December 2011
32 posts
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Screenwriting Tip #858
You don’t need to give up what you love in order to be commercial. The trick is to take what you love and make it commercial.
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Screenwriting Tip #857
If you can’t come up with a unified set of symbols and motifs, steal one from somewhere else. Mythology and the Tarot are good places to start.
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Screenwriting Tip #856
You can’t paper over a cheesy line of dialogue by having your characters step back and go, “Woah, that was a bit cheesy.” Well, you can, but the reader is going to groan.
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Screenwriting Tip #855
Steal another trick from novelists: when you want to shock the reader back to careful attention, deliberately insert an unusual word or metaphor in your action lines.
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Screenwriting Tip #854
If you’re writing a joke and you stop to try and think of something topical and relevant, the joke is already dead. Go with your gut. What makes you laugh will make somebody else laugh.
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Screenwriting Tip #853
Follow the deepest currents of culture, not the obvious surface trends.
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Screenwriting Tip #852
During the holidays, try to find the quiet spaces between family obligations. Then write in them.
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Screenwriting Tip #851
The only way to understand story is to think about story all the time. You should be mentally dismantling the structure of the movies and shows you watch; your time of being a passive audience member is over.
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Screenwriting Tip #850
Every skill, trait or item your protagonist uses to get out of a tight spot should be set up earlier in the script. A hitherto unmentioned ability to speak Latin is just as jarring as a hitherto unmentioned gun.
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Screenwriting Tip #849
When someone sends you negative script notes, read them once, twice, three times… then again the next day. You’ll react with progressively less emotion, and the notes will seem more and more reasonable.
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Screenwriting Tip #848
Don’t think of the end of Act Three as being about answering questions and tying off threads. Think of it as getting the protagonist to the point where there’s no more story to tell.
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Screenwriting Tip #847
There’s a fine line between a comically naive character and a character who couldn’t possibly function in the real world.
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Screenwriting Tip #846
When writing a contemporary character bio, try pretending you’re interviewing that character for an article. You could even write it in modern magazine style, e.g. “When I first saw Sarah she was sitting at the back of the cafe, typing away on her iPhone…”.
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Screenwriting Tip #845
If you’re trying to break in, “good enough” isn’t good enough. Producers, agents and managers want to meet the next great writer, not the next decent one.
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Screenwriting Tip #844
Pick and choose which elements of your sci-fi world to expand on. The audience needs to know that everyone now has HUDs in their eyeballs and can teleport at will. They probably don’t need to know about society’s incredible advances in park maintenance.
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Screenwriting Tip #843
“He grabs the gun that is holstered at his side”. So is it at his side or in his hand? Unholstered or not? You may think you’re being clear, but one slightly confusing sentence can trip up a whole scene.
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Screenwriting Tip #842
Don’t put stupid things on your title page, i.e. the number of drafts, multiple home addresses, your Skype handle, URLs with silly names, or that old email address that contains your high school nickname.
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Screenwriting Tip #841
Think hard before violating the laws of your story world (or the laws of physics) for the sake of a joke. You might get a good laugh from some of the audience while completely losing others.
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Screenwriting Tip #840
Finding an amazing, little-known story from history is hard — finding the movie inside it is much harder. Look for the protagonist, what they want and who they want to be; those are your signposts to the screenplay.
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Today's the Day
It’s 2011 Black List Day! Get your copy now: http://blcklst.com
So what do you think about this year’s Black List? Sound off in the comments below!
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Screenwriting Tip #839
If you put an answering machine in your script, readers are going to wonder if it’s a period piece set in the 90s.
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Screenwriting Tip #838
No one ever looks back and wishes they’d sent out an unpolished draft, but there are plenty of writers who made that decision and regret it. Never show the world anything less than your best.
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Screenwriting Tip #837
If you’re having trouble visualizing scenes, try sketching out your major location (e.g. the protagonist’s house or workspace). You don’t have to be an artist, but it’ll give you some sense of space and ground you in your protag’s world.
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Screenwriting Tip #836
Consider making the ‘funny best friend’ character into the protagonist. You clearly prefer writing in her voice, because she’s in every scene and she seems to have more lines than the lead.
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Screenwriting Tip #835
If it ain’t broke… sometimes it’s worth fixing it anyway. Rewriting even your good scenes can help you stay invested when working on draft after draft. Plus, who says there isn’t a better version that you haven’t found yet?
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Screenwriting Tip #834
When creating a TV concept, it doesn’t hurt to think about whether it could be adapted internationally. Selling ‘formats’ is now an important factor.
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Screenwriting Tip #833
Scenes feeling flabby and slow? Create a subconscious ticking clock counting down to the end of the scene. By setting scenes at a bus stop or in a waiting room, elevator, moving car, etc., you suggest a natural end-point before the dialogue even begins.
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Screenwriting Tip #832
A likeable character isn’t just a person who does good. They’re people who stand out from the crowd by making choices which most of us wouldn’t make. The audience doesn’t like them because they’re nice; the audience likes them because they admire them.
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Screenwriting Tip #831
Imagine your protagonist’s typical day (before the start of your story, of course). If you’re feeling ambitious, write her whole day out from beginning to end. You’ll probably learn something new about her.
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Screenwriting Tip #830
Ask for help when you really need it. If you’re stuck on a plot point, talk it out with a fellow screenwriter. If your pitch needs work, try it on a friend or family member.
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Screenwriting Tip #829
Would you rather be known as a writer of big ideas, or a writer of small ideas? If the former, why the hell are you writing a tiny drama set in a single location? Write the kind of script you want to be writing in ten years.
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Screenwriting Tip #828
Your job is to upset the scales. Force characters who love each other into conflict and competition. Force characters who hate each other to work together.