I know what you’re thinking. Editing is the hardest part. I totally agree. It sucks to have to cut your piece, your baby, the thing you have worked so hard on for so long. I get it. But it doesn’t have to be as hard as it seems. Here are some tools you can use to make it a little bit easier.

Tool #1-“Action/Objective”:

Action: What the character does to get what they want

Objective: What the character wants.

Each scene in your play or screenplay should have an action or objective in order to be effective. You may ask, why do my scenes need action? First, because “drama” is the Greek word for “action”. But also because I believe that action is what an actor needs in order to play a scene. I don’t believe that an actor can play an emotion, or a situation, or an atmosphere. Actors also need an objective for their character or the scene will fall short.
 

An action for a character is defined as what the character is actually doing to get what they want. An objective for a character is what they want. For example, in Hamlet, the title character wants to prove to himself that Claudius killed the king (so that he can seek revenge for his father’s murder with a clear conscience). He does many things to achieve this objective, and his actions change depending on the scene.


Tool #2- Function

The other trick to editing your script is to take a look at each scene and discover what its function is — that is, how the scene serves the story. The function of a scene is the reason the scene is in the play, the purpose it serves in moving the story forward.
 

For example, the function of the Ghost scene in Hamlet is to plant doubt in Hamlet’s mind — perhaps his father did not die of natural causes. The purpose of the gravedigger scene is to provide some comic relief at a time in the script when Ophelia has died, Hamlet has been banished, and there is nothing but despair in the kingdom. Finding the function of each scene can be a useful tool, because if the scene does not serve the story, you might want to ask yourself whether you need it at all. It doesn’t matter how brilliant the dialogue is, how witty you think the moment is, how much your ego is involved in the writing. If it does not serve the story, let it go and cut it. That cannot be emphasized enough, so let’s repeat it: IF IT DOES NOT SERVE THE STORY, LET IT GO AND CUT IT. Just take the note, highlight that text and hit delete. Scenes without objectives and/or actions go nowhere, and again, since the definition of "drama" is "action", every scene, every moment, every word in your story should be going somewhere.

Not sure whether or not your objective fits? Look at your Concept Sentence again. If it reads something like "This is a story about Joe, who fights insurmountable odds in order to open his own delicatessen" and you have a scene in which he’s arguing with his neighbor about loud music – something that doesn’t affect his goal in the Concept Sentence at all – then cut it. If you absolutely, totally, utterly must have the scene, then make the objective in the scene match the objective of the character. Figure out how the loud music might keep Joe from opening his delicatessen. Otherwise, to repeat the note from above, CUT IT.


Tool #3- Letting Go


This brings me to my next point about the editing process, which is that you have to be willing to let go of material that does not work. Remember what the definition of insanity is? Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. I challenge you to try something different, take a risk, and take a note.

If you are having trouble writing, rewriting, or selling a script, I encourage you to try out some of the exercises that you have learned in these excerpts from my workbook “Writing is Hard..” Don’t be afraid of altering your work. Get over yourself. Try something else. Anything else. Shake it up. It does not matter what you try, just make a change. Change is good. It means you are growing as a writer and that you are willing to broaden your horizons. José Rivera says “Be prepared to risk your entire reputation every time you write. Otherwise, your script may not be worth reading”. I agree.

Regarding taking the note, this is a common problem I have seen over and over again. If you receive a note from your producer, instructor, or development exec about a particular scene or character, take the note — with dignity. I am not saying make every change that’s suggested to you. I am suggesting that you listen to the note, thank them for it, think about it, and then decide.

The basic rule is that if you have to justify or explain your work, then it did not come through on the page. My guess is that what you have in your head, which made sense to you, may not have translated onto the page in a concrete way. Most of the time, this is what note givers are trying to tell you, even if they do not know how to express themselves clearly or precisely. Take the note, look closely at the piece, and see if you can solve the problem before you defend your work. If you go through these steps and still think that you were clear, then have a talk with the person who gave you the note, and see if they might have missed something in the translation. But I encourage you, before you do that, to get over yourself and just take the note.


(Excerpt from “Writing is Hard and Other Whiny Baby Comments-An Objective Approach to Looking at Your Own Writing” by Che’Rae Adams with additional material by Jon Bastian. Che’Rae has a writing workshop starting September 30th-for more information log onto www.cheraeadams.com or call 323-878-0442)