TEN HABITS OF HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL SCREENWRITERS
By
Derek Rydall
Founder, ScriptwriterCentral.com

“Bad habits are like a comfortable bed, easy to get into, but hard to get out of,”
-- Unknown

“Your net worth to the world is usually determined by what remains after your bad habits are subtracted from your good ones,”
-- Benjamin Franklin

Think of this as a quick-reference for instant inspiration – whether you’re a screenwriter or script consultant:

1. DO SOMETHING PRODUCTIVE EVERY DAY
Write something every day – whether it’s your project or an assignment. If you find yourself stuck just staring at a blank screen, try staring at a great script instead -- and try to figure out how it’s put together. It might inspire you to get your own writing done. The point here is to keep exercising and refining your craft, building your knowledge, and keeping the momentum – all of which will give you a competitive edge. This isn’t about becoming a workaholic. It’s about breaking through the inertia of complacency. It’s so easy to get comfortable, to settle for the status quo, to rationalize why you’re not doing what you know you need to in order to succeed. “I don’t fee like it,” is not a viable excuse anymore.

2. TAKE FREQUENT BREAKS
This may sound like a contradiction to the above habit. It’s not. In fact, without this one, you won’t be able to sustain the level of quality and productivity referred to above. Unless you’re able to take a break (whether it’s ten minute, an hour, a day, or a week) and recharge, you’ll soon be booking a room in burnout city.