What Is Holding Your Screenwriting Back Is Possibly Fear Of Failure

While growing up, I ran cross-country, track and road races. My Dad and I ran many of these road races together. Early on, he instilled in me a competitive pedigree to become a winner. I always feared losing because my Dad placed high standards on winning. 

In junior high school, there was this one kid who always defeated me in every race we competed in. He would beat me in school competitions, road races, and cross-country events. Somehow, I allowed my nerves to get the best of me. In training, I could run the times required to win my age group. On race day, my nerves would get the best of me--exhausting my energy to influence my breathing and race pace. 

My Dad relied on me to win my age group at a local Turkey Trot race. I entered into the 800 meter and the 5K races to increase the probability of winning a turkey. In both of these races, this junior high classmate defeated me. I lost both chances to win a turkey for our Thanksgiving family dinner. 

On our last chance, they held a raffle to give away a turkey. My Dad pulled my name in the raffle; however, the race promoters rejected this over conflict of interest. 

On the way home, my Dad scolded me for losing the two races. He said with all the training I still couldn't become a winner. He said he wouldn't buy me the running shoes I needed to continue on with training. On that night, he took me out to Macy's to buy me new running shoes. 

You can imagine a 12-year-old wanting to make his Dad proud. In the face of others, I was viewed as a failure. My Dad's opinion of me mattered the most, so losing these races shook my confidence. It would eventually carry on until my adult years, where if i didn't make something of myself that I would hear his criticism in the form of passive aggressiveness. Sometimes, my Mom and brothers would share his negative text messages or what he said to put me down. 

I admit that I allowed my Dad's opinion of me not being a winner in life to affect me. He would still buy me random gifts, subtly showing that he appreciated my support. I never held back from telling him I was proud of the life he has lived. 

Last year, my parents were given a move-out notice to leave a home they rented for the past 28 years. My Dad could not let go of leaving this home. I tried my best to convince him that maybe this is a blessing in disguise to purchase a place they can own. Along the way, I went with him on an apartment search. He struggled to overcome the attachment of living in the rental home. 

My Dad linked up with a real estate agent who specialized in manufactured homes. We viewed a few condos and manufactured homes. I even went with my Mom to see another condo. My Dad lost his patience; he wanted to fire the real estate agent. She called me to share what was going on behind the scenes with my Dad. I stepped up and put pressure on my Dad to move past the rental home and focus on purchasing the manufactured home. Usually, I just stayed quiet and didn't confront my Dad. His constant complaining wore me thin and I had to take an unconventional approach to knock down the barriers.  

After being assertive with my Dad to do what the real estate agent requested, she helped him to purchase a manufactured home in a nice 55+ community. A month later, my middle brother and I helped move all of their possessions into the home. However, my Dad started complaining once again about all the junk and refusing to accept these items. He agreed to keep the previous furniture in the place after the former owner had passed away a few weeks before viewing this property. 

When we tried to carry their household items into this place, he wouldn't stop complaining. Yet again, I stepped up to tell him we worked hard in the heat to pack the truck and prepare for this move. I made sure to be assertive like he did in my childhood. This direct approach worked out, allowing us to move everything into the place without anymore resistance. 

A few months after, my Dad underwent a serious health emergency. A medical mistake a few months prior to the move resulted in his toes later developing gangrene. His surgeon made a critical decision to amputate all of his toes and repair an artery supplying blood to his foot. My Dad was feeling so down and out that he was ready to give up on life. I supported him every step of the way, throughout his hospital stay during the holidays. All my personal growth skills went to work, molding him into being appreciative and feeling blessed under the intense circumstances. 

There were a few moments I had to put pressure on him to change his perspective that he had no one to support him. He got into this cynical mindset where he would overlook what people did for him.

Because of my Dad's medical crisis, my best friend started to connect with me again. We have gone on scenic hikes, visited the Disney museum, he helped me to apply for various city jobs and we communicated at a higher frequency. Recently, I got to watch his niece place a college soccer game. At this game, I reconnected with his brother and brother's wife, as well as his Mom who I hadn't seen or talked to in 5 years following the passing of her husband and his Dad. 

Back in June, both of my vehicles broke down and this impacted my earnings. As a result of this, I revised my resume and applied for a variety of jobs. My best friend contributed to making revisions on my resume for city job openings. I focused on pursuing a tech savvy/driving position for a month, completing the extensive interview process and getting hired. Furthermore, I got invited to take an exam for a city planner and passed this test to move forward in the hiring process with the supplemental questionnaire. In about 5 days, I will start my new job with a tech company. 

This story of fearing failure involves breaking out of bad habits that likely originated from my past connections. My Dad's perception weighed me down like an anchor. I always wanted to make him proud. All he would see is me struggling with continuous challenges that impacted all areas of my life. 

I never gave up trying to meet success. Sometimes, we face extremely difficult moments where we must take serious actions. We have to do what is new, what is uncomfortable to gain confidence.

What has held me back in pursuing my dream is my fear of failure, my fear of change, my fear of losing more time. No matter how much I have tried to convince myself, I still have yet to engage in screenwriting with the identical effort that resembles my college years and 2016-2020. It took detaching from several people to start making serious decisions. 

