Author: Martin Johnson

Writing with a Disability (Different Ability)

Know Your Strengths

Because of my brain injury, I’m a big fan of making progress. I learned after my accident progress is measured in baby steps. For a T.B.I survivor every baby step is a huge victory.

As 2020 forges ahead, most people have set goals they want to reach by the end of the year. A popular theme this year is the “debt-free decade” movement. We know we don’t become debt-free overnight, but through the process of lifestyle changes that help us cut back on weekly expenses. Each penny saved helps us get closer to the goal of being debt-free.

Others are more concerned about their health and are taking steps to improve their lives through daily healthy choices: eating healthier, drinking more water and fewer sodas, and being more active.

But, before anyone can begin the journey to debt-freeness or improving their health, we must first understand where we’re at. A lot of banks offer financial assessment tools for new account holders and most gyms give health assessments to new members. It’s also why we get annual physicals.

When I started rehabilitation, I had to go through a series of exams to assess my abilities. Tests ranged from cognitive to visual and physical activities.

These tests were embarrassing to me at times. I was in my early 20s and didn’t want to think anything was wrong with me. It wasn’t until I walked into a doorjamb during a physical therapy session that I realized the need for these tests. It’s pretty standard for brain injury survivors to go through a series of comprehensive exams.

Speech and language tests – a speech pathologist evaluates a patient’s speech and language skills, this includes monitoring the patient’s strength and coordination of muscles that control speech {personally I spoke monotone during this test.}
Cognitive and neuropsychological tests – the processes of thinking, reasoning, problem-solving, information processing, and memory.
Physical and ambulatory deficit – the patient’s ability to function physically {I was in a wheelchair for about a month after entering rehabilitation and I couldn’t wheel myself.}

Assessment tests are fairly standard within the writing community as well. If you decide to pursue writing as a professional career, more than likely you’ve already taken your share of writing assessments. As writers, we need to know our strengths for many reasons: understanding, training and career focus are just a few reasons to assess your writing skills.

Assessments?

Schools use different assessments to test a student’s strengths.

Before non-native English speaking students enter college, they have their English skills tested through the TOEFL: Test of English as a Foreign Language. The test assesses foreign nationals’ mastery of English in four areas (reading, writing, speaking, and listening.)

Colleges require students to take English assessment tests upon being accepted. The assessments help place students in the classes at the appropriate level for their understanding. These tests assess punctuation, grammar, organization and other areas of the writing craft.

When I entered a professional writing program, my first instructor had a unique way of judging my writing capabilities. I’ve shared before of a lesson I learned the hard way.

Upon receiving my acceptance and introductory packet, I hastily emailed my instructor to introduce myself and hit the send button without stopping or missing a beat.

A few days later I received her reply and was heartbroken. She told me she didn’t believe I was ready for the program and needed to go back to school and take some remedial English classes and I was promptly kicked out of the program.

Later, I opened my assignment workbook to find my first assignment was to email my instructor and introduce myself. The problem was I didn’t know and never proofread my email.

I quickly contacted the head of the program and explained my story. Jerry B. Jenkins decided to give me a second chance, but offered some sage advice. “From now on you have to think of yourself as a professional writer. Everything you write needs to be proofread and edited, even if it’s only a letter to your sweetheart.”

This assessment of my skills has turned me into the ferocious self-editor I am. Although I still make mistakes, I am determined to find them and have them corrected.

The incident in the hospital taught me to pay attention to my surroundings, focus and avoid distractions. I believe these now have become my strengths. Living with a disability has given me limitations, but I’ve learned to use my strengths.

Hitting a doorjamb showed me where I needed to start.

Where to start?

Most people will start fitness routines because they know their health isn’t where they want it to be, they know their weaknesses already.

Unfortunately, they don’t know where to start. When I’m working out at the gym I always tell people that a healthy lifestyle starts at home. That’s where to start if you want to get stronger. Below are four basics you can work on at home to improve your health.

Better nutrition: Eating healthy is only part of a healthy lifestyle.
Hydration: Drinking less coffee and sodas doesn’t substitute for drinking more water.
Sleep: No one can make up for lack of sleep; I cannot overemphasize the importance of sleep.
Stay active: You don’t need a gym membership to be active, get going and keep moving, no excuses.

Knowing where to start can help our writing also, because writing is more than just sitting down and spewing words on a page. Preparation is the starting point; this involves research and studying, time management and goals. I’ve shared before my writing process, now it’s time for you to know your strengths.

