A fool harvests his opinions in the spring.

Most aspiring screenwriters simply don't spend enough time choosing their concept. It's by far the most common mistake I see in spec scripts. The writer has lost the race right from the gate. Months - sometimes years - are lost trying to elevate a film idea that by its nature probably had no hope of ever becoming a movie.

It's easier to be old than young. You make just as many blunders, but you've become much more adept at not recognizing them.

In Hollywood, story content of movies follows a hierarchy of power, not the relative quality of various ideas. Hollywood does not lack for quality writing. It's just that quality writing commonly has to be sacrificed in order to propel a film into production. A studio needs a star and a director to make a film, so those are the folk who'll define the content. If they don't have the same creative sensibilities, then the content will change.

Success is less rare than the courage to attempt it.

Talent is truth on display.

Once learned, the ability to disagree with a smile pays valuable dividends for a lifetime.