Scott Myers

Daily Dialogue — December 3, 2019

President (V.O.): Here’s a photograph. It is a photograph of a man. His name is William Schumann. He is a Master Sergeant in the United…

Reader Question: How to handle the passage of time in a script?

Time management can be a big concern in a screenplay.

Writing Goals: 2020 [Part 1] — Looking Back

10 part series for writers to consider what we did in 2019 and will do in 2020.

On Writing

“The most important thing I’ve found about writing is that it is primarily an unconscious activity. What do I mean by this? I mean that a…

Daily Dialogue — December 2, 2019

“Refund?! Refund?! Are you crazy?! Refund?! Refund?! Refund?!”

The Theology of Cinema: Despair

“This commonly occurs at the end of Act Two — what is often called All Is Lost —  representing an existential crisis for the Protagonist.”

Script To Screen: “Dallas Buyers Club”

Ron ‘asks’ someone to shake Rayon’s hand.

Interview (Video): Lena Waithe

A conversation with the screenwriter-producer, director, and lead actors of the movie Queen & Slim.

Daily Dialogue — December 1, 2019

“We do what we do… and we do it together.”

Screenwriting Advice From The Past: Midway in the Photoplay [Part 7]

“Many amateur photoplay writers are very clever in getting their characters into terribly involved situations; but they are not so clever…

Daily Dialogue theme next week: Sales

Join the Daily Dialogue crew: 4,216 consecutive days and counting.

Interview (Written): Rian Johnson

A conversation with the writer-director of Knives Out.

Daily Dialogue — November 30, 2019

“A strange alchemical phenomenon seemed to have occurred. Not only Tita’s blood, but her whole being had dissolved into the rose sauce……

Reader Question: What about using a flashback / flashforward as prologue?

Reader question via comments from Neil:

Writing as Jazz, Jazz as Writing: Part 11

Words of writing wisdom gleaned from some jazz greats.

Writing and the Creative Life: Routine or Ritual?

I am fascinated by creativity, in particular how creativity manifests itself in the wide variety of people I meet or learn about. That has…

Daily Dialogue — November 29, 2019

Madame Mallory: What is this flavor that is fighting against the chicken ? Hassan: I added some spices for flavor to the sauce, and…

Great Scene: “Get Out”

Missy hypnotizes Chris and sends him down into the Sunken Place.

If you are a beginning screenwriter…

A guide to thousands of Go Into The Story articles you can use to learn the craft… all for free!

The Business of Screenwriting: Everything You Wanted to Know About Specs [Part 9]

“Everything’s basically a lottery, but it’s not a lottery if you own all the tickets. You want to have the best team possible put together…

Daily Dialogue — November 28, 2019

“Nobody means what they say on Thanksgiving, Mom. You know that. That’s what the day’s supposed to be all about, right? Torture.”

“We will sell no wine before its time”

How a wine advertisement campaign featuring the famed writer-actor-director Orson Welles is an apt metaphor for the story-crafting process.

Script To Screen: “The Departed”

The violent elevator scene in the 2006 movie, screenplay by William Monahan.

Daily Dialogue — November 27, 2019

“What you’ve got to realize is that the clever cook puts unlikely things together, like duck and orange, like pineapple and ham. It’s…

Reprise: Emotional Logic Versus Rational Logic in Screenwriting

“J.J. Abrams and Steven Spielberg are savvy enough to know when it comes to story, what a moviegoer wants to see, what they enjoy…