Martin Johnson survived a severe car accident with a (T.B.I.) Traumatic brain injury which left him legally blind and partially paralyzed on the left side. He is an award-winning Christian screenwriter who has recently finished his first Christian nonfiction book. Martin has spent the last nine years volunteering as an ambassador and promoter for Promise Keepers ministries. While speaking to local men’s ministries he shares his testimony. He explains The Jesus Paradigm and how following Jesus changes what matters most in our lives. Martin lives in a Georgia and connects with readers at Spiritual Perspectives of Da Single Guy and on Twitter at mtjohnson51.

Tags disability, know your strengths, weaknesses

Screenwriting

Inciting Incident?

Now that a new year is here, I want to start going in another direction. This year’s focus for this column will look at different components of screenplays—how there are alike and different from fictional novel writing.

It can be hard to get going at the beginning of the year. Traditional folklore states that what we spend the first day of the year doing will set the pace for the rest of the year. Thus, when I was growing up my mother always warned me to be careful about what I did on the first day of the year. Here are some of the things she warned me about:

Don’t clean – Cleaning on the first day means your house will be dirty all year.
Don’t sleep all day – You’ll have an unproductive year.
Don’t borrow money – You will be in debt all year.
Don’t argue or fight – you won’t have any peace that year.

Like the first day of the year we want to start our screenplays off right, this is why it’s important to have a clear inciting incident.

Inciting incidents?

The inciting incident is the event in any story. Whether it’s a novel or a screenplay, the inciting incident is the first domino that falls and sets off the chain of events that leads to our protagonist’s goal or destiny.

It doesn’t have to be the opening scene or in first beat of action, but in screenwriting, the sooner the better. It’s understood that the first ten pages of the screenplay are valuable real estate, because it must grab the audiences’ attention. This is why a lot of writers plant the inciting incident around page 5 or 7.

It gives a writer time to introduce the main characters and set up the need for change or conflict. Inciting incident ignites the fuse to get our story going forward. Often it gives our protagonist the motivation to pursue something or someone greater than themselves.

Since the nature of film is visual it is easier to present the inciting incident in a visible manner instead of using lines of dialogue full of exposition—we can see the inciting incident in action. (Show vs. tell.) Below are a few good examples from past movies:

Rambo: Last Blood – John Rambo’s friend’s daughter runs off to Mexico to find her father and doesn’t return.
Gran Turino – The attempted theft of a Gran Turino.
Friday Night Lights – Jason gets paralyzed playing a sport he loves.
Saving Private Ryan – The Death of three Ryan brothers leads General Marshall to find the last missing Ryan boy.
Die Hard – The arrival of Hans Gruber at the party.

Each of the above scenes sets a chain of events in motion that takes our characters on a journey from point A (pre-incident) to point B (the final action resulting from the inciting incident.)

While these scenes aren’t the opening scenes of the movie, they are the tipping points that get the ball rolling toward the eventual climax.

Just The Beginning?

Robert McKee explains it like this, “The inciting incident, the first major event of the telling, is the primary cause for all that follows, putting into motion the other four elements—progressive complications, crisis, climax, resolution.”[i]

As McKee notes above, movies are made up of numerous components. Although the inciting incident doesn’t necessarily happen at the beginning of the movie, it is the real beginning of the story you want to tell. Each of the components below has a direct relation to another (cause and effect.)

Characters: The participants in your story.
Actions: What your participants do in your narrative.
Conflict: Obstacles your characters face in your story.
Plot or Plotline: The sequence of events, where each event affects the next one through the principle of cause-and-effect (think about our domino analogy.)

While the timing and placement in a screenplay will vary from script to script, each should be a direct result of your story’s inciting incident!

[i] McKee R. (1997). Story: Substance, Structure, Style, And The Principle of Screenwriting (Kindle edition) pg. 181.

Tags inciting incident, screen writing, screenwriting, story structure, structure

Writing with a Disability (Different Ability)

Stay in Your Lane

Recently, we experienced flooding rains in the community I live in. The rains covered the roads to the point the sidewalks were flooded too. As I sat on my front porch and watched, vehicle after vehicle would plow through the ponds of standing water.

Even 4 x 4 trucks had a hard time staying in their lanes. Once in a while cars that had no business driving through the flooded streets would jump the curb onto the sidewalk.

As I watched, I wondered if the roads would dry up enough for me to go biking the next day. I learned soon after my accident how my disability affected my reflexes and eyesight. This only makes it harder for me to stay in my lane when biking. Whether biking on a road or off-road, it is crucial to maintain your lane.

You have more control.
You’ll have more power to move forward.
It is much safer.

Because of my disability, the above three factors are very important to me. They are crucial to persons living with disabilities. We each must know our abilities, strengths, weaknesses, and limitations after suffering our injuries.

Disabled or not, each of the previous factors shape our lives and even put us in the right lane for our careers.

Stay In Your Lane?

As I mentioned in my last post, each of us has our skill sets for writing, these skill sets help determine the lane or direction we each should be going with our writing. As creatives, we each have specific topics and fields we’re interested in writing about.

