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You Know You Know
By Bruce Meade
A few decades ago my favorite fusion band was The Mahavishnu Orchestra, fronted by the amazing guitarist,
John McLaughlin. I was remembering a song they did called "You Know You Know." I started thinking about
the concept of knowing what one knows and its implications for screenwriters.
Have you ever read the first page of a spec screenplay and knew instantly that the quality of the writing was
less than good? And did you reach this conclusion instantly, or only after careful analysis of the plot,
structure, and characters? I'm guessing you knew instantly. Why?
You know you know.
I play guitar by ear. I've always been able to improvise. I didn't learn this by studying in the traditional sense.
Rather, I just knew that I knew. I've met trained musicians that could play anything which is written on
paper. When I've asked, "Can you improvise a solo?" "No, not if my life depended on it." Curious.
I'll achieve my success as a screenwriter by writing comedy. It's an area I know. How did I come to know this? I just know.
Comedy is easy for me. When I watch a comedy, I know instantly what works and what doesn't. I'm
always amazed at the poor judgment found in many movie comedies. Did they really think that scene was
going to get laughs? As I watch, I can instantly rewrite the scene in my mind and make it funnier. I
don't know how I do this, but I know what I know.
My point is this: Do you know what you know? Are you naturally gifted with the ability to create characters
which are real? Can you invent wonderful sci-fi stories? Are you great at creating suspenseful scenes? A
screenwriter needs to look within and know what he/she knows. A screenwriter needs to
understand his/her area of natural excellence.
You know you know.
I watched the premiere of "Gideon's Crossing." Great. I reached this opinion within the first minute. By the
end...great. Did I reach this conclusion after careful deliberation? No. I just knew.
I knew it when I heard Janis Joplin belt out her first note. I knew it the first time I saw Richard Pryor on the
old John Davidson Show. Greatness. I just knew it.
I'm not uniquely qualified. You do it, don't you? You know you know. You just do.
In a high school gym class, we played a game of indoor hockey with plastic sticks. I had never played hockey in
my life. During my shift, I ran the length of the floor and scored four unassisted slapshot goals. These were
blazingly fast shots. The goalie could not react in time. After class, one of the jocks (who had never before
given me the time of day) asked me, "Will you join our team?" I'll never forget the crushed look on his face
when I said, "I can't skate."
That day I knew what I knew about this sport. I was naturally gifted as a shooter. But, I knew that I couldn't
skate worth a damn. In both areas, I knew what I knew.
Sometimes writers ask me, "I'm thinking about doing a comedy next time. What do you think?" I cringe. Sure,
it's possible the writer could be an undiscovered natural 'slapshot artist'...and be unaware of this ability.
But, chances are likely this is not the case. If you look deep within yourself, you'll know you know if you can write
comedy. And I think this awareness of self can be applied to all genres.
Lead with your best, not your worst...or even the mediocre. How do you know which is your best?
You know you know.
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