It’s no secret that I’m bad at sleeping. I’ve written here about my insomnia. I’ve told literally any person who will listen about it. I’ve done very few things to actually address this problem, and yet I have complained about it incessantly! There is one positive side effect of insomnia…however, this side effect is the sharpest of double-edged swords. There is a moment, a single pinhead of time in the grand scale of the universe, when you are on the
Perfect post! Back in the day I slept with a yellow pad and pen on the floor beside me. My note taking was pretty good. Now I'm just insomnia bound with no ideas, and no need for them. Side note: Once I finally had a troublesome scene from a My Sister Sam episode come to me whole, with dialogue, while at a classical music concert (Tchaikovsky? Beethoven?) at the Hollywood Bowl. All I had was a small 2" x 4" notepad in my purse, but I filled those pages. Practically filmed as written.
Loved this one. I have found at times that if I'm wrestling with a problem in a script and I try to think about it as I'm going to sleep I will often come up with a solution that gets me so excited I write it down so I don't forget, and the next day it does, in fact, make sense. But that's if I'm still awake when I think of it. If I come up with something in the dreamy state, it's usually incomprehensible (i.e. reverse toaster - hysterical!) or complete shit. But the absolute worst thing is to be in that nakedly vulnerable state of exhausted but not yet able to sleep . That's when I often find myself suddenly replaying some embarrassing/humiliating/stupid thing I did five, ten, twenty or thirty years ago and feeling the emotions of it all again as if I had just done it. When that happens, I know it's going to be a CBN gummie and two hours of spider solitaire before I get to sleep, if at all. From the hair, I'm guessing Einstein had nights like that, too.
Dec 20, 2023·edited Dec 20, 2023Liked by Will Peterman
When I invariably get up in the middle of the night to pee, I try my best not to think of anything, particularly plot twists. If I fail and come up with something, the night is lost. Most often the twist is a loser as well. My bladder is a lousy collaborator.
"... at the crossroads of sleep or creation you find out what kind of person you are." - my favorite line of any essay so far. This one reads like a Paul Schrader narration and I love it.
Perfect post! Back in the day I slept with a yellow pad and pen on the floor beside me. My note taking was pretty good. Now I'm just insomnia bound with no ideas, and no need for them. Side note: Once I finally had a troublesome scene from a My Sister Sam episode come to me whole, with dialogue, while at a classical music concert (Tchaikovsky? Beethoven?) at the Hollywood Bowl. All I had was a small 2" x 4" notepad in my purse, but I filled those pages. Practically filmed as written.
Loved this one. I have found at times that if I'm wrestling with a problem in a script and I try to think about it as I'm going to sleep I will often come up with a solution that gets me so excited I write it down so I don't forget, and the next day it does, in fact, make sense. But that's if I'm still awake when I think of it. If I come up with something in the dreamy state, it's usually incomprehensible (i.e. reverse toaster - hysterical!) or complete shit. But the absolute worst thing is to be in that nakedly vulnerable state of exhausted but not yet able to sleep . That's when I often find myself suddenly replaying some embarrassing/humiliating/stupid thing I did five, ten, twenty or thirty years ago and feeling the emotions of it all again as if I had just done it. When that happens, I know it's going to be a CBN gummie and two hours of spider solitaire before I get to sleep, if at all. From the hair, I'm guessing Einstein had nights like that, too.
When I invariably get up in the middle of the night to pee, I try my best not to think of anything, particularly plot twists. If I fail and come up with something, the night is lost. Most often the twist is a loser as well. My bladder is a lousy collaborator.
“Are you someone who will sacrifice anything for five more minutes?”<—-yes
I sleep better at nap time.
"... at the crossroads of sleep or creation you find out what kind of person you are." - my favorite line of any essay so far. This one reads like a Paul Schrader narration and I love it.