Scott Myers

Writing and the Creative Life: The act of writing provides health benefits

“From long-term health improvements to short-term benefits like sleeping better, it’s official: Writers are doing something right.” Just the other day, I posted my response to this reader question: The road from unpaid screenwriter to paid screenwriter is long, winding and unpredictable. It’s not certain that

Daily Dialogue — September 18, 2014

“You think I’m funny, I’m an asshole? No no no… what’s funny is HER… what’s funny is, I had you two followed, because if it’s not you she’s sleeping with, it’s someone else… what’s funny is, when she gives you that LOOK,

Black List Live: “The Seekers of Perpetual Love” — September 20, 2014

The latest from the Black List [and another ticket giveaway]: The Black List announced that Seth Green (ROBOT CHICKEN, AUSTIN POWERS, THE ITALIAN JOB, PARTY MONSTER, FAMILY GUY) would be joining the cast of their live staged reading of THE SEEKERS OF PERPETUAL LOVE this Saturday, September 20th at 8:

An Argument Against Screenplay Formulas (Part 3): They diminish the craft of screenwriting

Ever since the beginning of the studio system era back in the 1930s, writers have had a tough slog gaining much in the way of respect in Hollywood. Movies have always been star vehicles, so actors have always had power. With the ascension of the auteur theory in the 50s,

Documentary: “Rosemary’s Baby”

A 47-minute doc from Criterion featuring interview with Roman Polanski, Mia Farrow and producer Robert Evans: Via Indiewire.

Twitter Rant: Eric Heisserer on the Screenwriter’s Creative Power

Eric Heisserer (A Nightmare on Elm Street, Final Destination 5, The Thing, Hours, Story of Your Life) is probably the Hollywood screenwriter most willing to go online and provide a Twitter rant on a specific subject related to the craft. Writer Tim Wainwright hosts a blog and has been posting

Movie Trailer: “The Guest”

Written by Simon Barrett A soldier introduces himself to the Peterson family, claiming to be a friend of their son who died in action. After the young man is welcomed into their home, a series of accidental deaths seem to be connected to his presence. IMDB Release Date: 17 September

Classic 70s Movie: “Midnight Express”

September is Classic 70s Movie month. Today’s guest post comes from Liz Warner. Movie Title: Midnight Express Year: 1978 Writer: Oliver Stone (adaptation of book by Billy Hayes) Lead Actors: Brad Davis, Irene Miracle, