Succinctly put, Joe! Very true.

Nine good points, James! For people who are super serious about their careers, they definitely need to do what you are talking about.

I do find, however, that many aspiring screenwriters don’t intend to make an entire career of it, but have it as a secondary thing they like to do and have a passion for. So many of them start writing screenplays after years of success in another career and often can’t drop everything to pursue it the way you’ve described, albeit that would be ideal. For those who can’t pursue it at that level — and certainly not starting out — I don’t discourage them.

But for the most passionate and super-serious screenwriters who truly want to do nothing more than this, you’ve created a great list of what it takes … and what it entails to live and breathe screenwriting 24-7. Thanks again for your contribution, James!

Here are the things I see that get in the way of their success: Failure to (1) learn the craft in school and books–first; (2) brainstorm knockout, high-concept story premises; (3) plan the entire story arc in a detailed beatsheet before writing; (4) use the Brevity Rule and tools of screenwriting to make the screenplay zing; (5) write and rewrite and rewrite and polish and polish some more; (6) work long months and years to develop a strong writer’s voice; (7) develop a heckuva resume over those years–get involved in the biz–volunteer to judge scripts for contests, teach screenwriting, write coverage for writers and producers, work for producers in film development, etc.; (8) learn how to pitch your own work; and (9) be patient, don’t worry about money and the marquee. There’s much more, but this is mostly what I see: 99.95% of scripts are amateurish, unimaginative, and submitted far too soon for the good of the career.

Notice that I said nothing about networking. Yes, it’s important, but the most important of all is to create excellence that someone really wants.