“I am deathly afraid of being the old guy who talks about the 8 Track cassette or the fax machine or the mimeograph.”

-Paul Heyman on The Stone Cold Steve Austin Show April 2014.

I can remember watching the “Eat It” video for the first time as a kid. I believe I was laughing so hard I was literally, not figuratively, hitting the floor. It was 1984, and Michael Jackson’s ubiquity in pop culture was firmly cemented so when Weird Al Yankovic’s parody reached MTV airwaves, it was cheered for by the masses like he was Hulk Hogan heading to the ring to vanquish the Iron Sheik.

Having a smash hit like “Eat It” or his album “Weird Al In 3-D” on its own would be a hell of an accomplishment. But Mr. Yankovic has been nominated for 11 Grammy’s and owns 4. He’s also has a collection of 4 gold records and 6 platinum. He was valedictorian in high school, studied to be an architect and can really play the accordion.

He’s sold tens of millions of albums. He’s an accomplished music video director (and not just for his own stuff, he’s directed Ben Folds, The Presidents Of The United States Of America and The Black Crowes). He’s movie “UHF” was released during a golden movie summer of 1989 and is an underrated cult classic. (It’s considered a box office flop, but when I saw it, the theatre was packed and loved it)  By the time I saw “Eat It”, Weird Al was already well established on the music scene thanks to his parody “Another One Rides The Bus” and being a fixture for Dr. Demento. And if that’s not enough, when the Autobots reunite and celebrate with the Junkeons in the original Transformers Movie, it’s Weird Al’s “Dare To Be Stupid” that they dance to.

His parodies are not dirty or vulgar. And Mr Yankovic doesn’t skewer artists behind their back. He seeks out permission and is man enough to back off when they say “no” (depriving the world of his “Live And Let Die” parody “Chicken Pot Pie” but we persevere). He’s overcome deep personal tragedy and infuriatingly, looks much younger now in his mid-fifties than many other people do in their 30’s (maybe there’s something to vegetarianism being anti-aging after all.)

Most admirably, Weird Al looks forward not back. His parodies while timeless in some ways, are always current for today’s audiences whenever today might be.  In other words, you don’t ever have to have heard “Eat It” to laugh your ass off to “Smells Like Nirvana.” He also understands the internet and how to use it:

So what does all this have to do with screenwriting?

One of my biggest pet peeves is the “They’ll never let you make that today.” It comes up in numerous conversations about movies and the industry. At a film festival last year, I overheard several people I deeply admire talk about “Dog Day Afternoon” (5 out of 5 stars, see it now) would never get made today – at least not by a major studio. And you know something, they’re right. No major studio would make “Dog Day Afternoon” today. But when “Dog Day Afternoon” was released in theatres, “Breaking Bad”, “Orange Is The New Black” and “Game Of Thrones” were not on the small-screen.

The business changes. Every day. The business is changing as I write this. And with all due respect, “Oh well, it’ll never happen” is absolutely the wrong way to greet the ever changing landscape. An artist has two choices 1) Pack it up and go home 2) Navigate the changes in the business.

It’s a scary thing to write scripts that are completely different/unique from what’s being released.  When I saw “Godzilla” a few weeks ago, there were about 8-10 trailers. Each one was either a comic book movie or a disaster flick. I’m someone who likes to write intimate dramas about people dealing with the ruination of their lives, so those trailers basically felt like one giant “NEXT” billboard in the face of my writing.

(Speaking of comic book movies, remember the 1990’s? When comic book movies were basically over-the-top jokes. James Cameron couldn’t even launch an X-Men movie back then. “They’ll never let you make that” is NOT a permanent diagnosis.)  

But then I take a look at the lineup on FX, AMC, HBO, Showtime, Netflix, Starz and some nights, A&E. Hours upon hours of dramas about a myriad of characters who’ve ruined their lives, caught themselves in a tangled web and all kids of other stuff I love to write about. A giant billboard of “PLEASE COME IN” to my writing.

