The exhilaration of writing is met with the fear of leaping into uncertainty. Listen to your muse and jump when she says to.

Marvin V. Acuna of The Business of Show Institute is on my radar for screenwriting information. My routine in the morning is as follows:

• Wake up. Feel grateful for working as a writer.
• Get coffee.
• Check THGM email.
• Check Business of Show Institute blog for stuff like this:

Let’s get a little deep today, shall we?

Jedi deep…

According to the principle of “Hedonic Motivation” people are primarily motivated by either a pursuit of pleasure or an avoidance of pain…

Read the rest of the blog post.

Many people also want to avoid uncertainty like cliches, MRSA and the tax man, even though to misquote Buddha, all life is uncertainty, as we argued a while back. Uncertainty is staring up at a mountain (of deadlines, perhaps) and thinking that you only brought a pair of long underwear and an oxygen mask in preparation for climbing K2 or Mount Everest.

In one of those moments a writer will do what writers usually do. Talk to their Muse. What follows is a transcript of a conversation we had the privilege of listening to…

Listen to your writer’s muse

Writer: Come to me, Muse, speak your wisdom. What should I do?

Muse: See (name of client) at the mountain. (Client) is reaching out to you. Do you see?

Writer: (Client) is high on a distant peak in the snow, like a tiny figure midway up the mountain.

Muse: (Client) is letting down a golden ladder for you.

Writer: The climb is sheer and steep.

Muse: Take the ladder (Client) offers.

Writer: I’m scared.

Muse: Make a harness and propel yourself upward.

Writer: I’m scared. It’s cold. The mountain is too high.

Muse: Look below you.

Writer: God. I am at the roof of the world.

Muse: Look beyond.

Writer: That’s my past, all the projects I’ve worked on, the struggles, the setbacks and triumphs.

Muse: Do you see the pink and purple cord around your waist?

Writer: Yes…

Muse: You will already be connected to your safe place.

Writer: I’m wondering if I can be a Sherpa.

Muse: Jump.

Writer: What?

Muse: In the air.

Writer: We’re on a mountain, but okay.

(Jump)

Writer: Wow, I’m up here with you and (Client).

Muse: How does it feel?

Writer: Scary.

Muse: What else?

Writer: Still scary.

Muse: Exciting?

Writer: My heart is double-time.

Muse: Feel the Freedom.

Writer: I do. I want this. Yes!

Did the writer truly jump? Did the writer take the summit and the freedom? What happened when the writer led the client back down the mountain?

You finish the story. It is, after all, your story. You can write your own ending.