Can you tell us about yourself and your project?
I am a dreamer, writer, author, podcaster, and creator. I host two podcasts; the Neon Woman podcast, and the Shine podcast, and I am the author of A Poem A Day: a collection of modern & inspirational poetry. “Feel It All” is my first script, a semi-autobiographical story about my own experiences learning to feel everything, even if it’s painful. The main character, Mia, is me – if I had never done the inner work to open my heart, and had (actually) pursued a career in publishing! I originally created the character of Mia D’Alton when I was 10 years old, almost as an alter-ego. My dream is to one day play that character, and I hope that in bringing “Feel It All” to life on screen, I will help other women give themselves permission to fully feel their feelings.

How’s your writing routine? How do you motivate yourself?
I would like to say that I have a really strict writing routine, but the honest truth is that I don’t! I like to allow myself the flexibility to let ideas come to me at the right time, instead of trying to force anything. However, when I was writing “Feel It All”, I did make myself sit down once a day and write, just so I had chipped away at the project a little bit every day. Sometimes I could only write for 10 minutes, sometimes I wrote for 3 hours! I motivate myself by always letting my mind wander – which may sound counterintuitive, but when I let my mind drift, my creativity opens up and I get a lot of my best ideas.

How did you find the feedback, was it helpful? Would you recommend Golden Draft Awards to fellow screenwriters?
I thought the feedback was extremely helpful; it was really insightful to get industry opinion on my project, and it definitely motivated me more to make my project more accessible to people. I will definitely be recommending Golden Draft Awards to other screenwriters!

What’s the most fascinating thing about screenwriting?
To me, the most fascinating thing about screenwriting is the ability to tell stories. As humans, we are all looking for validation, acceptance, and permission, to do, and experience, life. Watching characters on the screen shows us that these facets of being human are not only okay but allowed. I have felt so much validation, acceptance, and permission myself, through watching my favorite characters on screen. So to be able to write my own script that will hopefully one day give someone else that same experience, is really beautiful.

How do you deal with procrastination? Do you ever experience writer’s block?
I try not to procrastinate, but it’s difficult. If I am procrastinating about writing a particular scene, I walk away from the laptop and give myself time to think about anything other than that scene. Usually, that helps me to unblock any writer’s block that I might have, and (in letting my mind wander), I get the inspiration I was looking for.

What would you recommend to emerging screenwriters? Any tips?
Tell your story how you want to tell it. When you are honest and authentic, this shines through on the page.