I’m a trained feature writer. The 90-100 page Three Act structure was always a natural to me and fitting stories within that structure, while not always easy, made sense to me. Compacting a story within 50 or so pages leaving room to continue next week was not so natural.  (And as I said in last week’s interview, I think sitcom’s 30 page format is terribly difficult. Bless the funny people, they work very hard)

But guess what? If TV is where I have to go to tell my stories, then sweating over the 4 act, 45 minute structure it is. My current portfolio features 2 pilots of life-wrecking drama and 2 features of varying budget because I’ve not given up on the drama feature. And with good reason.

Many of my colleagues have worked on films this past year that have dealt with issues such as an artist suffering post traumatic stress, quarterlife suicide and sexual identity in millenials. Despite reports of indie film being dead, I’ve seen it alive exploring brave new material. Granted, the commercial nature of indie film is still very in flux with the advent of VOD and the dust still needs to settle there but I’ve seen and heard of too many great movies to believe the axiom that powerful dramas are dead in cinema. They’re still there, how they’re delivered to you is certainly not the same as even 5 years ago. I’ve heard rave reviews of “Snow Piercer”, not heard many complaints about how they saw it.

Actually, the more I think about it – a man holds up a bank to get money for his lover’s sex operation…In 2014? Honestly, that story is more relevant and topical than ever.  Nope, I’m not convinced that no major studio would touch “Dog Day Afternoon.” Remake may be heading your way soon.

The business changes and one can’t sit there waiting for yesterday’s chances to emerge from tomorrow’s trends. One has to adapt and change to the marketplace while keeping their creative vision alive.

One of the very best examples of that is Weird Al Yankovic.

Is he sitting at home going “Oh well, Michael Jackson has died” or “there’s no way I can parody today’s music. It’s passed me by”? Is he sitting at home listening to hip hop going “I don’t understand this stuff”? Is he nostalgically watching the “Eat It” Video saying “They’ll never let me do this anymore”?

On his Behind The Music special, much credit was given to MTV for Weird Al’s success. And rightfully so. His videos were and are a huge part of the overall experience of his parodies.  But MTV doesn’t play videos anymore. In fact, there’s no mainstream outlet for music videos anymore. It seems most visual exposure for music these days is commercials.  So what did Weird Al do? Pack it up and go home saying “well, it was good run.”

Nope. Weird Al went to WORK.

Weird Al even manages to make Fox News watchable as he explains his new album’s marketing strategy of releasing a video a day:  

Is Weird Al a genius? Maybe he is. I don’t have an argument against. He’s certainly a very intelligent, very clever and very funny man. But much of his viral internet strategy comes from good old-fashioned, common sense. Keep the jokes current and get them in front of as many people as possible. Instead of lamenting the loss of MTV, Weird Al and his people probably looked at his internet numbers.

The viewership from his official YouTube Channel:

-Smells Like Nirvana: 10. 3 Million

-Eat It: 11.5 Million

-Perform This Way: 16.6 Million

-White & Nerdy: 86.7 Million. 86.7 MILLION VIEWS.  If that video played during the Super Bowl pre-show, it would have less eyeballs on it.

And from his new album:

-Word Crimes: 9.1 Million Views in one week.

(Side-note: Dr. Arnold T Blumberg, a friend of mine who’s a college professor has already added it to his syllabus. He’s also an expert on zombies and pop culture at large, but that’s another story for another time.)

Yup. Dropping videos on various platforms taking advantage of viral marketing has been a huge smash for Weird Al and the result looks like it will be his first number one album in his long and enviable career.

Of course, Weird Al’s exact strategy for releasing an album doesn’t directly apply to releasing new movies. But that’s not the lesson here.

The landscape changed. The roadmaps of 1984 look completely different from the roadmaps of 2014. But Weird Al is an artist who figured out how to read those new roadmaps without compromising the stories he wanted to tell.

If a screenwriter needs to adapt to a different screen, so be it. The demand for great stories is never ever ever going to go away no matter how much the delivery systems change. No writer should ever listen when they’re told the business has changed too much or those days are gone. Yes, those days are gone but that doesn’t mean one should be swept under the carpet with them.

