I'm going to finish my fourth feature script for 2022. The first three were adaptations, and this new one is a character-driven spec dramedy. Though I enjoy every genre, my favorite is work that relies heavily on my personal experience. My conclusion is it's more fun to write what you know.
Do you write what you know?
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Human emotion and experience, yes. Issues that my friends and family have experienced, yes.
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You're right, Phillip E. Hardy, "The Real Deal" ("it's more fun to write what you know").
I write what I know, but if there's a job or project I'm interested in (that I know nothing or very little about), I'll do research so I can write it.
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Maurice:
I agree with you 100%. If you want to make movies, it pays to be opened outside projects
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What I know, or what I feel? The older I get and the more I learn, the less I seem to know. I write way more about what I feel than what I know (or think I know).
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Thematically yes. I write about life affirming truths I've learned about the hard way. It's powerful to see yourself on your own little hero's journey and always be reflecting on that.
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There's been huge debates/threads on twitter & reddit claiming "write what you know" is either the best or worst advice for screenwriters.
Maybe write what inspires you but leave out the boring parts like backstory.
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Completely agree on this insight Phillip
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My guess is that writing what I don't know would be more difficult than writing what I know.
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Pamela: Definitely.
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I love to write what I know and using my imagination to make what I know very interesting.
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Not just difficult… impossible I reckon! If anybody wrote about what they didn’t know anything about, then surely it would be absolute toilet…. Although, If you don’t know about something but are inspired, then I guess you just have to do extensive enough research so that you DO know…
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Yes I find writing what I know comes easily & organically from a deep seeded truth with confidence to withstand any question or criticism. However I wrote an animation short in production & need main characters to finish their double journey so ended up studying outer space. I did this on several levels, web research, library books & joined Masterclass again cos they have astronauts now. Thought its gonna be boring but I was pleasantly surprised by the ongoing fascinating revelations.