When we lose fear, we can start living a better life. Truth is, I have failed so many times to stay afloat on the dream path. Once you have the resources to apply yourself, you start struggling with commitment. Then, your financial life keeps reminding you of all the mistakes you think you made to keep your dream alive. Balance never arrives in time, so you believe you lost many years. 

I do not feel I have given everything in my heart to become a successful screenwriter. What I do know is that I don't fear failing anymore. When you lose at winning the life you believe will make you happy, you look at different ways to do things. You develop a new perspective to view the little wins as positive steps moving you forward. 

I found great happiness in going on many unique adventures with my dog. Landing the new tech job will enable me to take him to new places. Taking photography will reserve a digital memory of our nostalgic moments.  

Even though my circle encourages me to let go out my dream and let it die, I still plan to work on screenplays on silent convert missions. We don't have to share everything we are working on. If we lack support, we can create new circles that match our interests. Most importantly, we can get ahead if we can take care of ourselves without being dependent on outside help. 

If you lost your motivation and inspiration to do screenwriting, retrace the steps to unblock these kinks. You may have to travel way back into your childhood years to pinpoint the source. Once you do this, you will be able to commit yourself and reconnect with screenwriting. 

Someone once wrote me, "Things happen for a reason, there are no accidents".  I totally agree with her. 

Good screenwriters understand real life. They are masters of showing conflict, and then resolving it. Use everything you got to get to where you want to be. Never allow any fears to set you back. 

We don't need to win at everything. We don't need to make people proud. We do need to believe in this life to have a purpose. Waking up every morning aspiring to make a difference can be enough to turn our life around. Don't be afraid that you may be extremely good at what you love. 

Remind yourself that you deserve your dream. Reward yourself for all the little wins. Appreciate the simple moments. Your dream is much bigger than what you can ever imagine. 

Happy Screenwriting! 

Learn to Empower "No" to Be Confident with Screenwriting

 

"No" should represent the antagonist in your real life. If you hear no you can't do it, no we are not interested, no you should just get a real job, no it will never happen, no your dream is a waste of time, no you don't have time, no it is too late, no I can get someone better, no you need to get your dream out of your mind, and all the other No's that block your effort and production, reprogram your mind to hear "Yes" it is possible because I control my own luck with effort.

Many people want to become popular at the expense of their mental health. These people need others who they will never meet to give them temporary worth. Meanwhile, they ignore the advice, tips, and help their family, friends and co-workers share with them daily.

There is this uncomfortable obsession that drives people to spend countless hours envying popular, famous and successful figures. They leave countless comments on poplar social media pages. Despite giving support, they rarely get noticed for their talents and gifts. Why? They don't give enough time, effort and energy to achieve success.

At the end of the day, people are afraid to fail. They fear rejection so much, they waste many years holding their dream hostage to outside judgements, criticism and negative feedback. Nevertheless, they trick their mind into thinking it is hard or the time has already passed.

I would rather receive negative feedback than nothing at all. The main reason the Kardashian family stay relevant is their willingness to accept that many people hate/dislike/despise them. They don't block comments, block accounts and disable what they dislike. They allow the good and bad to be present. It takes brave people to face uncomfortable things head-on.

Why get upset? Why try to change opinions? Why is there time wasted on impressing strangers?

There are no ifs, maybe's and hoping it will come true. The only no's you should remember is saying no when you can't do something for people who interfere with your dream, f*ck no I won't give up on what makes me happy and no there is no better time than right now. Stop seeking validation to do what you already know is possible.

If you need a comet or asteroid to be on collision course with the Earth, will that be enough to snap out of your inaction? You know who you are so quit overthinking and self-doubting.

Happy Screenwriting!!!

Fear can help or hurt your Screenwriting

Feeling that screenwriting is an impossible discipline? Know there is something wrong, and it is not writer's block? Fear is the answer to you possibly delaying your next and/or first project? 

When we were little kids, we lived life without any fears. We may gotten scolded, grounded, spanked and put down for making mistakes, but we continued being kids. As we grow older, we have it ingrained in our brain that we shouldn't do certain things. This pertains to dreams, as most people believe they are unattainable. 

Fear is a powerful force within us. If we believe we can't accomplish something, we will make excuses, have self-doubts and overthink every step before even trying to start something, We may need guarantees to commit our time and energy to beginning a project. Without this project, we lack the credits, experience and skills to achieve our professional goals. Despite our fears, we can turn them into fuel to do amazing things. Just think about the power of focus. The moment we commit to one action, we can go above and beyond the call of duty, and still have time to live our life. 

We only fear because we believe what we want may not happen. We assume there is a negative outcome at the end of the tunnel. Furthermore, we may fear taking our car to the auto repair shop over potential financial setbacks. If our engine fails and/or the transmission is worn out, we already know this will cost us money. Fear sets in: Our freedom to operate independently is at risk. 

What do we do with fear? What if we can only be brave while under the influence of drugs and alcohol? The truth is that we must face our fears--substance free--to know the answer. The longer we wait to take serious actions, the more stress and pressure we will experience. 