“They don’t make musicals anymore,” Chicago, Glee, Smash, Rock Of Ages.

“They don’t make romantic comedies anymore,” The Fault In Our Stars, Begin Again, The Mindy Project 

And one of my favorites – “There’s just no way a show like Doctor Who would work in today’s pop culture.” That was mine, I actually said that in the late 90’s. Thank the Heavens I was so very wrong.

Because the trick is if a screenwriter or filmmaker can figure out how to read the ever changing roadmaps, they just might be able to find the people, the producers/directors/executives who will absolutely “let you make that today.”

Links to purchase Weird Al’s new album “Mandatory Fun” on his homepage. And if you’re not convinced to buy, the videos Mr Yankovic have posted on the internet will probably talk you into it:

http://www.weirdal.com

Going to take a little departure from the normal routine of writing about writing. Another mass shooting occurred on Friday evening. Several college students were shot and killed for committing the sin of going out and enjoying themselves on a lovely California evening.

This one struck close to home because it was at my girlfriend’s alma mater, the University Of California, Santa Barbara. It even took place at the Sorority house she rushed.

When something awful and upsetting happens, I think most artists and writers will put pen to paper. In the hope of understanding and maybe even in some small way, helping. 

I’ve had a lot of conversations with people on both sides of this issue. And the fact that there are two sides to the issue makes me despondent because it’s an issue far more complicated and shouldn’t be restricted to a left/right issue (especially as many gun owners I know are fiercely blue liberal). I know some folks who want ALL guns banned completely. I know some folks who will not abide a single change to the gun laws.

It’s a hard deal because you bring up “gun control” and the gun lovers go into OVERDRIVE, forgetting about the fact that we have many forms of gun control in the country already. (Several thousand gun restrictions actually.)  

Just yesterday I brought up “mental illness” on my facebook page and got a lot of push-back from people who think that’s a cop-out. I get the point, because “mental illness” as a term casts far too wide a net. But anyone who commits a shooting rampage is just not mentally well.

Recently, the issue of misogyny is being brought up in how it relates to these shootings. I think the country absolutely needs a long, thorough and open discussion about how the genders treat each other and changing gender roles as our society changes and evolves. But I don’t believe misogyny led to the shootings. I believe severe and distorted mental health issues led to misogyny and the shootings.

Elliott Rodger talked about being rejected over and over again by women in his youtube videos (I am not reposting those here). At the risk of sounding crass, join the club, pal. I don’t think I’m familiar with any man who hasn’t been dissed by the hot girl. Or any girl who hasn’t been dissed by the hot guy. (George Clooney broke up with Stacy Keibler. Even the uber-beautiful cannot escape rejection)

The guys pulling the trigger are missing some very important tools to deal with the harsh realities of life. Rejection, agony, heartbreak, disappointment. These things are supposed to bring pain. They’re supposed to hurt. We are supposed to feel pain. Within us, we have various things (call them strength, hope, optimism, support etc) that help confront, overcome and deal with this pain.

“Adapt and overcome,” one of my favorite sayings.

And let’s be honest, most if not all of us have been pushed to that brink. I was a skinny kid who liked wrestling and Doctor Who in an era when either one of those was a scarlet letter. I was mercilessly bullied. My senior prom? I was watching Steve Williams vs Kenta Kobashi. At home. Sober. And unlaid. (Yeah, I asked someone. She was the girl of my 17 year old dreams, too. She said no. She was probably more into the Star Trek & Roller Derby guys)

Numerous authors have written about the mass shooting fantasy. The idea of disposing of our enemies is an appealing one that has manifested itself in many ways in our culture. Ever put a picture of someone you hate on a dartboard? Ever fantasized, even if just for a second, what it would be like to eliminate someone you truly hated or someone who truly wronged you? Next time you play the game, “Fuck, Marry, Kill” see how long it takes for you to answer the kill question.

