I went to a seminar earlier this week about this very subject. It was given by Warren Etheredge (thewarrenreport.com), who talked about a lot of stuff, mainly along the lines that good writing is an exercise in being honest and vulnerable with the reader (or in the case of screenwriting, with the viewer). A reader/viewer can sense bullshit in a moment but will be intrigued by a writer's precise attempt (with specificity) to tackle the character's core, existential issue, with honesty and vulnerability. Warren described this as the "nugget" that drives your character - and drives you as a writer - and said that once you identify it, you will know the story you want to tell and why you want to tell it. So, what is the nugget? In Warren's view, it is based on the idea that each of us, and every character we create, has at the core, "one question to rule them all." This question serves both the characters and the writer - it is mainly the question of the story's main character, but the actions of ancillary characters will reflect how they react to the main character's attempt to answer the question. So that whatever you write, there is some piece of you that is in it - it's the nugget between you and your character, that drives the story. Your goal as a writer is to find the nugget and stick to it. Think of the nugget as a question the main character - and you - are desperate to understand along the lines of an "am I ...?" question - again, one that applies both to the the protagonist and the writer. For example, if you look at a great writer like Paddy Chayefsky, you will see his characters have the same nugget because that is the question he always tried to answer for himself (am I lovable?). What could a nugget be? The list is endless: - Am I good? - Am I loyal? - Am I brave? - Am I trustworthy? - Am I worthy? - Am I right? - Am I just? - Am I loving? (Am I loving, by the way is not the same question as - am I lovable?) Once you frame that question with honesty, a story will flow. A writer's nugget may evolve or change over time ... Warren said you might have 3 over the course of your career (early efforts, mid-life, later efforts) but whatever your nugget is, it always ends up infusing the story you want to tell. In my case, I think I found the nugget of my character - "am I a failure?" - and I think it applies - candidly! - to my own motivation as I try to write seriously now, having never written except for my own amusement before, fairly late in my life. Of course, there are lots of ways to think about stuff like this, but Warren's approach may help. It certainly is intriguing, if nothing else.