Fear of rejection is common among many people, especially in the dating scene. People who lack confidence are afraid their romantic interest will say no. They've already imagined having this person in their future, so if they say no their fantasy may evaporate into thin air. What makes this worse is that vulnerable people can attach their happiness to someone else. If they never get into a relationship with this individual, they will be miserable forever. 

No person is responsible for our happiness, only we control this outcome. 

We hear it all too often: Our significant other will tell us that I am not happy. They want to see what they can get. They wanna know if the grass is greener on the other side. They didn't get to have fun. They may fear leaving a relationship out of comfort and unforeseen events. When they loose the fear to take a risk, they can make a big mistake to lose their relationship. 

If people do not entertain their imagination, they will regret not knowing what could have been. 

Fear of success is another barrier that can block your screenwriting. What if you live in an environment with people you do not want to leave behind? Maybe you believe you want to leave them, but you care too much to make a bold move. Emotional attachments create fear, delay decisions and stall out production. 

Nice people enjoy giving to others. They will devote more time and energy to people, whereas their projects, goals and dreams remain on the back-burner. There are really cruel people who use others to pave their future path. When these people do not have a need for someone who poured their heart into them, they toss them away and move on to the next best opportunity. These negative experiences can impact what nice people do in the future. The best way to deal with bad encounters is to identify the users as losers. Keep in mind and remember that not every person is preying on you. 

Don't lose trust in humanity. 

Focus on losing your fears. Gaining confidence relies on us to do something uncomfortable daily. If we fear writing a screenplay, then we will fear pitching our project to executives. What are your fears? Make it a habit to confront your weaknesses. Screenwriting is process that takes many steps. Once you reach the finish line, you will be thankful you had confidence to take action. 

Happy Screenwriting! 

Take a Hold of Your Destiny

You gotta take hold of your destiny. Family members and friends may look down at you for wanting to pursue your passion. Instead of convincing them to see why your purpose matters, just go silent and start doing some work. They don’t need to know what you are working on.

Mostly all stores and restaurants close early. The pandemic changed business practices, where even fast food restaurants are only operating their drive-thru to minimize customer contact. We can complain nonstop of not having a creative space to partake in screenwriting. I’m done getting angry about what is not working in my life.

I’ve been disappointed with my lack of support. It’s obvious the people in my circle have zero interest in giving me feedback and showing support for what makes me happy. The worst part is that I can barely get on my computer to focus on one particular screenplay. When you are requested to do other things, this disrupts your work flow.

No matter what I have done to give so much to everyone, I can’t receive a fraction of this effort in return. I finally just let go…

I’m committing myself to engage in screenwriting. If we wait for a better time, freedom, creative space or an ideal financial situation, we will never finish anything. Our dream will never come true in this lifetime. Unless you have DP, editing, animation or sound design to contribute to projects, you will be sitting on the sidelines without a script, samples and previous works.

Nobody cares what ideas you have in your mind. The story must be written in a screenplay, formatted and structured to demonstrate your understanding of screenwriting. As much as you communicate in Facebook forums, or talk with everyone you encounter about your dream, you will not move forward unless you take a hold of your destiny yourself.

People don’t care if you can’t pay your bills. They don’t care what degrees you have earned, even if you attended prestigious film schools such as UCLA, USC or NYU. They don’t care if you accomplish your dreams.

If you believe you have plenty of support to live your dream, then you are one of the rare screenwriters. Ask yourself how many people ask about your projects? Do they give you feedback? Are they offering a helping hand without you sharing your projects?

Truth is, people barely ask how you are doing without you contacting them first. It is not up to other people to show support, it is up to you to do the work. Forget celebrating the highlights and getting validation from strangers. Throw that meaningless attention away in the trash. Temporary acknowledgment will sink your production and shift your attention to receive compliments.

I decided to take my screenwriting into my car. Nobody will disrupt my research and writing there. I can listen to any music I choose. Moreover, I won’t be requested to do something else. Screenwriting is already a difficult craft, so the people who contribute the least and critiquing/criticizing/judging the most must be pushed aside.

If you don’t take the serious steps to create, you may as well just quit today. Your frustration and anger will eventually turn into cynicism, negativity and regret. Save yourself future pain and suffering; make immediate adjustments in your daily routines/habits to improve your future outlook.

My luxury SUV is super comfortable. I have plenty of space to stretch out. It is about time that I finally committed myself to do what I am destined to do. There are no excuses! I won’t fake it to make it. While attending college, I completed so many screenplays and didn’t have to seek permission from anyone. When people see me down and out, they enjoy taking jabs at my dream to remind me of past mistakes and bad decisions.

I don’t need my dream to be happy. It is what I choose to do because I am confident in my storytelling abilities. I’ve held a few writing jobs that made me good money. However, I haven’t fully applied all my skills, experience and education to finish a passion project. After reaching the cross-roads once again, and dealing with the inner desire to keep creating, I am now being proactive to just do it.

Commitment is everything! Starting anything is taking a step in the right direction. Don’t worry about perfection, just release your profound stories. You’ll have plenty of time to revise your screenplay. Develop a system that is effective for you. Stop regretting the past, overthinking about the future that hasn’t happened yet. Follow your life purpose and start screenwriting right now!

