The Superstar Advantage

Cool article on how playing against a superstar actually makes people play worse.

Only partially related, I liked this excerpt:

Beilock has shown that novices hit better putts when they consciously reflect on their actions. The more time they spend thinking about the putt, the more likely they are to avoid beginner’s mistakes and sink the ball in the hole.

A little experience, however, changes everything. After golfers have learned how to putt — once they have memorized the necessary movements — analyzing the stroke is a dangerous waste of time. Beilock has found, for instance, that when experienced golfers are forced to think about their putts, they hit significantly worse shots. All those conscious thoughts erase their years of practice; the grace of talent disappears. And this is why it’s dangerous to compete against a superstar: Players end up thinking up too much.

It may seem strange to think about this in the context of writing screenplays, but I actually think a similar phenomenon occurs. While you must learn the basics of structure and scene structure in order to be a writer, when you've taken all that information in, it does not pay to constantly be thinking about it.