I am a firm believer that our best writing comes from what we have the most passion for; not just what we already know, but also what we enjoy researching and learning about. My past experiences give me a unique perspective on subjects I’m drawn to and I’ve learned to navigate those lanes.

I’m sure everyone reading this post has specific subjects they are uniquely qualified to explain and write about from their perspective—congratulations, you’ve found your lane.

In the content or the copywriting community, this is called niche writing. If, by chance you are unsure, here are a few tips from Writersedit.com to help you find your lane.

Identify your area of expertise.
Think about what you’re passionate about.
Look for opportunities in that market.
Look for the areas where the above points intersect.
Seek Clients in the niche/market.[i]

Once you find your lane and understand what you’re good at writing, stick with it for the most part. As creatives, we find a certain amount of satisfaction in producing content we are passionate about, even if we are not paid for it. Isn’t it all about the art?

But, it is okay from time to time to explore other options just to dip your toes in other waters, but if you are like me your true joy comes from what you’re passionate about.

When I was growing up my father warned me not to be the Jack of all trades and master of none. When I work with other brain injury survivors, I encourage them to concentrate on what they can do and give it everything. In the long run, that’s where they’ll make the most progress and it will save them a lot of grief over other failures. Our abilities are what matter more than our disabilities.

What Matters Most

When I was younger I lived recklessly…dangerously, I was all over the place chasing whatever made me happy. It was my disability that put things in perspective and taught me what matters most.

My disability focused my attention on being healthy and safe. If I push myself too far, I know the consequences won’t be good. I don’t believe in cutting corners. Perhaps that’s a little OCD, but I know it’s better to focus on what matters to us if we want to reap the benefits.

Clear and thorough communication.
Brand identity.
Unique voice/perspective

Once you know where you want to go with your writing, it’s easier to focus and to stay in your lane.

[i]Bradshaw, Claire. https://writersedit.com/freelance-writing/find-ideal-freelance-writing-niche-5-simple-steps/

Writing with a Disability (Different Ability)

Skill Set

The first thing I learned after my accident was every brain injury is different. You’ve probably heard me say it before but, this post should help you understand brain injuries better. There are different factors involved in the life of a T.B.I. survivor:

Pre-accident status: this is our lifestyle before an injury.
Cause: not every brain injury is result of trauma; a hematoma is when blood clots outside of blood vessels, a hemorrhage is when a blood vessel ruptures and blood escapes, an cerebral edema is when fluid builds up around the brain and causes pressure, strokes occur when the brain doesn’t get enough oxygen from the blood, concussions are the result of trauma to the head.
Post-accident status: depending on the severity of the injury; there are varying degrees of side effects. Thus, each recovery is different.
Lastly, considering all the factors above, each survivor has different life goals and abilities.

Fortunately, I was able to walk with help within a few weeks of my accident, and there were no mental or cognitive deficits to consider. Being young, my main goal was to get back out on my own and achieve independence.

However, the effects of my injuries required me to tap into my creative side. It was in that season of setbacks I learned how to use the skills I had to survive. All of these years later I understand better about the gifts I have and how I can use them.

Gifts?

The dictionary gives two specific definitions for a gift and each is relevant to life: 1) A thing given willingly to someone without payment; a present, and 2) A natural ability or talent.”

We all have specific gifts or talents, skill sets that come naturally to us, abilities that not everyone can master. Often these gifts are passions, sometimes we don’t even notice.

A few years ago I interviewed my mentor for a book chapter about using our gifts. He shared about how he wanted to go into the medical field as the doctor, but after joining the Army, he was led into a business and administrative career.

Thirty-one years later he retired as a full Colonel in the Army with numerous business degrees. In retirement, the military still contracts him to help with restructuring administrations throughout the military.

His passion was biology, but the Army saw that his gift was in business and administration. He was a born leader and didn’t realize it until after college.

Before my accident, I only worked out for superficial reasons. But afterward, I learned to concentrate on the health benefits of exercise, not to impress anyone, but do compensate for my physical impairments.

Now, years later I have the stamina of a twenty-year-old and the lab work to prove it. Exercising has become so natural to me that it doesn’t seem like work at all.

I have other friends who are great musicians, a fellow choir member is an amazing woodworker, and I have a friend who is a computer geek who willingly works on my computers free of charge whenever needed.

And this brings me to the first definition of the gift: something is willingly given or done for others. Since our skill sets come naturally to us, we enjoy sharing them with others. This is why I often work with other brain injury survivors and even ordinary people seeking to improve their health.

Over the years I’ve learned the same is true within the writing community. Authors who have mastered the skill set of writing and the use of words to communicate are more than willing to help others on their writing journeys. I’ve been helped by countless writer friends, whom I could never repay for their generosity.