Happy Screenwriting!

Screenwriting Tips: How To Break Into Hollywood

The First Draft to Final Draft: Starting A Screenplay

The fear of writing a script is a mental game. Whether we want other people to view us as capable and worthy of this creative art, the most serious block is the criticism that comes along with our final draft and/or a produced film that enters the streaming and/or the box office market. We can get stuck waiting for the right time to write. We may wait for permission to engage. Your screenwriting dream depends on you taking action to complete script pages...

Truth is, the fear of actually doing screenwriting blocks most writers. If someone tells you, you have no talent, this feedback can break you. Similar to our characters, we can walk around juggling several weaknesses that introduce bad habits into our daily lives. Screenwriting can be as simple as setting a schedule to write your story. No matter the criticism of doing something with no guarantee to be optioned, we stay committed to the process like running a road race.

Commitment is what turns an aspiring screenwriter into a serious artist. Discipline keeps a screenwriter on track to complete their screenplay. Once we start a script, we can see a glimpse of our scenes connecting the dots to the overall story. Our first draft is just a first draft. It is not set in stone for the world to squash our talents, skills and storytelling abilities. Sure, we may not be as good as the best screenwriters in Hollywood. However, the best screenwriters are subjectively ranked based on personal preferences. Moreover, box office returns can help a screenwriter climb up the Hollywood ladder. The media, fans and critics share their personal opinions on who are the best writers in the film industry.

There is no such thing as the best screenwriter in Hollywood. Aaron Sorkin, James Cameron, George Lucas, Paul Shrader, Shane Black, Joe Eszterhas, Scott Frank and other famous screenwriters are one of the best at their writing craft. I am certain they have written past drafts that they viewed as mediocre work. We can become our worst critic, beating ourselves up for the work we have completed, or haven't even started yet.

Remember: You have to start your screenplay. Talking about how great your idea is and how your story will capture millions of people will keep you stuck in a fantasy. Those blank pages require hard work and consistent effort. This is the reason screenwriting groups can delay your journey.

Many people enjoy impressing people, as if they want strangers to be proud of them. They are missing something in life, so they require validation from people who they will never meet. It's sad how many dreams are lost to fear. What is much worse is living to please crowds of people who have no impact on your daily survival. The DJ, singer and sports mentality can fuel competition. If all we live for is to entertain crowds and our stardom has passed or never ever existed, we can enter some seriously dark moments.

Your life is your story structure. Think about all the events that had to take place before other moments could happen. When we are living in the moment, we get too caught up in our emotions that we don't see the blessings in disguise. We don't know that we are dodging bullets to save our future. All we can think about is the pain and suffering we are experiencing in real-time. Sometimes victim mentality gets the best of us. We don't take personal responsibility because this makes us look weak, unintelligent and/or a failure. Someone is always to blame, an excuse. mechanism to shift accountability and appear morally good. Get out of your head, or use what is in your head to start structuring your screenplay.

There is a beginning, middle and end to every scene. It doesn't matter if you start later in the story, this paradigm--beginning, middle and end--is the glue that holds your story together.

Please read the first draft of scripts to your favorite films. Yesterday, I read the first draft of The Pursuit of Happyness. I can honestly share that I didn’t like the original opening. The time machine character is different. There is no stockbroker meeting in the first few minutes of the story, instead Chris talks to a structural engineer. The film opens in Venice, California, where Chris and Linda are unsure about their future with an unborn Christopher swollen in the belly. Writing the first draft probably helped the screenwriter to brainstorm additional ideas. Our first draft is basically a rough draft.

Just remember your first draft may seem strange, bad, poor quality and everything else circulating in your critical mind.

Overthinking is a curse on our confidence. We can self-doubt so much that we will delay living our dream. We can put our dream out of fear that people will criticize us. Nothing happens in life if we don't formulate an action plan. If we get into the car and drive from the West Coast to the East Coast without a plan, our journey may be boring, uneventful and unpredictable. Our stories can begin with taking an unexpected road trip; however, we need a reason that leads up to this decision. Don't overthink your dream as if you need this to happen or else your life is a failure.

If we put our dream on a pedestal, we may imagine all the future possibilities of living this fantasy. The moment reality hits us and our dream is over, we can lose our identity. Instead of celebrating we are unique human beings, we will hang our heads low and feel like failures. You are more than just a screenwriter. You are more than just an artist. You are a human being choosing screenwriting as your future career. It is the dream life you want to live daily, creating the most compelling stories that entertain, teach and/or inspire others.

Read the first drafts to your favorite films. This will show you that even the best screenwriters are still learning with every new story. Be open minded to tell your story a number of different ways with a variety of techniques. We can turn typically boring scenes into electrifying stories through a multitude of actions, inactions and/or crisp dialogue. Nonverbal communication can represent your secret weapon.

The first drafts of professional screenplays that have already went through several revisions and are produced films are sometimes a mess. If we watched the film first, we know what worked and what failed to see the silver screen. Know what you want with your screenwriting career: Act on it right now.

