Writing Tools: Beat Sheets, Tone Guides and Alcoholic Beverages

I've got to be straight with you - I am working on the most challenging project of my whole career.  But this is the week I'm going to bring it over the finish line.

It isn't fun.   It will be, as soon as I start noting any kind of progress, but at the moment, I'm just dog-paddling in the quicksand.

I have what feels like 45,000 notes on something that is "very close."   I'm in that writer's quandary of "fix everything" but "don't change what's working."

And low and behold, after 21 screenplays and countless treatments and pitches... I am turning back to my arsenal of tools to get me through.

I assembled all the notes into one document.  I used scissors and tape to cut and paste them onto my treatment.  I rearranged the order, I cut huge passages and then transferred it all back to a master copy on the computer.

Before I can continue onwards and upwards, I need to go back to the tools I started with at the beginning.  I need to create some character bios.   Really after 15 or so drafts?  Yes.  Because I didn't take my time with this step at the beginning.  I thought I could just do "good enough" and move on, but eventually short cuts slip you up and here I am, being tripped when it hurts the most, over the pit of glass shards.  Now or never time.

I actually like to draw my characters.  I am not a good artist.  My drawings - to be blunt aren't up to a three year old's standards, but for some reason drawing my character brings that person into the part of the brain I need them to be in if I am to know who they are.

It's one of the "I don't know why this works" tools, but trial and error have taught me it does.  And right now I need to go deeper with my characters.

Secondly, I need to restructure.

I am as surprised as you are.  My ducks are in the right order - but their spacing isn't right.

Let me explain.  The third act was not won, deserved or in fact dramatic- and this turns out, is because I was stretching 2nd act action throughout the entire story.  

So yes, b was before c.  And M was two spaces before O - but I was ending the story on O instead of going the distance, taking the characters all the way down to the bottom and then building them back up.  I am third-act-less at this moment.  Which feels like going to the supermarket in nothing but sandals and a t-shirt.  (Not that I've done that, but you can imagine.)  I want to hurry up and get some pants on.

So, it's time to bring out the:  Story Grid.   I'm going to plug in my beats and see what's missing.

I'm also going to compare my script to my two tonal guides (other films that remind me of the project) and see if I can glean any inspiration there....

And if all that fails, I've got a nice Chardonnay chilling in the fridge.

Happy Writing!