Scott Myers

Screenwriting News (June 17-June 23, 2019)

The week’s writing deals and movie project news.

“The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek”

Wisdom on creativity from Joseph Campbell and Carl Jung.

Script to Screen: “Three Kings”

From the 1999 movie Three Kings, screenplay by David O. Russell, story by John Ridley.

Screenwriting Advice From The Past: The Kinds Of Stories That Sell [Part 4]

“Few people like to cry, but every one likes to laugh. Therefore, the story with many laughs has a hundred fold better chance than the one…

Video: Deconstructing Billy Wilder

In this Season 7 episode of the PBS series “On Story,” movie and TV writers reflect on the great writer-director of such classic movies as…

Daily Dialogue — June 23, 2019

“Tomorrow, we goes into battle. So Lordy, let me fight with the rifle in one hand, and the Good Book in the other. So that if I may die at…

Screenwriting Advice From The Past: The Kinds Of Stories That Sell [Part 3]

“The exhibitor wants the sort of story that can be exploited from the box office point of view, for a photoplay that does not lend itself…

What role does formal education have toward working as a screenwriter?

How important is college or film school for a writer trying to break into Hollywood?

Black List writers on the craft: Theme

“Every writer has their own life experiences, their own point of view, so the way they see the world often dictates the theme.”

Daily Dialogue theme next week: Telephone Call

Join the Daily Dialogue crew: 4,055 consecutive days and counting.

Interview (Video): Danny Boyle and Richard Curtis

A conversation with the screenwriter and director of the new movie Yesterday.

Daily Dialogue — June 22, 2019

“What have I done?”

What is the conflict in the scene?

Fact: There is almost nothing less entertaining than a scene with zero conflict and the characters all in agreement with each other.

Writing a Logline for a Character Driven Drama

“Who’s your Protagonist? What is the distinctive issue they’re confronting, the source of their conflict? What is at the emotional core of…

Black List writers on the craft: Theme (Part 5)

“The good news is that, in talented writers, I think theme comes out organically. It’s not something you have to force. But it is something…

Script To Screen: “There’s Something About Mary”

One of the most memorable scenes from the 1998 comedy There’s Something About Mary [screenplay by Ed Decter & John J. Strauss and Peter…

Writing and the Creative Life: 4 Tips On Creativity From The Creator Of Calvin & Hobbes

I saw this article in Fast Company a while back and in reading it, I realized how important comic strips have been in my adult life…

Daily Dialogue — June 21, 2019

Kilgore: Smell that? You smell that? Lance: What? Kilgore: Napalm, son. Nothing else in the world smells like that. [kneels] I love the…

Carl Jung on the structure of dreams

Subconscious stories revealed in our sleep in four acts.

Black List writers on the craft: Theme (Part 4)

“If I think too much about what my themes are, it becomes laborious, over the top, like hitting you over the head.”

Reader Question: How and when is it okay to use voice-over narration?

The supposed Hollywood conventional wisdom is NOT to use V.O. narration.

What are you afraid of?

The single greatest inhibitor to creativity is fear. Do you recognize any of these voices?

The Business of Screenwriting: 24/7/365

When you’re a writer, you’re basically never NOT working.

Daily Dialogue — June 20, 2019

Bull Meechum: Okay, hogs. I’ve listened to you bellyache about moving to this new town. This said bellyaching will end as of 15:30 hours…

Tweetstorm: Monica Beletsky on Writing a One-Hour TV Drama Script

“This is NOT a how-to. This is just what works for me.”