7 Reasons Why You Can’t Finish Your Screenplay (And How to Overcome Them)
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When writing a commissioned screenplay, constant revision requests from producers, networks, or directors can hinder your progress. But when you’re writing on your own initiative, you might be your own worst enemy. Life’s interruptions are beyond your control, but when you’re the obstacle, you can find a solution.
7 Reasons Why You Can’t Finish Your Screenplay (And How to Overcome Them)
1. Endless Rewrites of the Opening
You want to hook your audience from the first frame. So you rewrite the beginning. Again. And again. This obsession might keep you from moving past page ten.
Sometimes, you rewrite because you can’t connect your opening scenes with the ones you’ve imagined for the middle.
Here’s a tip: don’t write in order. Write the parts you can see clearly. Often, the perfect beginning reveals itself during writing or rewriting.
2. Imitating Your Latest Obsession
Years ago, I had this problem. When an unknown film fascinated me, I’d think, “I need to do something like that!” or “I want to do that!” This led me to reconsider my story’s tone.
Ideas pop up spontaneously. Sometimes, they’re more hindrance than help. Be careful with enthusiasm. Ask yourself:
Does this fascination enrich my story and characters.
Is it just artificial flair?
If I change the tone, will it warp the story?
This issue often arises when your story is just an outline and your characters are undeveloped. In this case, your fictional world is wide open. To stay focused, ask yourself: What director would you want to helm your movie? For example, think of Spielberg, Wes Anderson, or Greta Gerwig.
If your story’s well underway, and you don’t want to derail it, consider avoiding new movies and TV shows while writing. Stick to familiar films or read novels.
David Bowie’s album composition technique could help you discover which elements to highlight in your work and improve your dialogue.
3. You abandon a script because a trailer made you think, “That’s my story.”
Months later, you watch the movie or show and realize the similarity with your story boils down to a couple of genre tropes. Worse, you’ve halted your writing over an unfounded fear.
First, remember that trailers reveal little about the story. Sometimes, they even create false expectations.
Second, think about how many movies have similar plots but feel different: the spy who needs information, the stranger seeking revenge, the mysterious visitor, the creepy neighbors, boy meets girl, family vacations.
What if more than one element matches between the movie and your story?
Consider whether these similarities are more aesthetic than substantive. Think about what’s different in your story.
Reflect on whether you’ve poured your soul into this project or if it’s just a product. If you’ve invested your sincerity and instincts, the project is unique, because what’s inside you is yours alone.
Sometimes, the difference lies in the characters. A clear example: there’s a corpse, a detective, some suspects. In this plot, the detective makes all the difference.
Try imagining your screenplay starring different actors or directed by various filmmakers. You’ll notice that the ideal cast reflects a distinct tone. I’d love to see many movies reimagined by Peter Stults in movie posters like The Matrix or The Hangover or On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.
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4. Trying to Include Every Perspective on a Topic
With 8 billion people in the world, it’s impossible to give voice to everyone. I’m not saying screenwriters want to include millions of voices in their stories, but I wanted to draw your attention to this point.
Many screenwriters feel unsatisfied because th
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ey think their work is incomplete without certain perspectives. This often happens when working on scripts that address social issues. Of course, it’s good for a script to be rich in ideas, but you must set a character limit because you run two risks:
Ending up with stereotypical and underdeveloped characters, even if that wasn’t your initial intention.
Diluting the power of your story.
When your story tackles social themes, select a small group of characters that reinforce your story and message. The more characters, the more diluted your story becomes.
Remember that drama and comedy thrive on concentration. As screenwriter William Goldman (All the President’s Men, Absolute Power, The Princess Bride) said: “Writing is getting a group of characters into trouble.” So, it’s better to have a few well-developed characters than a hundred barely sketched ones.
Take Little Miss Sunshine as an example. It focuses on a dysfunctional family of six on a road trip, with other characters playing minor roles. Another example is Moonlight, which centers on a young African-American man at three crucial stages of his life, exploring his identity and relationships with a small, impactful cast.
5. Forcing a Character into Your Script
It hurts to kill a character who’s been with you for months. But if you don’t know what to do with them because they interact awkwardly with other characters, don’t influence the plot, or add nothing except the joke or idea that made you think you should include them, it’s time to let go.
If you really find the character interesting, write a story where they’re the protagonist.
6. Turning Your Script into a Vehicle for All Your Ideas About the World
This ambition might be better suited for a novel. As literary critics often point out, a novel can contain everything, from historical and cultural facts to philosophical reflections and social observations. Consider these popular examples of lengthy American novels:
Stephen King’s “The Stand” (approximately 464,000 words in its uncut version)
David Foster Wallace’s “Infinite Jest” (about 484,000 words)
George R.R. Martin’s “A Game of Thrones” (approximately 298,000 words, and it’s just the first in a series)
Now, consider that a typical feature-length screenplay (around 120 pages) usually contains between 14,400 and 19,200 words. How can you pack all your ideas about life into such a limited space? You risk creating a theatrical cinema where characters just talk and talk.
For a screenplay, it’s better to focus on one idea or theme and explore it in depth.
7. Refusing to Write Until You’ve Researched Exhaustively
Perfectionism or fear of failure can lead you to postpone writing until you have all the documentation you think necessary.
Undeniably, some scripts require specific research. How could you write a script about political intrigues in Ancient Rome without minimal research on the historical period and customs?
The problem arises when you consider the initial research insufficient. This was Stanley Kubrick’s case, who spent five years compiling notes and taking 15,000 photographs of 18th-century objects and paintings for his Napoleon project. Kubrick would undoubtedly have continued researching, but Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer canceled the project due to public disinterest in historical cinema, reflected in the failure of contemporary Napoleon productions. How short-lived trends are!
In the past, I fell into this obsession until I understood that, as a screenwriter, my job was to write the story, leaving aspects like setting, props, and locations to other professionals.
Now, write your script. And remember that writer’s block is a hoax.