Competition!

Being fairly new to screenwriting, the idea of signing up for the NYC Midnight Short Screenplay Challenge intrigued me. All I knew was that each writer would participate in at least two challenges, each time writing a five page script within 48 hours with a given genre, location, and object. The idea was exciting. It seemed like a unique way to stretch as a writer and when else would I write anything in the (potential) political satire genre? Aside from that, if I came in last in both challenges, I would accept that as a valid sign that maybe I needed to rethink the whole screenwriting idea.

The first assignment for my group was a fantasy set in an abandoned house, the story featuring an engagement ring. I immediately became a contrarian. I suspected most people would interpret "Fantasy" as pseudo-medieval hobbitscapes, so immediately decided to write about a Greek goddess instead. The next assignment for my group was a romance set in a driving school, the story involving a bottle of hot sauce. For some reason, Daniel Craig came to mind, along with the title, "Baby, You Can Drive My Car", and I had it written within an hour. Now I was enjoying myself and having fun with the absurdity of the parameters. Last week, I found out I'd made the initial cut to the top 100 participants and would be moving on to the next round. Which would begin the next day.

The clock began ticking near 11:00 pm (midnight EST) when I received the new criteria: OPEN genre; location, tugboat; object, x-ray machine. Absolutely nothing came to mind. I went to sleep and woke up the next morning. I grabbed the laptop, opened Final Draft, typed the words: EXT. TUGBOAT. DAY Then, I stared at those words for about half an hour. I decided on a sci-fi sub-genre and some other details and began writing. But, I knew there was something missing. In a panic that evening, I shared my draft with a screenwriting friend who summed it up, "But, nothing happens!" Ah! That's a problem. By the next day, and with the deadline looming, I still had nothing. Another screenwriter friend calmly offered some suggestions that helped me focus. I called the first friend back and we brainstormed for a while. I opened Final Draft again and glanced at the clock. I had to write quickly.

I finally had it...fabulous character, inciting incident, conflict, and resolution. Done! After more tweaking and editing, I submitted the script with less than an hour to spare. The next day, I checked the message boards designated for screenplay contest writers. "The roughest time I've ever had writing...". "This round was very difficult for me...". Consistently, everyone posting had experienced the same thing I had. In fact, one particularly good writer never did come up with an idea and didn't submit a script.

So, what happened? I suspect we'd gotten lulled into the good fun of writing as best we could within unexpected parameters. We looked forward to seeing what each other had done with the same criteria and comparing notes. But, now, it had changed. It's as if we'd all realized that we were now in an actual competition against each other. I'm not sure writers, with their solitary side and lack of team participation in their work, are the most competitive group of people. Yet, the challenge is now on. I have no idea if I'll make the next cut or not with the script I submitted. But, it's been a fascinating journey.