Dispatch from The Quest: Scott Reynolds

This marks Scott’s final Dispatch from The Quest:

I read a blog post. I wrestled with ideas. I submitted a log line. I waited. I was selected. I was submerged in the practice of screenwriting. I faded in. I struggled alongside my characters. I went to the bathroom a fair few times. I slept. I ate. I wrote. I doubted. I typed “FADE OUT”. I felt like a champion.

This odyssey began eight months ago with little more than a log line. I had the barest concept, and if it weren’t for the structure of the Quest, I’m almost positive I’d have never turned it into a finished screenplay.

Scott took us, and you, though a thorough, sometimes tedious several months of Core and Prep work. When I say “tedious”, it sounds bad, but it’s not. When I say “work”, I mean it. One of Scott’s goals with the Quest was to give a group of amateur screenwriters the tools to become professionals. All the hard work we did in the Core and Prep stages are exactly the reason I was able to find a story I was happy with our of that log line and actually complete a script.

My fellow Questers — Brandon, Ben, Rob, Emma and Jordan — are some of the most talented writers I’ve worked with. It was an absolute pleasure working alongside them and watching their stories develop. We pushed each other, we supported each other, and we all got better for it. Movie writing is a sort of solitary pursuit, classically, but any time you can find friends with whom to collaborate, do it. It will only make you better.

The Quest marked a transition in my life from “aspiring screenwriter” to “screenwriter”. Both of them want to make money at it, but only the latter is confident he can handle the work. I got that from this process. Thanks, Scott.

About Scott: Brooklyn based writer and comedian who bailed on software to focus on writing words that humans could read. Twitter: @scottadhoc.