Happy Screenwriting!

Just Write The Script!

Assertive mood: Stop making excuses to write your script later. If you have real passion for screenwriting, you will begin creating compelling stories that give people escapism. Focus on one creative idea you can expand on right now and just go for it. Plan the process, enjoy the steps. 

There is no guarantee we will see tomorrow. We don't have all the time in the world to keep postponing our dream. Screenwriting is as simple as just starting a script. Don't concentrate on whether your first daft is good or bad. Get out of your head with all those fears of people judging, criticizing and insulting your work and you. Quit thinking it is too hard to make it in Hollywood. You are good enough! 

Having a positive outlook to write at will is better than using positive reinforcement as a reward structure. Empowering our writing to improve this world is better than chasing fame to get attention. Write movies because you believe your dream can inspire others to also do great things. 

Behind the scenes you will be a hero. Just write the script! 

Feature Films Shot on the iPhone

Smartphones have now integrated 4K resolution into their video technology. Since the introduction of the first iPhone on June 29, 2007, only two feature films were shot on the iPhone with a FilmicPro app in 4K. Unfortunately, there are no other attempts to make a Hollywood feature film entirely on an iPhone. 

A wide range of film cameras are available to shoot Hollywood movies. The cost to purchase and/or rent any of these high-end cameras can cut deep into your film budget. Whether pride is involved, or studio reputation is at stake, the iPhone is rarely considered an alternative to making feature films. 

Only two Hollywood feature films were shot on iPhone cameras. Sean Baker's Tangerine (2015) and Steven Soderbergh's Unsane (2018) are feature films shot on iPhones. Tangerine's production budget cost $100,000 and generated $702,354 in the US box office and $828,874 (US & worldwide combined). On a $1.5 million production budget, Unsane unleashed a crazy $14,293,601 in the worldwide box office (including US box office) and $7,732,899 in the US box office. 

Do you want to be innovative? Expand your creativity? Take a risk to shoot your next feature film on an iPhone. Don't be afraid to be different because you will never know the outcome until you try something new. Your dream can come true shooting a feature film on an iPhone.

Happy Screenwriting!  

Cobra Kai Season 3 Premiere on January 1, 2021

Netflix's Cobra Kai Season 3 premiered on January 1, 2021. Episode 1 revisited Season 2, Episode 10: The school fight that rocked the Valley. Miguel Diaz still remains in a coma after Robby Keene kicked him off the second floor, causing Cobra Kai's star pupil to sustain a terrible neck injury accompanied with paralysis. Robby is on the run following his direct role in causing Miguel's tragic injury. With their differences and past grudges still intact, Daniel and Johnny go on a mission to locate the troubled teenager on the run before the police find him first. 

Samantha now struggles with PTSD after the controversial school fight that rocked the Valley. Flashbacks of John Kreese's Vietnam tour clearly convey his motivation to start Cobra Kai. John's desire to punish his enemies through showing no mercy is explained in its entirety. Daniel returns back to Tomi Village in Okinawa, the site of The Karate Kid II, to reclaim his lost focus and rekindle past relationships. Season 3 features many unique surprises, further delving into the mysteries pitting the past up against the present.   

Cobra Kai is an extremely well written series that instantly grabbed my attention upon my first initial viewing: I binge-watched Season 1 and Season 2 on Netflix. This former YouTube series has done a great job integrating "The Karate Kid" films into its storyline. There are many personal growth teachings that teach us to evolve, such as the wisdom Miyagi ingrained into Daniel's mind, body and soul. 

There is newfound empathy to understand Johnny Lawrence's character; we see his broken childhood and how karate gave him guidance. The fallout of losing the All-Valley Karate tournament kept Johnny living in the past. His inability to come to terms with the 80's restricts his character arc. Despite protecting his tough guy image, letting his defense down actually helps him become a humble character with moral values.  

Daniel adopted identical character traits that made Johnny unlikeable in The Karate Kid. Clashing with Johnny created conflict in his posh life. His wife reminded him to return back to the man she first met.  For the most part, Daniel's love for karate reconnected him with valuable life lessons. He self-reflects on Mr. Miyagi's teachings, focusing on karate as defense and focus. Concentrating on Miyagi's passion-first advice is what keeps Daniel living a rich life full of blessings. Nevertheless, karate represents Daniel's true calling to make a difference in his community. Perhaps karate is the main reason Daniel is who he is today; it serves as the foundation to his personal, family and business life. 

Binge watching Cobra Kai Season 3 gave me a nostalgic experience: These empowering episodes reconnected me with my childhood. My brothers and I would do karate after watching The Karate Kid movies! Whenever I feel disappointed, I remember the carefree times where I lived in the moment. Living in the moment keeps me in the present, reminding me to not take life so seriously. Life is too short to waste time on regrets, resentments, grudges and failures. We must learn to appreciate who we are, the life we lived and what we can become with hard work, effort and passion. If you want your dream, you are all the support you need. 

Until Cobra Kai Season 4 arrives, stay safe and healthy. Most importantly, keep writing the stories you want to see at the movies. Do it for yourself, not for attention, money and popularity. 

