Scott Myers

Dumb Little Writing Tricks That Work: Altered States

Mark Twain is supposed to have said, “Write drunk, edit sober.” And I suspect throughout history, a goodly percentage of writers have never strayed far from some sort of hooch, firewater, or cobra piss. Understandable I suppose because a few glasses of vino can shut up our Internal Editor — “You

Spec Script Deal: “Ida Tarbell”

Amazon Studio acquires 2015 Black List script “Ida Tarbell” written by Mark McDevitt. From Deadline: …the script follows Tarbell as she digs into the Rockefeller oil empire through public documents to unearth the truth behind Standard Oil. Rockefeller would find himself against a formidable foe, the 45-year-old teacher

Screenwriting 101: Stephen Chin

“I’m an outsider, I didn’t go to film school, I didn’t grow up in Beverly Hills. But outsiders have other gifts. You have other insights, by virtue of the fact that you have lived in other worlds.” — Stephen Chin (New York Times, Aug. 12, 2016)

Daily Dialogue — August 16, 2016

“I’m Kate, um, I’m… an alcoholic. Haha. I’m sorry I don’t mean to laugh, um, just those words are… weird. Um… I mean I guess I… yeah, I don’t know if I’m an alcoholic really. I just drink, I drink a lot. And, um…

Style = Voice

Start with this question: Who tells your story? Obviously, when you sit down to create a screenplay, you write the story. But when a manager, producer, agent, or studio executive reads your script, who tells your story to them? It is someone who remains largely invisible, but whose presence is

Interview: Brooke Buffington and Maddy Curley (“Chalk It Up”)

A few years ago when I was teaching at the University of North Carolina, I met a couple of Carolina alums, Brooke Buffington and Maddy Curley when the duo participated in one of my Quest Writing Workshops. They are talented writers, engaging personalities, and passionate about movies and storytelling. This

Go Into The Story Script Reading & Analysis: The Incredibles

Last week, we have been reading, analyzing, and discussing the script and movie The Incredibles, written and directed by Brad Bird. IMDb plot summary: A family of undercover superheroes, while trying to live the quiet suburban life, are forced into action to save the world. Check out each of the

On Writing

“You don’t choose a story, it chooses you.” — Robert Penn Warren

Daily Dialogue — August 15, 2016

TWO-BEARS: Kid! Aw, Kid, what a time for you to fall off the wagon. Look at your eyes! SHELLEEN: What’s wrong with my eyes? TWO-BEARS: Well…well, they’re red. Bloodshot. SHELLEEN: You ought to see ’em from my side. TWO-BEARS: We’re countin’ on ya,

Screenwriting News (August 8-August 14, 2016)

This week’s writing deals and movie project news. David Bruckner adapting horror novel “The Ritual” for The Imaginarium. Joel Carpenter options script “The Ridge” Imprint Entertainment Brady Corbet writing “Vox Lux” for Killer Films, Inc., Corbet will also direct and star. Eisa Davis writig untitled Angela Davis project for

Interview (Written): Richard Kelly (“Donnie Darko,” “Southland Tales”)

A Denver Post interview with Richard Kelly, writer-director of Donnie Darko, Southland Tales, and The Box. Q: There’s a strong element of dark humor in your films, but I hardly ever see you praised for it. How important is it for you as a filmmaking tool? A: It’

Spec Script Deal: “The Ridge”

Imprint Entertainment options film rights to the memoir “Two Wars” and the spec script adaptation “The Ridge” written by Joel Carpenter. From Deadline: …story about the Battle of Takur Ghar which told of the daring rescue of a fallen Navy Seal behind enemy lines has been featured on NBC’s

Interview (Written): Mike Birbiglia (“Don’t Think Twice”)

A Script magazine interview with Mike Birbiglia, writer-director and actor in the movie Don’t Think Twice: Script: In the film’s improv scenes, the performers ritually ask the audience, “Has anyone had a particularly hard day?” Is this an actual prompt for audience suggestions used in improv circles?