But then there’s something else to consider. What about the kids I bullied? What about the kids I rejected who just wanted to be friends? What about the freshmen who I tormented? “But I was just having fun,” Yeah, that rationalization feels weak even as I type it.

This applies to rejection too. I know rejection. I know what it feels like to bury your face – as an adult – into a pillow and just scream the agony of loneliness. I remember burying my face into my laundry basket one time in Boston so I wouldn’t wake my roommates. I know the abyss of despair and hopelessness that is to be rejected by those that you love.

But what about those whom I rejected? What about the girls – good girls, bright, smart, pretty girls with huge smiles and naughty fun thoughts – whom I had sent to the abyss? They’re great sin was loving me, but I wasn’t interested so cast them aside I did. Sometimes I was gentle, sometimes I was clunky, sometimes I was rude. Do I deserve to be shot in the face? In the moment, I bet some of those girls would say yes before thinking better of it.

We can’t stand on the moral high ground of righteousness when it comes to rejection and heartbreak. Because while you’re screaming “What about me?” someone else is screaming that at you. They’re there, you may not realize it now, but they’re there.

So is that mental illness? Temporarily, I dare say, someone who’s recently heartbroken is as close to dangerous irrationality anyone can come to. But why do some cross over the edge to premeditated and voluminous homicide while the rest of us, wipe the tears, brush the dust off and carry on?

As usual when big, huge tragedies that challenge the very limits of our understanding come up, then many with platforms rush to easy answers. The Daily Beast has an article up about how Super Mario Brothers gives male nerds a sense of entitlement towards owning women. (Almost gave myself a concussion when my head hit the desk on that one) And Ann Hornaday got people to hear of her by blaming Seth Rogen & Judd Apatow movies: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/style-blog/wp/2014/05/27/seth-rogen-and-judd-apatow-dont-blame-us-for-misogynistic-massacre/

I personally think Ms. Hornaday owes them and her readers a big apology. This nonsense makes me upset because it brings me back to the days when heavy metal was spuriously attacked for causing teen suicide. Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train” in 1986, a song sung by the devil to kill our kids. Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train” in 2013, a song sung by a family to sell the Honda Pilot mini-van.

And yes misogyny is real and needs to be addressed. Stopping Super Mario Brothers is a nice thought but it ain’t gonna help. Does today’s pop culture contribute to misogyny? Of course it does! There are many areas of criticism, but pop culture is not this all-powerful judge creating the rules of today’s society. If anything, it’s the other way around. This is a much better piece on the subject: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/27/us/campus-killings-set-off-anguished-conversation-about-the-treatment-of-women.html?smid=tw-share

Blaming pop culture is always an easy answer because it’s something that we’re all exposed to and we all think we know a lot about. Pop culture defines a universal frame of reference but that doesn’t mean it’s got all the facts. (And NRA, you guys need a new spokesman. Wayne LaPierre blamed music videos after New Town. God almighty. If I had one question for Mr. LaPierre it would be, please name 5 music videos made since 2010.)

HG Wells wrote a book called “In The Days Of The Comet”. SPOILER ALERT (more on those next week). The protagonist is dumped by the woman he loves. He’s sent spiraling into a pit of depression. So what’s he do? He buys a gun and sets out to kill the woman who scorned him, her lover and himself. This book was written in 1906, long before any of today’s pop culture was a twinkle in anyone’s eye.

We’re talking about such deep-seeded pain and such unbearable anguish that the only solution is horror and murder that seems unthinkable. But it is thinkable. It’s happened.

So what do we do – how do we can people who are crossing over the brink from getting the guns?

Many people I know say ban all the guns. This makes some sense. Hold on, you gun-loving, NRA members, don’t stop reading now. “Gun massacres can’t happen without guns.” True! But massacres will not be avoided. Bombs will be made. Knives will be yielded. Knives are less lethal than bombs and despite what many gun advocates will tell you, bombs aren’t that easy to make. But maybe if we got rid of the guns, we’d see a lot more bombs. So then is the problem solved?

