I hate my screenplay

Well I've done it. Sat down for a month straight and pounded out 117 pages of what I thought was pure brilliance, editing as I went along. And then, a breather. I deserved a good meal and a big cup of coffee...and hey, I'll read that new book while I'm at it. After perusing Part iv on Storycraft in 101 Habits of Highly Successful Screenwriters, I started getting down on myself. These guys are hard on themselves...harder than I am on myself. And that's saying a lot.

I began to realize that you can't just have a good screenplay. It's got to be great. There is no room for cliche', no room for boredom. Have I filled pages just to fill space out of obligation to the accepted formats? Do my characters have clear motivations? Are the stakes raised? Are they raised again? Is the story gripping in the way it's told...in it's choice of set pieces...in it's inventiveness? Does the first page get you? Do the first ten pages show you something new? Is the use of words economical, unique, and playful? Is the audience bored?

These are the issues one deals with after the first draft is done. These are now the issues that concern me. What concerns me most right now, is that I am trying to troubleshoot my story in my head when it's not even in front of me. I can't seem to put it down. But I have to.

So my happiness at finishing my first draft lasted all of about and hour and a half. And now I hate my screenplay. This is a good thing. If I were happy with it, I would be a shmuck. Besides, tinkering with something that looks and feels like its done...that's what artists do. At least this character has ample motivation to continue on with the story. Whether you want to turn the page with me is entirely another matter.