How to produce stellar work
âItâs not about knowing. Itâs all about feeling and noticing whatâs happening in your body. If itâs exciting to you, itâs likely that itâll be exciting to someone else.â
Hi there. If youâre getting this email, itâs because youâve been added to my mailing list â by signing up for Fade Out (formerly Daily Writer) or attending one of my mock pitch sessions. We may also have connected on Facebook or Twitter.
Itâs been a while since you last heard from me. I had to adjust to my new life (working a full-time job while running a company and writing stories) and couldnât dedicate much time to this newsletter â which used to be a weekly âscreenwriting digest.â
Still, 2023 comes with a lot of good resolutions (happy new year!), and I want to pick up Fade Out again. Each week or so, Iâll send a list of insightful content about storytelling, creativity, and the craft of screenwriting.
Not interested? Thereâs an unsubscribe button down this page (I wonât be mad).
Creativity, According to Rick Rubin
Complex published this fabulous profile of one of the most respected producers in the music business. Rubin is known for channeling creativity like no one else, which resulted in legendary albums from superstars like Jay-Z, Adele, and many others. In this interview, Rubin shares his view on creativity and how to produce your best work â regardless of the medium. Itâs a life-changing read.
Rubin has also published a book about called The Creative Act: A Way of Being, which I obviously purchased in the blink of an eye.
Rubin On Making Art
âItâs not about knowing. Itâs all about feeling and noticing whatâs happening in your body. If itâs exciting to you, itâs likely that itâll be exciting to someone else.â
Rubin On Collaboration
âMost people in collaborations want their idea to win, but thatâs not a good collaboration. It doesnât matter at all. All that matters is that the final result is the best thing it can be. If you have an idea and it leads to the best thing that it can be, thatâs great, and if someone else has an idea and it leads to be the best thing it could be, itâs just as good. Only the ego cares about whether itâs your idea or not.â
BAFTA Lecture: CĂ©line Sciamma (Portrait of a Lady on đ„)
Sciamma gave one of the best lectures Iâve ever attended â for free. She speaks about the necessity to experiment rather than apply the traditional storytelling âformula.â Indeed, Portrait of a Lady on Fire doesnât even have a conflict, and yet Sciamma won Best Screenplay at Cannes. What makes your work great is what you have to say, your unique voice, and the desires that drive you.
Speaking of the craft, Sciamma detailed her writing process. I wonât do her justice by summing it up, so I wonât. Watch it and thank me later.
As always, thank you for reading.
Have a wonderful week,
â Alicia