Happy Screenwriting! 

  

Screenwriting Inspiration: The Crossroads

When your Hollywood dream hits the crossroads, reflect back to the past to recapture your spark. 

The Social Media Game

In my honest opinion: There are many effective ways to confront the trolling/hating/negativity problem we see on platforms designed to create 24-7 attention online—dopamine rush. 

Become the change you want to see in this world... Write a self-love book, become a personal coach, teach personal growth from conflict to resolution, empower people through sharing other people’s stories, understand that countless people are broken beyond repair and crave envy/jealousy to function and recognize that people playing victims are actually enablers. 

What doesn’t work is self-pity, making people feel sorry and calling them out because the aggressors know they are winning. If we make little short films to show what we dislike and share these video clips, this creativity can increase public awareness. 

What works is gaining enough confidence to never worry about these people. 

Living life offline enjoying the simple moments matter most. Don’t delete negative comments to show people the real truth. If we have to explain what we want from others and justify why we should be treated a certain way as compared to others, we will never find inner peace and happiness. We shouldn’t exhaust our valuable energy challenging “out of touch” people. 

Working hard and teaching others how to stay fit can get rid of negative distractions. 

There is an obvious difference between confident people and those who struggle with low self-esteem and hide their pain/suffering. You can detect almost any positive/negative traits in the words. 

What people want to see is the steps to build better health and fitness. They want to know when we have off-days and how we overcome them. 

In the past few weeks, I elevated my fitness to achieve bigger goals that have drastically improved my focus and overall production. It’s exciting to pursue mini goals because taking action will bring us closer to our dreams. 

There is a reason there are stands where people just clap, support, shout, envy and act jealous—some people just accept complaining, whining, praising and self-doubting as a disguise to mask fear. These widely popular people providing entertainment on the court, on a field, in a ring, on a platform and on a stage have undergone immense criticism and still defied traditional conventions—even their family and friends have pushed big mountains in front of them to block their dreams/goals. 

If successful people allow other people’s negativity to seep into their minds, they will keep losing in this life. 

We live in a critical world; however, it is important for us to remain positive. Positive change starts with us... 

As a writer, I welcome criticism, the truth, negativity and jealousy. If I’m going to pitch a screenplay to executives, I will not tell them I deserve an option because I worked hard, I had to overcome many challenges, I had to take several jobs, I have no support and every other self-pity antic. They want to see a confident pitch that follows the industry steps. No amount of kicking and screaming will convince them to purchase a bad story. Besides, I wouldn’t waste my time sitting in a dark movie theater watching a happy story from beginning to end. 

The Pursuit of Happyness is a perfect movie to convey resilience and equal competition. Check out “Smithereens” Black Mirror episode. The answers you seek are there. Good luck 😊 

Live Your Own Dream

Our dream of becoming an actor, writer, director, singer or an astronaut comes from a strong desire we hold inside--our purpose, our calling, our passion. Whenever we see anything related to our dream, we can find instant excitement and happiness. This dream is our passion, it is our first love. Sometimes people can enter our lives to push us off of our dream path. We may not realize this truth in the present time, but we will be reminded of these moments later on. We can fail to live our dream if we lose focus on why we are trying to achieve it.

Living our dream is supposed to be something special that we should embrace along our life journey. Our dream can be anything we set our mind on and seek to accomplish. Our dream can guide us to helping people to realize their potential. Unresolved issues that go untreated can block our progress.

We may assume every new relationship we enter represents our dream. We can have an internal desire to always be with someone, never being alone, never having space to grow better. There can be that new dream girl, dream guy or dream situations we never experienced before. We get lost in these magical moments; meanwhile, we lose sight of our dream.

Why hasn't our dream come true? Why are we frustrated after rejections? Why do we feel we need our dream to be somebody important? Why do we wake up with low energy? There is a reason why this is happening. Either we are struggling with physical health problems, or ignoring a self-worth/self-value psychological challenge that we haven't confronted yet. Maybe we lack confidence, so we overcompensate with posting videos and images that stimulate our mind to raise our dopamine levels.

Getting positive attention, hiding negative criticism and expecting everyone to accept us are some ways we cope with feeling the constant need to get noticed. We may fake our dream until we make it. We can act like we are working on top secret projects. We may tell our fans to stay tuned. Living a lie to impress people can make us feel empty inside. When the lights turn off, we lose our identity. If being authentic does not matter to us, we can continue acting like we are living our dream. We can continue using app enhancers, applying filters and making small talk about a dream we are struggling to reach. Following this 'make believe' plan will not get us any closer to our dream.

Our fans are smarter that we think. They know whether we are accomplished writers, actors, directors, singers, or YouTube stars. All credentials can be verified online... IMDb is the leading Internet movie database that will show past, current and upcoming projects. This movie website also lists the type of roles, written by and directed by credits. Telling white lies is common in the film industry. If people stick to tricking others, they will never give all the effort, energy and time required to live their dream.

The first step to building a loyal following is honesty. Writing intriguing words and showing beautiful pictures to make people envy our lives, even get jealous, are deceptive and misleading. However, sharing all the real steps (including both positive and negative) to live our dream will attract loyal followers who will take interest in our dream pursuit.

