Overcoming Writer’s Block

Tonight I saw Seven Pounds. To say I loved it is an understatement. After the movie, there was a Q &A with the writer, Grant Nieporte. Because I practice what I preach, I moved up to the front row to ask a question (never know when I may want to write a mentor letter). Without spoiling the movie for you, all I’ll say is that I was so inspired by the depth Grant reached with his script, that I had to dig deeper than the guy who wanted to know "his process" (which translates into: do you outline, use index cards, etc.) I wanted to know what Grant drew from in his own life and the lives of others to tell this story with such authenticity that I was left with a heavily tear-streaked face and a heavy heart. His answer was the series of questions that he asked himself. Pondering his answer as the moderater went onto the next question, I was suddenly hit with my own dose of enlightment on a script I’d been blocked on for five years.

Next time you’re blocked, rent a movie that stirs you, watch the bonus interviews on the DVD, go to a Q & A, or have a conversation with an artist who inspires you. We are a special group. We feed off of each other’s passion and talent. It sustains and nourishes us– and it’s fat free!

I answer an Entertainment Industry Coach question, daily at www.AndActionBook.blogspot.com