And there’s one reason why I can’t get behind the “get rid of the guns” argument: Someone says to me, “I own a gun to protect myself and my family.” 

I have not a single argument for them.

I do think, though, we need even more limitations on guns. Something interesting to me is that there’s a gun loving community that operates under strict gun control: The hunting community. Seriously, they do. Only it’s not called gun control. It’s called hunting regulations. Here are some examples:

Georgia: http://www.eregulations.com/georgia/hunting/general-wma-regulations/

Maryland: http://www.eregulations.com/maryland/hunting/firearm-regulations/

What about gun-loving Texas? Guess what – they’ve got hunting rules too, with public safety in mind: http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/regulations/outdoor-annual/hunting/general-regulations/laws-penalties-restitution

I don’t hunt, myself. I’d weep for days if I shot an animal but I have a lot of admiration for the hunting community. They believe in humane killing of an animal (that’s the sport aspect & Sarah Palin got crucified by hunters for being a cruel, reckless hunter on her show). They respect the firearms they use. And they abide by a lawful code of conduct to ensure the safety of both fellow hunters and non-hunters alike. Yes, dear reader, I’m sure you can find exceptions to these but generally speaking, there’s truth to what I’m saying about hunters.

And they exist, operate and hunt under the auspices of a certain kind of gun control. (Even if they don’t realize it.)

I don’t want to ban all guns, but the gun community is fighting EVERY step to improve this situation of violence in America. I should say this, the leaders of the gun community are fighting to improv the situation of violence in America. Joe The Plumber wrote a piece saying “dead kids don’t trump my Constitutional rights.” http://barbwire.com/2014/05/27/open-letter-parents-victims-murdered-elliot-rodger/

Gun lovers, you really need new champions. Hell, many of the gun owners I know would make great spokespeople for the gun community.

But here’s the thing, as much as I don’t want to ban guns, there’s not a soul on the planet who can tell me that if you time travelled the framers of the Constitution to today and showed them the gun statics, showed them the school shootings and showed them the “dead kids” whom Joe The Plumber dismisses so easily, there’s no way that they would leave gun laws the way they are.

I interacted with someone on twitter who told me he advocated NO RESTRICTIONS on guns, meaning felons, serial killers, child molesters could all have access to guns. That is freedom in his mind.

Even hardcore Right Wing Zealot Antonin Scalia doesn’t believe the 2nd Amendment to be a catch-all for everyone to have any kind of gun they want: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/29/antonin-scalia-guns_n_1715969.html

And shhhhh don’t tell anyone but the NRA kinda believes in gun control too: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/21/jon-stewart-nra-smart-guns_n_5363091.html

Besides, gun advocates argue that banning guns won’t solve the problem of dealing with the severe mental health problems that drive far too many to kill indiscriminately. And they’ve got a point, they won’t. Taking a gun away from a deer hunter feeding his family in Arkansas is not going to help a tortured kid in Seattle find the mental healthcare he needs to give him a chance to get better.

So what do we do?

I believe there’s more restrictions we can put on guns & gun shows that do not harm any one’s (even the detestable Joe The Plumber) 2nd Amendment rights. We can put a stop to things like this: http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2013/04/10/tonight-on-ac360-gun-show-hidden-camera-investigation/ That video is disturbing and I have a feeling even Wayne LaPierre may not be OK with those kinds of exchanges.

I’ve asked many gun advocates and I ask again here – how do we keep the dangerously mentally unstable from having access to firearms? I await an answer. I hope they come up with one. And I hope they realize the sooner we get one, the sooner others will stop asking for all guns.

But the discussion keeps getting pushed aside. The arguments on facebook that are happening now are an important look at misogyny. Again, yes, let’s talk about it. It will lead to more understanding and sensitivity and I’m all for that. Yay. But will it stop the shootings?

Are we prepared as a nation to have a clear, open and honest dialogue about mental health and all the repercussions that come with it? (Mainly that at one point in time or other in life, we’re ALL crazy to one degree or other) 

Or do we want to accept these events, these constant shootings, as something that happens?

