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These answers are pretty much blowing me away. They're so disparate yet each person is so successful in doing what they believe in. I think that says a lot about just being yourself in the writing process. Regardless of how you achieve your goal, I think one common thread between all these quotes is research. You don't have to go about your business in a traditional manner, but you do have to study the craft if you want to become an expert. Also, Lynch's answer is just so Lynchian.

Kalen, you hit on two points behind my thinking for this series. The first one is the obvious one: There is no right way to write, instead there are an ENDLESS VARIETY of ways to approach the craft. And there are two points behind this observation. * Anyone who tries to tell you they have THE way to write or the SECRET to a million dollar spec script, run away from them. This is one reason why so many of the scripts that funnel through Hollywood are formulaic - and why they get rejected! * The fact there are multiple ways to write means you don't have to be forced into an approach that doesn't augment your own creativity or fit with your own instincts. The second point is also one you hit on: Learn the craft. That is not just content, but getting to know yourself as a writer. It's both theory and self-understanding. There's no easy path. And the process of learning lasts a lifetime as we are ALWAYS gaining knowledge, insight, etc. Hopefully exposing oneself to a variety of writers and their methodologies and practices can inform and inspire us to keep at it. "The only way out is through!"