who has no screen credit to her name and yet feels her first rough draft is a master piece and no one is qualified to pick holes in it...including me. 


May no writer be like her. For the screenwriter out there who wants to go very far...another mantra is...you don't write a script, you rewrite it. This book is all about rewriting that first rough draft and making it great.
Enjoy reading it.

Screenwriter cum Producer

Someday a screenwriter will be a producer, somehow...it just happens, it's up to you to decide the extent to which you want to go. And the reason is simple, most screenwriter cum Producer/Director ultimately give up writing and begin to commission writers to write for them. The sad truth is that presently Producers and Directors earn more than the screenwriter.

I have produced a documentary before but this is the first time i will be producing a short film...in fact two of them to be precise. The experience is golden because i have to work with a trainee director. I can only pray that she is as good as widely proclaimed. Will keep you posted on how the final output turned out.

But i love the feel of being a Producer...kinda dignifying.

When it's time to move on

Screenwriting is my racket. i don't want to say it's my life cos it isn't but i've come to love the profession. However, there are times like this when i ask myself if it is really worth it...financially. The remuneration is not that bad but when Producers refuse to pay for completed screenplays, three weeks after submission, it makes me think of putting out my CV.

One of the Producers owing me, is quite nice but has an Accountant who thinks he is doing me a favor. I know just what need to be said to someone like that but i've decided to hold my peace till my Producer is done reading my screenplay. Aside from the fact that i need money urgently, my ethics also include customer satisfaction first before demanding for my pay. So the waiting continues.

The other Producer owing me has just moved into his new house in Ikorodu. He is a nice guy too and really respects me a lot so i can't fight him except to pray that he gets money to pay for my screenwriting services. My fear is that he might have used MY MONEY to complete his house but i have faith that he will pay one day. So the waiting continues.

Meanwhile, funds are low and debts are high. It's beginning to get worrisome because someone might soon tell me to get a better job and to be candid, i'm considering it. Adding another string of income is seriously on my plate now. I've thought about pimping rides...as crazy as it sounds, i know it's going to make me happy... and very rich

A Screenwriter's Attitude

Attitude is everything according to Keith Harrell’s book. In life, generally, what takes anybody far and beyond one’s peers is competence and character.

You might be a fantastic screenwriter but if your character stinks, sooner or later, a screenwriter who combines the two qualities will displace you and give you a good run for your money.

So what makes a screenwriter tick?

1. Teach-ability is that strength of character to take corrections from the headwriter and quickly do a rewrite. It is not a time to insist on doing it your own way or style, because likes it or not screenwriting is methodical.

2. Tenacity is that doggedness to get your screenplay better. Because writing is essentially rewriting and there are times when you are required to do rewrites of your original work more than thrice. It takes a good screenwriter to get his or her butt on the chair and do a rewrite for the umpteenth time and not grumble or give up.

3. Problem-solving mentality is that deftness to detect the weakness of a screenplay and how it can be fixed. One has to think like a skilled mechanic who by just hearing a car’s sound can detect what is wrong with it and knows which spare part to use in replacing it.

4. Self- confidence is very important because without it, a screenwriter will personalize the critique made on his or her work. So there is need to separate the criticism given to your work from the one made against your person. A weak confidence will assume the criticism is against his person and nurse grudges against whoever said it which is quite unprofessional.

5. Integrity is the ability to protect your client’s intellectual property from theft as well as deliver your scripts as at when due. Peradventure something happens that impedes you from submitting on the agreed date, it is imperative you call before time and notify your client on why your work will come later than the agreed date. You don’t have to behave like the local artisans, who disappoint with impunity and hide under the bed when their clients come knocking at the door.

You can do better than that.