Within the writing community, we each have a specific area or genre that our skill sets help us excel in. Below are a few areas that fellow writer’s I know have expert skill sets. You may find yourself in one of these categories.

Nonfiction
Copywriting
Devotionals
Journaling
Poetry
Fiction
Screenwriting
Crime/Suspense
Romance
Songwriting

I even know a rock star young adult author who lives not far from me. We tend to encourage each other on our respective writing journeys; occasionally pointing out each other’s strengths.

For me it’s like exercising, I like to focus on one muscle group at a time to help me get stronger. We each have our own strengths we tend to focus on. Have you learned yours?

Strengths?

Perhaps your passions aren’t just for writing. It is possible to harness the energy of your passion and focus it into your writing by applying the same principles to help you improve your skill set.

In the brain injury community, we call this lifestyle adaptation. If one body part is affected, then we learn how to compensate for it with what we can do. Again, each injury is different and requires an adaptation unique to our injury.

I’ve learned over the years that by focusing on my strengths, I am more motivated and passionate about what I’m doing, especially when writing. Focusing on strengths:

Builds our voice/perspective/brand
Gives us a sense of purpose
Feels more satisfying

When we focus on our gifts and skill sets, we become more confident in whom we are. We learn not to compare ourselves with others and that is a relief itself. Living with a disability has helped me see my skill set.

Tags disabilities, Gifts, helping others, skill set, strengths

Screenwriting

Options

Recently, I received a message on social media from a literary manager in Hollywood. Although she isn’t taking on new screenwriters, she has already been a tremendous asset to me. This is why all writers need a presence on social media, it is a great way to network with others in the industry.

I’ve spent most of the last couple of years trying to nail down an agent for all of my writing projects from screenplays to books. I kind of wanted a one-size-fits-all agent. I didn’t want to have to chase down a half-dozen different people to discuss my writing.

And this is where the literary manager helped me the most; she informed me that most agents don’t represent both screenwriters and nonfiction writers, thus validating my biggest fear—I needed more help than I thought to get my writing sold and published.

The idea that a writing career is a solitary journey is a romanticized myth. In the screenwriting field, there are four necessary players to getting a writer’s work onto the screen.

The writer: the creative force behind an idea forges it into a story.
A manager: managers are accessible and knowledgeable coaches who mentor and guide writers in their craft.
A literary agent: agents work as insiders with the connections to potentially interested parties.
A literary attorney: a lawyer whom handles the legalities of literary sales.

Each of the above work together as a team to get a story sold and produced. More often than not a screenplay gets optioned rather than sold. Options are negotiated routinely in Hollywood.

The Option?

An option (not to be confused with an option clause for a multi-book contract), is another term almost exclusively related to the film industry.

Most aspiring screenwriters (including myself) dream of breaking into the film industry with a blockbuster sell for their awesome writing. The sad truth is most screenwriters are offered an option.

An option is a purchase and option agreement where the buyer simply doesn’t want to put a lot of money into the script immediately, so they option the rights for a short period of time (six months to a year) for a “down payment.” During that time the buyer will use the script to attract talent or raise money to make the film.

At the end of the option period, the buyer will either pay the purchase price or pass. If passed, the writer keeps any money already paid and the rights of the script revert to the writer.

Since an option is not a final purchase, scripts tend to change hands frequently before ever being produced. Numerous factors influence a scripts purchase, in addition to the market’s fickleness, studios contract crew and available talent.

With these hurdles, it’s a wonder any films ever make it to the screen. Over the years many movies have narrowly made it through developmental hell even after being optioned. For example:

A movie’s production is rarely the result of a talented lone wolf writer. But paired with a producer, studio and creative team; that’s hopefully when our characters come to life on the screen—all options are fulfilled through teamwork.

Teamwork?

Before you know your options, it is wise for writers to put their teams together because writers need all the support they can get. So how do you put a team together? I’m glad you asked.

Getting an agent or manager can be difficult but is not impossible. In today’s tech-savvy society there are quite a few ways to market your writing to the right people or find them. Below are a few ways most screenwriters market their projects and search for literary representatives.

Entertainment magazines (Hollywood Reporter, Variety Magazine, Script Magazine).
Online screenwriting sites (Film Freeway, Studio Binder and The Blacklist).
Film festivals (Atlanta film Festival, Austin Film Festival, Ann Arbor Film Festival, Sundance Film Festival).
Screenwriting contests (Nicole fellowships competition, Final Draft competition, Screencraft competition).

I’ve always been taught as a writer the best way to get your work out is to be the best writer you can be, let your writing speak for itself and studios will fight to hire you and you will have plenty of options.

Tags agents, managers, options, screenwriting, teamwork