Daily Dialogue — August 14, 2016

Riley is on the verge of tears after attempting to run away back to Minnesota after feeling very homesick. Riley: I… I know you don’t want me to, but… I miss home. I miss Minnesota. You need me to be happy, but I want my old friends, and my

Daily Dialogue theme for next week: Alcoholism

The Daily Dialogue theme for next week: Alcoholism. The Lost Weekend (1945) A slew of movies about alcoholism which you can see here, but you can expand the range of possibilities by recalling characters who themselves are addicts in stories which aren’t focused on this theme. Let’s see

Script Analysis: “The Incredibles” — Part 6: Takeaways

Reading scripts. Absolutely critical to learn the craft of screenwriting. The focus of this weekly series is a deep structural and thematic analysis of each script we read. Our daily schedule: Monday: Scene-By-Scene Breakdown Tuesday: Plot Wednesday: Characters Thursday: Themes Friday: Dialogue Saturday: Takeaways Today: Takeaways. This week,

Saturday Hot Links

Time for the 250th installment of Saturday Hot Links, your week’s essential reading about movies, TV, streaming, Hollywood, and other things of writerly interest. New York Film Festival Loads 2016 Main Slate With Festival-Circuit Favorites. Why Are So Many Modern Movie Villains So Bad And Boring? Why has

Interview (Written): Charlie Kaufman

A Criterion interview with screenwriter Charlie Kaufman (Being John Malkovich, Adaptation, and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind): What are the main differences between writing a screenplay for someone else to direct and directing your own screenplay yourself? With the exception of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), I

Interview (Written): Taylor Sheridan (“Hell or High Water”)

A WGA interview with actor (“Sons of Anarchy”) turned screenwriter Taylor Sheridan whose writing credits include two movies: Sicario and Hell or High Water: Many actors have confided that the only power they really have is the power of choice — what will they say yes to, what will they turn

Daily Dialogue — August 13, 2016

“I had always heard your entire life flashes in front of your eyes the second before you die. First of all, that one second isn’t a second at all, it stretches on forever, like an ocean of time… For me, it was lying on my back at Boy Scout

“How I wrote the script for Groundhog Day in less than a week”

In a recent Guardian article, screenwriter Danny Rubin reflects on writing Groundhog Day: One afternoon back in 1990, I was sitting in a cinema in Los Angeles waiting for the lights to go down. My wife Louise was at home with the baby, so my companion that day was a

Script Analysis: “The Incredibles” — Part 5: Dialogue

Reading scripts. Absolutely critical to learn the craft of screenwriting. The focus of this weekly series is a deep structural and thematic analysis of each script we read. Our daily schedule: Monday: Scene-By-Scene Breakdown Tuesday: Plot Wednesday: Characters Thursday: Themes Friday: Dialogue Saturday: Takeaways Today: Dialogue Written and

Writing and the Creative Life: “The hard is what makes it great”

Jimmy Dugan: Taking a little day trip? Dottie Hinson: No, Bob and I are driving home. To Oregon. Jimmy Dugan: [long pause] You know, I really thought you were a ballplayer. Dottie Hinson: Well, you were wrong. Jimmy Dugan: Was I? Dottie Hinson: Yeah. It is only a game, Jimmy.

Daily Dialogue — August 12, 2016

SLAKE: This you knows. I be First Tracker, and times past count I done the Tell. But it weren’t me that tumbled Walker. It was Savannah. So it only right that she take the Tell. SAVANNAH: This ain’t one body’s story. It’s the story of us

Writing Mantra: “Trust the Process”

“Trust the process.” This is probably my favorite writing mantra. It’s both practical and spiritual, which pretty sums up my experience of the act of writing. There is prep-writing (brainstorming, research, generating plot elements, developing characters, story structure, scene breakdowns, outline), then there is page-writing (type FADE