Sometimes as screenwriters we can’t help it. We have to insert a certain scene to rant about social commentary in our lives. Or we write a certain character that may or may not be a ‘Mary Sue’ aka a self-insert character of ourselves. Even though we know better than to put these traits into our stories, sometimes we do it solely to work out inner turmoil in ourselves.

But sometimes being self-aware of these issues can prevent them in the first place and in the long run make us better writers. So here are the top 5 things screenwriters do that annoy them:

5. Having an Amazing Idea When You Can’t Write It Down

To kick things off, here is a scenario that affects me almost every day. As a student athlete for almost my whole life, especially including the detail that I primarily do water sports, I seem to always have a good idea when I’m staring at the bottom of a pool. Although I have gotten into a good habit of keeping a notepad by my bed so I can write ideas I have when trying to fall asleep, I still can’t figure out how to get a waterproof notepad and pen into the water with me.

4. Revisiting Previous Work and Realizing That It Doesn’t Make Sense

This is something I’ve discovered since I have recently started writing volume 2 of a series I have been working on since my senior year of high school. Remembering yourself writing a scene, just to realize you hadn’t when rereading it is a horrible feeling. Sometimes you can get lucky and just insert it in between scenes so it works, but more often than not you didn’t write it because you decided to take the story in a different direction, meaning you have to start from scratch.

3. Mentioning to Someone You Are a Screenwriter and They Immediately Ask to Be in Your Script

This happens to all fiction writers, but for screenwriters there is an added request. Since most of us write stories we want put to film, often after our friends and peers ask us to be in the story, they also want to physically be in the final product. Don’t get us wrong, we always are looking for extras or background actors in our projects, but don’t expect to be the star of the show, especially when countless others want the same thing.

2. Having Time to Write But Having No Material

Picture this: for weeks you have had no time to write your story besides the scribbled down ideas you have in the margins of your film theory notes. Finally you have the time to sit down with a hot cup of coffee at your favorite café. You open up Adobe Story, place your hands on your laptop’s keys and *poof* none of your ideas seem to be good anymore, leaving you with no idea why you just spent $5 on your drink when you are just staring blankly at your laptop. Can you say ironic?

1. Losing the Motivation to Write a Script You Used to Be Passionate About

Maybe it’s you growing as a writer, but more often than not, the story doesn’t even interest you anymore. This feeling isn’t strictly annoyance, but is often coupled with sadness. Maybe it’s your first script that you tucked away years ago that you decided to revisit. Or it’s the script you have deeply outlined to the point that it fills up multiple notebooks, you even have in depth character bios, but one day you have just lost interest. Maybe one day you will pick it back up again, but right now you need to start a new story. Maybe this is why you have dozens of unfinished scripts sitting on your hard drive.