How The Best Writing Comes From The Subconscious - Alan Watt [Founder of L.A. Writers' Lab]

Alan Watt, Author/Screenwriter and [Founder of  L.A. Writers’ Lab]: The moment we decide to write   a story our subconscious makes an agreement with  the universe to fulfill this and it might sound   sort of a little supernatural but I really  believe that the universe wants us to create. Film Courage: How does our  subconscious factor into writing? Alan: Well I really believe that our subconscious  is the seed of our genius and I think as I said   earlier genius is not a noun it's a verb it's  something we all have access to so the the story   really comes from your uh from your subconscious  it's sort of like there's stories in you know in   in in in the atmosphere in the zeitgeist and  if you're if you don't grab that story that   comes to you you know how often do writers go oh  God I had that idea I should have written that   that was that was really good that was a good  idea so they're they're all floating around up   there in the ether and when it comes to you you  know you're you're either you're you're either   going to write it or somebody else is going  to is going to find their way to write it how   does a writer tap into their own subconscious I  think what I'm really teaching I'm I'm teaching   I'm teaching a process of connecting to your  connecting your your wild imagination to story   structure but what I'm really teaching is self  trust trusting yourself at the deepest level   as an artist Trust ing that you're not the author  you're the channel so I think because I had I had   a really I had sort of a life-changing experience  where I realized that that that the story wasn't   coming from my conscious mind that I couldn't I  couldn't I couldn't manufacture a story and that   whenever I tried the writing was always mediocre  but that when you trust your subconscious and you   tap into that place place that's beyond your sort  of logical centers the story comes alive in a way   that is so surprising and that our job is to  stay out of this magical alchemical process   that's happening just stay out of it it's almost  like our job as artists is really to protect the   channel so that the channel so that the story  can come through you and and when you do that   what happens sometimes is the story that starts to  come through you can be it can scare you sometimes   it can be shocking it can be embarrassing it  can be and our job is to hold a space for that   one thing I always tell my writers and they often  don't listen is don't talk about your work while   you're in the middle of your work especially in  your first draft because our spirit all it really   wants to do our subconscious all it really wants  to do is express and when you tell your story to   somebody else your subconscious has experienced  it being told and it sort of like it takes the   air out of the balloon because all it really wants  to do is tell the story and now now I've told you   the story sometimes that that can feel satisfying  you don't want to feel like you want to contain   that sort of tension contain that energy so that  so that you're really connected to this story as   it's passing through you why do you think we have  an urge to tell others but we're excited we want   feedback or bragging well I don't I wouldn't  think of it as bragging but I would think of it   as oftentimes validation hey what do you think  of my story and the other problem with that is   that even the best intent first of all there's a  lot of people that don't understand artists and   and aren't supportive and they can sabotage you  but the other thing is that there are a lot of   friends that are with best intentions go I don't  understand that that's weird it's why a woman   doesn't talk about her pregnancy in the first  three months because it's it's too early it's too,   that's the 90-Day Novel or the 90-Day Workshop  their three-month workshop I tell my writers   don't talk about it for the first three months  get the first draft down I'd rather wouldn't you   rather tell your friends I just wrote a novel than  I'm working on one yeah I'm always a proponent of   once something's completed not hey big news coming  because I think it it can takes the air out of it   and also it takes the air out of it for you and  if you're if you're saying to your friends I'm   working on something what they do with the best  intentions say how's it going and you know what   there's a roller coaster that we ride as we're  creating something there's days where we are   really uh excited and and and inspired and there's  days where we are despondent and the last thing I   want is to be reporting to somebody else about  this very sort of sacred experience while I'm   in the middle of it are we keeping secrets are  we keeping secrets yeah I guess so but these are   I always say this is the one area where where I'll  talk to I'll say to a writer you've told everybody   haven't you they go yeah I did okay okay this is  the one time you can lie to everybody how's your   writing going I I'm not working on it right now  stop talking about it I feel very protective of   writers in their process don't talk about it  it's it's it's there's I don't think a lot of   good can come of it somebody will say well my  spouse really is is really supportive that's   that's great but on some level I think we're often  just asking for validation what I'd rather you ask   yourself is where does this experience live for  my protagonist in the story you know this desire   for validation you know what's going on for me  right now and where does this live in the story   because when you start writing a story you have  radar and your radar is picking up everything you   know you hear a you hear a voice in the in the in  the supermarket or or or you know you you you you   notice the you the quality of the light at sunset  and and you go oh I can use that I can use that oh   I see you're you're you're when when the moment  our subconscious the moment we decide to write a   story our subconscious makes an agreement to with  the universe to fulfill this and and and it might   sound sort of a little super natural but I really  believe that the universe wants us to create   because I really believe the desire to write is  the desire to evolve to resolve something we're   seeking to understand and and so when we tune into  that place we got to stay in that channel as much   as we can stop talking about it you're not you're  all all you're doing is is is is is is you're you   know you're sort of you're sort of disturbing the  reception so stories find us yeah I think so I   mean I couldn't tell you when where any story  idea has has come from it's just yeah I think   our stories find us yeah it's interesting isn't  it how these story ideas it's almost like they   are they're looking they're looking for a vessel  through which to you know be realized so they can   you advance advance humanity one step closer to or  you know some kind of understanding of ourselves.

Channel: Film Courage

Views: 8,403

Keywords: Screenwriting tips, screenwriting 101, screenwriting for beginners, screenwriting techniques, screenwriting advice, writing a screenplay, how to write a movie, Alan watt, writing teacher, author, writing novels, filmcourage, film courage, fiction writing, author community, subconscious, writing, voice

Id: Ky6LuZ4POOk

Length: 8min 8sec (488 seconds)

Published: Tue Apr 02 2024