Social media takes up a lot of time. Creating stories and uploading posts... Replying back to comments... Answering questions... Thanking people for their positive comments... This redistributes the time and energy we need to manifest our dream into real life. We may rely on likes and comments to boost our daily moods. It can become mundane taking credit for living a dream we are so far from achieving. Taking a break away from social media can rejuvenate our body and mind. For the most part, human beings are not Terminator machines; they need time to recharge.

Time is against us... We are growing older... Our dream will not wait for us to make serious decisions...                          

We have to take personal responsibility to accept that we are to blame for our mistakes, our lack of opportunities, our lost time, our low energy and our past. Ultimately, we control our own fate. We create our own luck. Embracing our mistakes will show that we value all the lessons learned after experiencing failures. Perhaps, we are taught to empower self-care.

Nevertheless, self-care can be disguised as selfishness to get what we want at all costs--this is the worst path we can follow. When we feel unhappy and depressed for our selfish needs, we do not appreciate the small blessings. We complain, whine, get obsessed, overthink, self-doubt, envy, self-pity, gossip and partake in negative actions that we enjoy or we're oblivious to notice our actions as being toxic. We step on others to get ahead. We take advantage of kind people.

We may forget the contribution that others have to shape our dream, especially after we no longer have any value for them in our current life. Given the time, energy and compassion people share with us, we may disregard this to move on to the net host. We may like to think we did it on our own. Choosing to hide people who meant something in our past reveals our true character. It is a testament of selfishness; only God knows what we did to people. The sad reality: Social media and Hollywood are full of attention seeking, flaky, fickle and pompous people.

With all of the positive attention we receive from everyone, we rarely slow down to see what is happening around us. We don't notice other people's pain and suffering. We fail to change our ways to improve as human beings. We hide behind a false facade to make our fans believe we are someone inspiring, someone motivational, someone talented. We don't do enough self-observing to repair bad habits, instead we keep repeating and keep self-sabotaging to attract temporary attention.

It is highly likely we are spending all of our valuable time, exhausting all of our powerful energy to make another person/other people happy--to make their dream(s) possible. Couples should have their personal time, too. Spending countless hours with our companion will eventually kill the thrill. No matter how much we believe we know about our true love, we really don't know everything. Our significant others can hide the truth like social media: Show what they want everyone to see.

What we view as peace and light can actually be darkness. We can be groomed, be controlled and get manipulated into following another dream plan. Someone we trust can set out on a top secret mission to accomplish their dream. They will take us along on this wild ride to make sure they get what they want most. They need their dream to come true. Deep down inside, they are afraid of their past. They know their actions were immoral. They have something/someone to lose. It is like one of those mystery/thriller movies. When our past returns, we will travel great lengths to silence it. We can lie about people, telling a fabricated story to make ourselves look good and another appear bad.

We are too in love, too invested to investigate. We are stuck in a dream, in a fantasy that is written in the stars. We believe our life is a dream. What we set out to accomplish is not happening yet. We are standing on an artificial stage wooing our online followers. People praise us. They envy us. They think we have an ideal life. They believe we are blessed. They don't know Adam from Eve.

What we fail to see is that people who do not dream big resort to obsessing over others. Boasting, showing off and whatever else we label it as is make believing we are someone important among others. It is our escape from real life to live that fantasy life. We can live in a bubble. Maybe we don't share what we are truly feeling inside with our companion, with our family, with our friends.

The moment we start referring to ourselves by name, we have lost our sense of reality. 'I" becomes our 'first name" as a reference to our imaginary star power. It keeps us believing that we've made it. Truth is, we are not surfing on that California wave that is impressing everyone. We are telling people what they want to hear. We are showing our movie star looks to fit a narrative. However, we are not living our dream the way we imagined it out in our minds numerous times.

Imagine this: What if we could do more to live our dream?

Never disregard the messenger who has no track record. Only stubborn people act condescending to think they know everything. They only listen to people who have succeeded with what they want. Unfortunately, these people get angry, get triggered and feel judged if anyone shares constructive criticism with them. It is their defense mechanism to protect their ego, be prideful and hide insecurities. Confident people listen to advice, tips, and techniques. People with vulnerabilities and insecurities deflect their negativity. We must be prepared to handle the less than glamorous aspects of stardom. We must survive the industry that has left many people broken.

Want to accomplish your Hollywood dream? Take acting classes like A-list actors/actresses do. Listen to acting podcasts. Investigate further into how to live your dream. Think beyond acting and enter writing and producing. If you want to become a screenwriter, read about your favorite screenwriters on blogs and in books. Go to film festivals and meet people with the same interests. Go on meetups to discuss writing, acting, music and business opportunities. Make audition videos to share your acting. Ask for honest advice about your performances. Submit completed scripts into screenwriting competitions. Share your gifts and talents to inspire others. Don't just fake it until you believe you will make it. It does not get any easier wasting more time waiting for a big break.

Respect your dream as well as the people who helped you reach your destination.

