First, thanks to Jeff for sharing his deepest thoughts on His Dream. Just shows that we, and, I mean all of us, are not alone.

Second, hearing other writer’s Dreams and aspirations would be inspirational and motivating and would further foster our little community of writers.

Keep Writing!....
and Dreaming!

Great words of inspiration Jeff.

Thanks for the comments, guys. And even if we're paid to write screenplays, we're still students of screenwriting, yes?

Never forget what your definition of success is. Hopefully we'll meet up on the same road!

Well, sorry to be a d**k, but I for one would not like to see a weekly post like that from GITS followers. I did not find it inspiring. I found it, if anything, depressing.

Because not everyone is going to be a successful screenwriter. In fact, even among GITS followers, the vast majority will fail. And as someone who's put in his time at production companies reading lots of very bad scripts, I'm confident saying that this is how it should be. Yet I see so much cheerleading on screenwriting sites, and not much realism. Everyone saying: go for it! No one saying: maybe you should do something else.

I don't want to discourage anyone from pursuing their dream, but... come on. You watch American Idol auditions and everyone there is going for their dream too. And most are completely deluded. With celebrity culture as it is in this country, and now Reality TV too, everyone wants to be famous, glamorous, etc. And what's worse, they think they can be. And it just isn't going to happen.

I guess what bothered me about the post is it's full of "inspirational" content, and is competently written, but there is zero indication of any talent or craft at screenwriting. It is someone who decided one day (at 33, with a totally unrelated career) that they wanted to be a screenwriter. It's just not very realistic, and given how many people are apparently trying to do it (I've known some), it just depresses me. Yes there are exceptions, and maybe the author of that post will end up being one of them - I wish him the best - but I really think messages of this sort should not be what this SCREENWRITING site is about.

Thanks for your views, Craze9.

Thankfully I'm not doing this for approval, which was kind of the point of the post.

If you read along closely and use your honed powers of inference, you'll see I was actually suggesting that people mitigate their expectations and have a more realistic view of what "Achievement" means to them.

I'll let you know that I've been a professional writer/marketer/editor/PR practitioner for 12 years, paid to write in the voice of other people, paid to compel and impel audiences, paid to understand and consider audiences. All day. Every day. For 12 years. I think that background provides me with some tools. It worked for Woody Allen.

In the end, I'm not doing this because I want to. I'm doing it because I have to. If there's a market for it, swell.

Personally, I'd love to hear from established and prospective screenwriters on why they write. Why don't you post/submit something?

Jeff

@craze9,
You stated that ‘...not everyone is going to be a successful screenwriter.’ That is a truth and true of any profession, but the question that needs to be asked is this: If you don’t ever try, how will you ever know?

And then you have to define success. Optioning a script?Selling a script? Getting writing assignments? Actually have a screenplay produced?

Or is success in the trying?
Or the joy found in writing?
Or pursuing a dream?

There are PLENTY of produced screenwriters who have had one or more spec script rejected or been fired from a writing assignment. Are they now unsuccessful? Should they chuck it all; find a new career; tuck tail and run?

Of course not.

Here is a quote every writer should live by:

“The road of life twists and turns and no two directions are ever the same. Yet our lessons come from the journey, not the destination.”
Don Williams, Jr. (American Novelist and Poet, b.1968)

Do you dare to dream? About anything?
Keep Writing!