I made a few declarative statements to a friend recently.
I have NO NEW IDEAS.
I have no idea what I'm going to write next.
I don't have an idea for a new play or a new pilot.
In August, I rewrote a play we read.
I rewrote a pilot.
I wrote a new ten-minute play that's being produced in October.
I have one more pilot rewrite to do this year.
But that's it. That's where the ideas end. And really no new ideas this year. The scripts I wrote of my own, I started last year - both the play and the pilot. I wrote two scripts for a TV show I was staffed on. I guess I wrote this new ten minute play from scratch. But really, no new ideas this year.
I had been thinking about how this new play I wrote was going to affect my work in the future. I'm actually excited by that prospect. I feel like I'm in a different phase of my career and creative life. I'm single for the first time in five years, but really I was in two back-to-back relationships with an eight month break in between. That was a ten year block of time.
I have no one to turn to and go - wasn't that good? Didn't I do great? Aren't you proud? That person is me. I'm self-validating these days. But this new period in my life is marked by me being single and unattached. I think the Universe is guiding me towards that.
How that shows up in my work remains to be seen. I remember waiting to see how my Dad's death would show up in my work - and four years later, I've written a play about it. Every play I've written since my Dad died has dealt with death. Three plays so far. I'm concerned with legacy and history.
So when this friend talked about all the things she was gearing up to write - I thought - I have nothing. I planned on finishing the pilot up this year and then seeing if there's anything else out there for me.
Then I got an idea.
It's early on, so I'm not going to talk specifics. But the idea seems to be sticking. I keep writing about this idea. I checked a bunch of books out of the library for this idea. I have films to watch for this idea. And I've got a bunch of actual literature to read. This new play idea does explore some ideas from my last play - but this one isn't personal in the same way. It's definitely not autobiographical. Although there might be a character who serves as a bit of a surrogate. The idea does deal with the idea of self-exposure. And that's something I thought about a lot when I wrote the last play - the consequences of being vulnerable and laying yourself bare. This new play is a history play of sorts. I have one other history play that I've written - the first play that I actually did research for. It's a play I had an idea for five years ago under the influence of substances.
The important part is that I have a new idea. I'm kind of psyched about that. Honestly, when I'm rewriting something from scratch - like I did with the pilot I just finished and the one I'm getting ready to work on now, it does feel like a new act of creation. There's some ground work laid out, but it really does feel new. This new idea feels exciting to me because I know how it opens. I'm doing some things I haven't done before. It's a smaller play for me - something I haven't done in a couple of years. It's meant to take place in one room. I've NEVER done that. I'm not trying to write a producible play. But there's some consideration to write something I can bring in for Chalk Rep, the company I'm working with now.
I'm teaching this semester. I had thought about turning down the job because I want to write full-time on another TV show. I wanted to leave myself "open" - leaving the launching pad clear. But when I was offered the job back in April, I thought - This is a job I would have begged for - and was begging for - three months ago. Why wouldn't I take it? So I decided to accept, hoping that something might come along between April and September where I had to back out. Nothing happened on the job front. So I'm teaching. Happily.
It has worked out. I wouldn't say that I'm burned out from all of the writing I've been doing for the past eight months straight. But it's nice to change the pace up a bit. It's nice to have something new to focus on. I decided to keep the gig because this is a class I've never taught before - TV and Film Writing. I'm certainly qualified and it's a class I've been wanting to teach. It'll be a good addition to my resume. And as a friend said to me years ago, "It's better to have things on your resume instead of having time lapse between gigs. So I'm doing teaching because I enjoy it and because it's a great muscle to work. I can let my other muscles recover while I exercise this one.
Because I'm asking them to read a lot and watch a lot of TV and to absorb everything they can, I'm reminding myself that I have to replenish the creative well. I'm reading a lot of stuff and I'm watching a lot of stuff to keep myself full. Ideas can come from anywhere. I love a good documentary. So any chance I get, I'll watch one. It's good to have a change of location. Going down to San Diego once a week gives me a bit of a jolt. I can go to the library and work. I can think on the drive down. I can have my haunts down there. My friend Bryan lives there and offers his apartment to me whenever I'm down there. It's pretty special and very sweet of him to do that. I'm going to Las Vegas this weekend for a quick trip. Another great change of location. Another great way to keep the well full of new thoughts and ideas that I just might use someday.
My intention is to stay full.
My intention is to work hard.
My intention is to grow.
I am grateful for great friends.
I am grateful for long drives in silence.
I am grateful for great podcasts.
I am grateful for new ideas.gr
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