Never get offended and take revenge because you feel like you're being judged. If you repeat this behavior, you will restrict your future success. People will always have their personal opinions about you. They may want you to follow their plan. They may want to control your life. They may get jealous of what you have and/or already accomplished. They may gossip about you to feel better. They may 'call you out' to show they care about your life. They may assume your life is perfect. Just know that nobody on this Earth is perfect. We are all imperfect human beings. We can do better to work on ourselves. Confident people never compare themselves to others--they develop a system that works best for their life.

Many men and women fail in the dating world. They may show up to a date with a baggage of problems. They can become desperate, needy and clingy. They believe someone can bring happiness into their unappealing lives. They search for someone who can rescue them from their dark past. They have a clear objective in mind to have children. They need people to see them with an attractive companion to feel valuable. They want to escape someone who has terrorized their life. Sharing negative details with our date is too risky. In our conflicting stories, we may expose problems that comprise another person's core values. If we never take personal responsibility, we will attract enablers who accept us for who we are. Little do they know we're hiding our true self.

Just imagine knowing the truth about everything. You can see right through people. You can know all of their darkest secrets. You can save so much time avoiding toxic people. You will know when someone else is using you to shape their brands. They need you to build their public image.

Your dream cannot afford to lose time. We can replace lost energy but wasting time can/will compromise our dream. Being good looking and/or pretty have a shelf life online. Eventually, people will move on to better things and what dream we wanted to come true will wither away like a tumbleweed in a ghost town. Believe it or not, there is a moment when the window leaves a small crash for us to slip through. We can live our dream. It is not impossible to capture that star that excites us.

Balancing our dream with our daily life is extremely important. There is a life outside of our comfort zone. Don't get caught up in the attention. Don't attach your identity to your dream. Don't put people on pedestals to make them appear heavenly We must think about our future. Compromising matters. Stay humble. Keep moving forward. Value your dream. Even if you never accomplish your dream, learn to love yourself.

Hugh Hefner knew how to live a dream. He was an authentic individual who built an empire on the objectification of beautiful women and their bodies and. Read the following article to follow a dream advice that actually works:

https://www.knowledgeformen.com/hugh-hefner-life-lessons/


I'll leave you guys with these famous quotes to live your dream. If your dream is your first love, respond with serious actions to live it...
 

“All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.” 
— Walt Disney

“At first, dreams seem impossible, then improbable, and eventually inevitable.” 
– Christopher Reeve

“Let’s go invent tomorrow instead of worrying about what happened yesterday.” 
– Steve Jobs

"Life is too short to live someone else's dream." 
– Hugh Hefner 


Happy Screenwriting!

Your dream is what you make of it... How you pursue what you love is your personal choice. If you are recruited into building other people's dreams without knowing their real motivation, you are missing out on moving forward with what truly fulfills you inside--your real purpose in this life. Silent angels do exist on Earth to help guide your dream, love and happiness...

Establish Emotional Connection With Characters

Writing creative stories can stimulate our minds to feel a dopamine rush--the high level of excitement capable of multiplying our interest tenfold. For example, people who are addicted to social media undergo an adrenaline rush whenever likes and comments arrive after posts and captions are uploaded. They measure their self-worth based on acceptance, attention and positive encouragement. In contrast, sharing the truth is somehow viewed as negative criticism aimed at hurting other people. Honest people fail to establish emotional connections, so being reserved and concealing the truth will make someone a mystery.  

Mostly all followers leave positive compliments and overpraise page owners to stroke egos and attract attention. Sadly, some of these people become desperate, needy and clingy to feel self-important. They want their online friends and/or crushes to consider them as someone special, someone important, someone worthwhile. Just think about the real motivation behind people giving so much of their attention to strangers and what they expect in return. Believe it or not; there is usually a big want attached to compliments, attention and praises.  

What mostly gets lost is learning the truth. We may keep repeating the same actions to waste time, ruin opportunities, make excuses and self-sabotage following mistakes. Overly kind people may hurt our chances to grow our dream. We must hear the truth to make something better. Expecting positive feedback will keep us in the dark and block our personal growth. What we felt comfortable doing before is now an afterthought. We can learn life lessons to stop acting weak-minded, out of control and out of touch. injecting real life emotions into our movie characters can/will create strong connections among the reader(s) and moviegoer(s). Establishing emotional connections humanize characters to strengthen bonds.        

Nevertheless, our purpose in life and dreams are shaped with time and effort. If we take the right steps, we should be confident taking risks and making sacrifices. We must always remember that we control our own luck. Activating our creativity will help us  find solace telling compelling stories with powerful themes. If we create conflicting characters that resemble real life situations, people will feel emotionally connected because the subject matter hits close to home. As a result of this, humanizing characters uncover truths that inject originality into our screenplays. 

Watch end-of-the-world movies and pay close attention to character development. Writers begin with conflict, influence characters to respond and resolve their problems in the end. In the Knowing movie, Nicholas Cage's character loses his wife in a hotel fire. He refuses to believe in God but a chain of events reveal the truth. Opening his mind and heart to see past coincidences as random events renews his trust. 

Delve further into building an emotional structure that humanizes your characters. The closer the connection, the better the reception. 

Happy Screenwriting!