When I was in college, my university opened its brand-new Center for Animation. Being interested in film, I went to the opening, where Ed Catmull (then the president of Pixar) was giving a talk. I mean, how often do you get to hear in person from a major media influencer?
I never expected to come away with one of the most important bits of wisdom that I'd acquire in my college career.
During his talk, Catmull told the story of when he was helping make Toy Story 2. Originally, it was supposed to be a direct-to-video release (and we all know what sort of quality that implies). Catmull said that, at least at that time, Disney's strategy with sequels was to use them to drum up interest in their original movies. Then people would buy the DVD of the original, etc., and that's how Disney would make its money from the sequel.
However, that wasn't good enough for Catmull and his team. They convinced Disney to make Toy Story 2 a theatrical release. Why? That's the lesson:
"Doing B work was bad for our souls."
That struck me deeply. I think all good writers feel this way on some level. If we settled for less than our best, we wouldn't be writers (well, not good ones, anyway). It's just not in our natures. And it serves us well. At least in the case of Toy Story 2, that approach produced the first of many well-made sequels from Pixar (which is much more than we can say for Disney sequels, but I'll jump on that soapbox some other time).
I get it. Writing articles, books, and so on can be EXHAUSTING. (I once had to take a several-day break from writing after finishing the first draft of a particularly emotionally charged screenplay.) It can be really tempting to take shortcuts or settle for "good enough" in your work. Sometimes that's necessary to meet a deadline or preserve your mental health.
But when it's not a matter of time or wellness--when you're flirting with the idea of taking the easy way simply because you're feeling tired or lazy--remind yourself: "B work is bad for my soul." It just might be the boost you need.
Write on,
Candice
(Modified from an email originally sent to subscribers on January 9, 2020. Photo by Felix Mooneeram on Unsplash.)
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