I don’t know what the answer is. And quite frankly, anyone who tells you they do know should be taken with a grain of salt. This is maybe the most complicated issue our generation and society faces. This, quite frankly, might be our Cold War. No easy answers will fix with this but both sides, all sides, of the gun issue have to come together to fix it because people everywhere in America are dying for the simple reason that they’re engaging in life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

Everyone heard about the Santa Barbara shootings. But did you hear about the shootings in Myrtle Beach this past weekend? How about the 4 shot dead in New Orleans? The spate of gun violence that swept through New York City? Hear about those, no? Of course, not. They’re not national news. The Santa Barbara case was different. The shooter was the son of a successful AD who worked on The Hunger Games. Those other shootings?

Just another day in America.

“My great concern is not whether you have failed, but whether you are content with your failure.” – Abraham Lincoln

“I’ve missed over 9,000 shots in my career…I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” – Michael Jordan.

“He never feared failure, and this is the only way you can be successful in life. I learned that from Dino.”

That last quote is from Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Dino he’s referring to is the flamboyant, controversial and highly successful film producer Dino De Laurentiis.  Schwarzenegger was speaking at the late Mr. De Laurentiis’s funeral in November of 2010 and this quote made the rounds in the media. The quote struck me as quite powerful – and still inspires me to this day.

Mr. Schwarzenegger and Mr. De Laurentiis are not lacking in detractors. Whatever your opinion of them, the idea of shedding the fear of failure is no less worthy just because they’re the source of this week’s subject. We live in a society that doesn’t just fear failure – but is petrified of it.

In the modern era of America, especially during the Reagan era, failure became the ultimate taboo.  Second place was the same as last place.  Moral victories were denounced and made fun of.  Somewhere along the way, it felt as if in some circles, to try and fail WAS worse than never trying at all.  Even one of my heroes, the musical genius Jerry Goldsmith, moments before he won the Oscar for “The Omen” has said in interviews that he almost walked out of the ceremony that night because he couldn’t take the rejection anymore.  

When I read the Schwarzenegger quote, it wasn’t that it was such an alien concept.  I had heard all the rationalizations before and knew they were true on some level, but none of them really struck a chord with me:

It actually rings a little hollow to say, “at least I tried.”  That always sounds like rationalization.  I worked on a boxing show years ago and sometimes the guy would say after losing a fight, “I lost but so-and-so didn’t beat me.”  I couldn’t help but roll my eyes at that.  “At least I tried” really is cold comfort.  When getting an honorable mention, you only see the line of winners in front of you – the line of losers behind you is irrelevant.

“The only way to learn is to fail,” well, that’s kind of weak sauce, too.  Who wants to learn?  The best way people learn is when they don’t realize they’re learning.  Just ask anyone who hated History class in high school but watches all those battle shows on History Channel or H2.  

We don’t want to learn, we want to WIN.  We want to be on top, we want to raise the heavyweight belt, bask in the adulation of our family and peers.  Everyone wants the victory but not everyone wants the achievement.  And of course as life goes on, the victory changes.  In college you want to be the king of the world, the superstar, the innovator.  In your 30’s, those same people may just want to a good parent, have a solvent job or even just stay sober another day.  Those victories are just as, if not more so, relevant than the grand ideals of our youth.

We talk tough about “winning”, never giving an inch, never coming in second, never even getting into a tie (remember, Rocky doesn’t win in “Rocky”)  But that’s actually the wrong take.  There’s no eliminating the concept of failure.  In fact, we shouldn’t eliminate it, we should embrace it.

The fear of failure is paralyzing.  There have been numerous adventures in my life that I abandoned or walked away from because of it.  I tried to start a small business about 10 years ago and a well-meaning family member said, “If it fails, don’t be discouraged.”  Just him saying that was the most discouraging thing possible.  See, in my younger mind, even considering failure was enough to poison the idea.  I didn’t realize then that failure was opportunity.  

