With many of us stuck at home during this pandemic, the days have become less structured, which often leads to a decrease in productivity. We developed these top 4 screenwriting challenges to do during quarantine so that you can reclaim a bit of that missing structure while sparking creativity and working on your craft.

1. Album Challenge

Do you have a favorite album that you find extremely inspiring? If so, try committing to writing a scene for each track. One a day or one every other day really keeps ideas flowing. I recently did this with Folklore by Taylor Swift and found it stimulated my creativity and allowed me to practice writing stories that contained emotions or characters I’d never written about. 

2. A Scene a Day

If you have a script that’s been sitting in your drafts, unfinished, for months (maybe years), then open it back up and challenge yourself to write a scene a day. You can do this until your script is finished, or just for a set of time that works for you and your goals. Either way, it will both put you on a schedule and get you to tie up loose ends that fester in the back of your mind.

3. Monologue

Write a monologue a day for a week. Then, after the week is done, write a monologue every time you feel intense emotions during the quarantine. This isn’t just a great way to find your voice, but it’s also cathartic and it allows you to bring journaling into a screenwriting medium.

4. Canceled Plans

Take the plans that you had to cancel due to the pandemic and write how they would have played out. For example, if you were planning on traveling somewhere this year, but had to cancel your trip, write about how you think that trip would have gone. You can embellish aspects to make it more whimsical or romantic. Have fun and play with different scenarios.  

Hopefully one or more of these will inspire you and allow you to build a sense of structure in your schedule during such a strange time. If you’re interested in more screenwriting content, check out 6 Movies Every Aspiring Screenwriter Should Watch.