Like any good collaborators, co-writers Damon Lindelof and Cord Jefferson can find common ground despite drawing from different inspirations. One similarity they share may be familiar to artists in any field: imposter syndrome. As the two tell Backstage, great screenwriting requires overcoming such self-doubt achieving agency in one’s career by churning out first drafts. Another tip: get off Twitter.

Damon is an Emmy-winning writer and showrunner, known as the creator of the hit series “Lost” and “The Leftovers,” as well the writer of films “Cowboys & Aliens,” “Prometheus,” “Tomorrowland,” and more. Cord is a journalist-turned-screenwriter with 2020 Writers Guild of America Awards for “Succession” and “The Good Place.” They are Emmy-nominated together this year in the limited series writing category for HBO’s “Watchmen,” their sequel to, and radical re-imagining of, the beloved comic book of the same name.
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