I'm about to enter the revision olympics: a play workshop. 20 hours of nothing but reading, revising, and interrogating every line of dialogue in my play until I come out with a better draft than I started with!
I've been working on this play for over a year, and I've been prepping for this workshop this month while also screenwriting, marketing for theater organizations (one of which is in production now) and running the final month of the first TV Camp cohort!
Ya girl only has one brain, so how does this actually work?
The position system
In entertainment contracts, when you've got multiple deals going, projects get a "position." Whatever's in first position is the thing you drop everything else for in case production suddenly starts moving, schedules change, things get the greenlight, etc.
Series regular on a TV show? First position. Three-episode guest star on a CW show? Second. The indie feature you're barely getting paid for? Third.
Showrunning your own series? First position. Supervising someone elses? Second. Your netflix feature? Third.
Make sense? It's different for everybody and just a matter of priorities, contract terms and how much money is on the line, usually.
After picking this up during my assistant days, I use the same logic for my own work. Whatever has the most pressing deadline (or is paid) goes in first position. After that, I prioritize by next deadline, by what my portfolio needs, or by what I actually want to be writing.
This year, my play was in first position because it had a hard deadline and was a commission. When I wasn't working on the play, my TV pilot was next in line, then prepping to pitch a different show. And if I had downtime on both, waiting on notes or needing distance from a project, I'd brainstorm feature ideas or just read.
Varying Writing Stages
There are 6 stages of the writing process, and when I'm juggling projects, I never have two projects in the same stage.
I usually have a project I'm ideating / researching, a project I'm breaking or drafting, and a project in revision.
I think these phases all require different skill sets / parts of my brain, so when I'm tapped out of one thing, I can pivot to a different project and use a different skill, which feels refreshing to me.
For example, the analytical thinking required for revision drains me soooo fast. When I need a break, I love going into ideation/research land because it doesn't require any decision making, just curiosity and the ability to fall down rabbit holes!
To be clear, you don't have to juggle projects, especially early on. But eventually, when you're working professionally the reality sets in that we can't put all our eggs in one basket. We have to have multiple oars in the water, balls in the air, you get it.
And I should note that I organize alllll of this in my Notion Hub, which you can check out here.
What my actual week looks like
I run a "portfolio career" as the instagram girlies are calling it these days. My portfolio includes: Writer, marketer, teacher, founder roles. But context switching between those roles within the same hour or even day can be tough, so I block them out in consistent chunks:
⚡ Monday and Tuesday: marketing job
⚡ Monday or Thursday nights: SBA classes and live calls
⚡ Wednesday and Thursday mornings: teaching admin and script consulting
⚡ Wednesday and Thursday afternoons: my own writing
⚡ Friday: half day of marketing, then SBA work
⚡ Saturday: my own writing, an artist date, something fun
⚡ Sunday: PJs, cooking, and TV.
And I'll sprinkle in the odd theater performance or movie night, and dms with writing students.
Do I have a life? Barely. But I like what I'm doing, so don't feel bad for me!
When I'm in a room this all changes. It's Room Mon-Fri 10-6 usually, then teaching after that twice a week, my own writing shifts to weekends, and the other evenings I use to prep for the next day in the room, veg out and reset.
But the key is planning ahead
None of this works if you're not looking two steps ahead or your schedule. They key to writing consistently is consistently staying on top of your schedule, your energy and your goals.
Before my workshop in LA, I put in extra hours in August and September to clear major tasks off my plate.
I hired outside help for the first time to revise sales copy I'd already drafted, so I didn't have to think about it mid-trip.
I batched content for my own social and my marketing job so I wasn't editing reels while revising a play. I communicated when I'd be unreachable to my team so I could really focus, and I scheduled screenwriting-related meetings before and after the trip so I only had to think about one project at a time.
I also thought about what I needed to prepare to write and work while traveling. This email is coming to you from my Jet Blue flight to LA.
Because of that prep work for the next two weeks, I'm a dramatist and nothing else. That's only possible because I planned for it.
So here's the catch
This system or approach to juggling projects and prioritizing your writing only works once you've actually figured out how to manage your time in the first place.
That's why the first module of TV Camp focuses on helping writers set up the systems and mindset they need to manage their time effectively to write consistently. It took me ages to figure this out for myself, but it's so critical to being successful as a writer, it was important to me to include it in the program to help people build those skills now.
So if you want to learn how to build a writing plan, a writing cadence that fits your life and goals, and write regularly despite a busy schedule, consider joining me in TV Camp!
Join the waitlist now to get all the details on the program, including an exclusive preview and the best price available.
