We recently connected with Derek Gray and have shared our conversation below.

Derek, appreciate you joining us today. What do you think it takes to be successful?

To be successful, I break down into a few things. First, you’ve have got to love what you do, Acquire the additional skills you need to be competitive in the field you are pursing, decide to take action, determine the next steps, execute on the next steps. Record successes , opportunity so you can repeat or correct those things in the future. I was told acronyms are no longer really used in the motivation field, but this is something I came up with years ago that has helped me. It’s my LADDER theory.

Love What You Do
Acquire the skill
Decide to take action
Determine next step
Execute on those next steps
Record successes and opportunity for future reference.

I wanted to develop an online series. I wrote the scripts and came up with the direction. Unfortunately, it was not well received at all. I took some time from the internet and then revisited the series with fresh eyes. I then wrote down the flaws I saw in my writing and direction. I then read some of the feedback from viewers to see if what I saw meshed with their very honest opinions. The things that did mesh, I kept as notes to use, the things that didn’t ring true to me nor weren’t possible to change, I did not include on my list.

So I loved what I was doing so putting in the time didn’t hurt, but there was a SKILL that needed some sharpening and that was my writing. I took a graduate course to learn more on the ways to craft a story, I DECIDED to go to school, I DETERMINED how I was going to navigate this with a full-time job, kids and wife to consider and then I EXECUTED on my plan. I then altered it when need be and continued what was working.
This systematic way of approaching season 2 led us to our best season, many awards and for me, it brought me to the attention of executives in my field and led to meetings with some members of the industry who I am currently working with to this day.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My name is Derek Lewis Gray I am a screenwriter and novelist residing in Atlanta, Georgia. I had always been a writer, I just didn’t know it was what I was becoming when I started out. It actually begins in grade school, where I got a failing grade on a writing assignment around writing stories with a moral to it. Like Aesop Fables, My favorite teacher was disappointed in me, and being the people pleaser I am, I went home and began writing a new story, but this time within the confines of the assignment.
I brought it to school the next day and the teacher loved, but even more than that, I realized I loved it to. Having to come up with my own story that had a beginning, middle and end and I wrote it. That was when the seed was planted.

For a class assignment on undergrad, we have to come up with a story, script and produce it. That’s where I took my writing to the visual arts, where I stayed for twenty-four years. The many years of producing my own material without anything to really show for it long term, began to take its toll. I decided to stop wiring and producing my own material, but to take simply write screenplays for sale to producers. That proved to be beneficial as I have been in shopping and development agreements for my work, my first screenplay won several screenwriting awards which led to working with a producing on the TV version of it. A TV series that was close to being placed stalled following the writers strike, but I am proud of the momentum I have continued to carry over.

Someone suggested that since more studios are looking for intellectual property to change to film, that I should write a novel which I began working on this year.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

It’s what I’m doing now. For years I spent thousands of dollars to create independent films and television series. The goal was to gain the attention of producers to put money in the project and to hopefully gain national attention. After several years of doing this, I made the tough decision to walk away from filmmaking-for now and focus on where it all started: My writing. I had already got my Masters in Creative Writing and several credits under my belt in the world of fiction. This was a game changer, not only did simply focus on my writing allow me to expand my creativity by not allowing budget to hinder me, but before I knew it I was taking meetings with those who have worked with the likes of Viola Davis and Kevin Hart just to name a few. as well as two of my projects under Development and Shopping Agreements. I learned that it’s important to focus on your strengths and allow them to work for you. It may be the slower way to your goal. but it’s worth it when you start to see the reward.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

The mentality of grinding to the point of exhaustion-to alienate yourself from the pleasures of life like hanging out with friends or watching Netflix .

I used to wear hustling til I fell out as a badge of honor, but I realize something throughout it that I was not present for what was going on in my kid’s lives it was putting strain on my marriage and other important relationships. It took a while but I finally understood that You can still hustle at your craft and Grind and catch that dinner with an old friend, watch another Disney Plus movie with you kids and plan a date night with a significant other. It’s not about working to exhaustion, it’s being discipline.

I’m not going out to a party if I have not met my writing goal for the day. I want to binge watch a show on Netflix, but that will take me all day, so I either double up today or get my writing goals in before I turn on Netflix. If I know the whole house will be up by 8 and I need 3 hours to workout and write my next 2000 words per day on this novel, then I’m up by 4:30a .

I can’t stress this enough. There are so many motivational speakers out there who are right about not quitting, keep working and so on, but we have to leave time for R&R.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.dereklgray.com
• Instagram: DerekLewisGray_writes
• Facebook: Derek Lewis Gray
• Linkedin: Derek Lewis Gray MFA
• Youtube: Derek Lewis Gray Films