Inspirational

People from all works of life live with stress, which has sometimes led to other more serious health issues. This is a personal account of how writing helped me cope with and manage stress. Corporate Background I worked as an accountant for several years in a company with offices in multiple countries and clients in different time zones. This was challenging enough in the best of times because of the fast-paced environment and the inherent pressures of the profession. But also at the worst of...

Welcome to Part 2 of my series on Creative Process. Last month, we dove into the process of goal setting and talked about a few of the reasons why an emphasis on systems rather than goals might be the best way to structure your focus this year. This time, I promised we’d look at “creative synergy” – which is a fancy way of saying “juggling multiple projects in various stages of development without losing your ever-loving mind.” When I started thinking about this process last month, I was com...

Happy 2023, Stage 32 community! It’s hard to believe it’s been nearly a year since we got an email from the lovely Molly Peck congratulating us for making it to the Quarter-finalist round of Stage 32’s 1st Annual Romantic Comedy Screenplay Competition. Several weeks later, we were thrilled by the announcement that our script, Following Brendan, was the Grand Prize winner! We’ve since signed with a manager and agent, who are moving our projects around, we’re in negotiations on one project with in...

Negative thoughts are extremely addictive thing. Whether triggered by an actual event, situation, or anticipation of events, it’s very easy to fall prey to their bleakness. They kind of suck you into them, and it’s like a never-ending abyss that you keep falling into. There is something inside you that sees the darkness as a familiar territory and keeps pulling you there. It’s an indicator of the fact that you have resided in this space for far too long or your mind is conditioned to keep fal...

I had a recent experience that we all more or less long for, regardless of which facet of the entertainment business we’re in. We all want an opportunity to knock at our door, right? And that “door,” so to speak, can be a text message, a phone call, an email, a social media direct message – heck, someone walking up to our table in a restaurant or (wow, I’m dating myself) standing on the WELCOME mat and ringing the doorbell. The bottom line is somebody has work for us, and we need to listen bec...

Happy Sunday, Creative Army! Have you had a creative weekend so far? I have some content here for you that is sure to get the creative juices flowing, so grab your coffee, and let's dive in. First up, we've got Vanity Fair interviewing two of the most acclaimed writer-directors of 2022 with GLASS ONION's Rian Johnson and EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE's The Daniels. Both films are praised for their ability to surprise audiences by subverting genre expectations, and this video is a great l...

We’ve talked about activating, listening, and preserving our Voice as a path to personal success. But what exactly is our ‘Voice,’ and how do we work with it in more detail? Your Voice is Not a Muse or a Brand Wiki-how says, “Muses were goddesses to whom poets prayed for the gift of divine inspiration.” No point in praying to your Voice. You’d just be praying to yourself. I’d suggest that great works of art are not our Voice either. Art is a gift from our Voice, the product of our Voic...

Welcome to Stage 32, a community of creatives, the biggest of its kind on the globe. We are here to help you develop your career, regardless of the number of successes you’ve had or if you are totally new to this and think that screenwriting is where you want your future to be. Many come to the site and ask, "How can I sell a script?" "How can I break into the industry?" Or "I'm a new writer; how can I find an agent to help me with following a career in screenwriting?" We understand why the...

For many writers, the written word comes much easier than the spoken one. It could be nerves and that speaking about your work places you in a position of vulnerability... What will they think of my script? Will they understand what I'm trying to convey with it? Can they share my vision for my script? Or a writer may feel doubt about their ability to talk about their script. Is my voice clear and inviting enough? Can I show enough excitement and passion so that an executive will believe in my sc...

As a person working in the entertainment industry, I have found there are amazing opportunities and learning experiences for those aspiring to land a position as a TV writer. Many paths lead to the writers' room by working your way, but first, you'll need to develop the skills required to thrive in that environment. A frequent starting path for people looking to break into the industry is to work as a production assistant (also known as a PA). There are different types of PAs in production: th...