Now, of course, some ventures should be abandoned out of pragmatism and practicality.  It’d be neat to start a real estate company tomorrow.  I have no means whatsoever to do so, so I’ll try something else.  But not out of fear.  Fear is the great crippler.  Fear is the demon in the middle of the night.  Fear is the ultimate enemy.

But to look at the fear of failure and respond with – “So what.”  To shed that fear with a “fuck you, I’m going anyway.”  THAT’S what the Schwarzenegger and De Laurentiis quote was saying “Fuck it!” and that’s why it struck me.  

I’m in the formative years of my writing career.  Sure, I’ve amassed lots of practical entertainment experience, but will my voices entertain the masses?  That question remains unanswered, dear reader.  I just may fail.  And so fucking what if I do?  Because here’s something else I learned about failure:

“The Consequences Of Failure and Success Are the Same.”  

That one’s from me!  I just googled it and can’t find that quote anywhere so boom, you can credit it to either Tim Davis or Handsome Timmy D if you want to post it in Facebook, I’ll leave it up to you. (Yes, dear reader, I’m sure many others have said something similar, I’m just being cute because I like ya)

Anyway, the consequences of failure and success are the same:  Do Better.  Like many an aspiring screenwriter, I’m not just relying on my connections to get noticed.  I used the festival circuit as well as services like The Black List and Inktip.  One of my scripts was very well-received and even named as a finalist by some of the festivals.  In some other festivals, it was downright rejected.  So what do I do with the script?  I continue to polish it.  Rewriting, restructuring, looking for any voice, clarity, drama, that I can squeeze out of it.  (“See Tim, writing is rewriting,” not quite, read my last blog)  

Let’s say I sell a script tomorrow, total success!!  Well, the day after, I have to start or improve another script.  I have to do better.  Let’s say ALL of my scripts get rejected by every agent and studio in town.  Then I have to wake up, start new scripts or improve the existing ones.  I have to do better.

Success and failure are not two linear opposite ends.  They’re constantly moving, ever-changing and fluid.  Success can be described as that single moment when you hold up the title belt at Wrestlemania.  But that single moment may just be another step on a longer journey, all the steps of which combine to become another definition of the word success.

Failure is not the absence of success.  Nor is it the elimination of success.  One step of failure does not prevent the next step of success.  My favorite football team is the Patriots of New England.  In the past 13 years, they’ve won three Super Bowls and lost two of them.  I can name 31 other NFL Football teams who want that resume.  What did Tom Brady do when he lost those two Super Bowls?  Got back to work.  Trained, practiced, worked with his coaches and team to get better the next season.  The same exact thing he did when won three Super Bowls.

There is no reason to fear failure because there is no consequence to it.  None.  

“But it hurts!” say some.

Losing hurts.  Failure hurts.  Being wrong hurts.  No one likes any of these things.  People think pro athletes don’t care about losing big games because they make so much money, but Kurt Warner will tell you that losing  to the Patriots in 2002 haunted him for years.  Think the Cubs are over Steve Bartman foul ball?  Michael Jordan knows off the top of his head the number of times he’s lost the game-winning shot.  (It’s 26, Michael Jordan said so)

But here’s the thing, life hurts.  Life is painful and miserable and disappointing and disillusioning.  Life makes us want to give up, throw it all in, drink our faces off and tell everyone to go fuck themselves.  There’s no avoiding the pain, the hurt, and the misery.  In my mind, it’s the best kind of pragmatism to use that pain and misery toward the goal of success  and happiness.

To go back for “Rocky” for a second, remember Rocky didn’t win.  Rocky doesn’t beat Apollo Creed.  Rocky doesn’t knock out Apollo Creed.  Rocky doesn’t win the Heavyweight Title.  Rocky doesn’t hold the heavyweight belt above his head at the end of the movie.  Rocky FAILED.

So why does the “no second place” testosterone fueled America love it so much?

Rocky endures the entire struggle of the fight.  Rocky is not afraid to fail.  And what does Rocky do in the subsequent movies?  

He does better.