January 23, 2014
Scott Myers of the excellent Go Into the Story blog today shared his thoughts on success and failure as a writer, and how the two aren’t as far apart as you might think. He writes:
When legendary football coach Vince Lombardi would speak in public, he rarely strayed far from two closely related subjects: success and failure. One quote I’ve always remembered is this one:
“In great attempts, it is glorious even to fail.”
It seems to me this embodies a mindset writers would do well to embrace for it re-frames the prospect of failure: Instead of fearing it, why not look at it as a necessary possibility whenever we strive to create something great?
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January 20, 2014
Maria Popova of BrainPickings shared two letters written by F. Scott Fitzgerald to young writers who dared to show him their work. Fitzgerald isn’t shy about telling the young writers they have a lot to learn, but he also gives them excellent advice on how to be better. In the first letter he writes,
I’ve read the story carefully and, Frances, I’m afraid the price for doing professional work is a good deal higher than you are prepared to pay at present. You’ve got to sell your heart, your strongest reactions, not the little minor things that only touch you lightly, the little experiences that you might tell at dinner. This is especially true when you begin to write, when you have not yet developed the tricks of interesting people on paper, when you have none of the technique which it takes time to learn. When, in short, you have only your emotions to sell.
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January 7, 2014
The Bechdel Test actually comes from the above comic strip (Dykes to Watch Out For by Alison Bechdel), which was originally published in 1985. It has become an unofficial standard for whether or not female characters are represented as whole, complex people in any work of fiction.
As the cartoon states, for a movie (or script or TV show) to pass the test, it must:
- Have at least two women in it…
- Who talk to each other…
- About something other than a man.
I know that I have written several scripts that don’t pass the test, and I bet I’m not alone. The test isn’t a hard and fast rule (I tend to write sex comedies, so everyone talks primarily about sex) but it’s a great way while working on a script to remind yourself to create characters that are more than what’s expected.
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December 12, 2013
Screen Craft has put together a list of 30 Facebook pages that every screenwriter should follow. If you’d rather not have your Facebook page overrun with too many updates, almost all of these Facebook pages also have good old fashioned websites associated with them. (And if you do like Facebook updates, remember to follow us on Facebook, too!)
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No Film School – Multiple posts each day that center around DIY filmmaking. Find tutorials, camera equipment reviews and more resources for making your own films.
- BlueCat Screenplay Competition — Every entry for the competition receives analysis. The Facebook account is updated every day with important date reminders, writing tips, news and bits of inspiration.
- Austin Film Festival – A great film festival and one of the best screenwriting conferences and competitions in the industry.
- The Script Lab — Like for posts every couple days that give advice, news and quotes specific to screenwriting.
- CELTX – Celtx is the world’s first all in one pre-production system. Like their Facebook page for links to many different media sources with articles and posts about film production, such as The Script Lab, The New York Times and Indiewire.
- Writers Guild of America, East and West ”Like” for information and reminders about WGAE events at their NYC headquarters, as well as other writing competitions, awards, and news. Also, the WGAW’s Facebook page has great resources, but it seems to be updated less frequently lately.
- ScriptChix – With a combined 20 years in the business, Sandra Leviton and Mirada Sajdak update with screenwriting, TV, and filmmaking advice, career guidance, and educational networking events.
- Film Independent — Join a community of independent filmmakers and fans on this page, which is updated about twice a day with fresh content and relevant independent moviemaking articles.
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December 11, 2013
Adam Sternbergh of The New York Times recently put together profiles of fourteen up and coming screenwriters. Each writer shares their top screenwriting tips. Take a look:
It’s notable that many of these writers — most, in fact — also directed their own scripts (Bell, Bujalski, Chandor, Holofcener, Jonze, Linklater, Polley), and several also star in the films they wrote (Bell, Delpy, Gerwig, Hawke, Seth Rogen). Here, though, we simply want to focus on their work as writers and highlight the written word — that part of the process that makes the rest of the process possible…
GRETA GERWIG
Notable writing credits: “Frances Ha” (2013)
What screenplay inspired you to become a screenwriter? I think “Another Year,” by Mike Leigh, is a great screenplay.
What are your three best screenwriting tips?Whenever you have an “idea,” as in a concept that you could explain to someone, like a hook or at worst a gimmick, that is a bad thing. It feels good, but it’s not good. The best ideas reveal themselves, you don’t “have” them. For me, anyway.
Let your characters talk to each other and do things. Spend time with them — they’ll tell you who they are and what they’re up to.
I have gotten into baseball recently, and whenever I have trouble writing, I think about the pace of baseball. It’s slow. You strike out a lot, even if you’re great.
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November 26, 2013
Joe Eszterhas was once the highest paid screenwriter in the business. Before turning to film, he was a senior editor at Rolling Stone. The rules below, which he recently shared with MovieMaker.com (a great site that you should absolutely check out), are… unique. Some of his rules you should take to heart. Some you should probably never follow.
As the saying goes when you take notes on your writing, find the note behind the note. In this case, find the advice behind the advice:
1. Don’t see too many new movies. Most movies in theaters today are awful. They will depress you. You will think to yourself: How can they have made this abominable script instead of buying and making mine? Spare yourself the anguish. Read a good book instead.
2. Don’t mince words. If the idea a studio executive gives you is a shitty one, don’t say “Well, that’s interesting, but…” Say “That’s a really shitty idea.” The people you’re dealing with aren’t stupid—they’re just vain. Deep in their hearts they know it’s a shitty idea.
3. Don’t let ’em convince you to change what you’ve written. A director isn’t a writer. Neither is a producer or a studio exec. You write for a living. You’re the pro. They’re amateurs. Dilettantes at best. Treat them that way. Make them feel that’s what they are.
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October 16, 2013
Beware of advice—even this.
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July 17, 2013
I think if I’ve worked anything through with screenwriting it’s that I’m not going to be able to work anything through.
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March 15, 2013
Christopher Boone of NoFilmSchool.com has put together five videos of award-winning screenwriters talking about their writing process. Boone writes:
Today I present to you five award-winning screenwriters discussing their approach to the craft of screenwriting. You may want to get a snack or even a small meal because some of these videos are long, but all of them offer unique insights into how each of these writers (or writing teams) approach a story, and then break the story down into screenplay format. Hopefully, these videos will educate and inspire you as you work on your own screenwriting craft.
Check out all of the videos at NoFilmSchool.com.
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October 31, 2012
Put weather in.
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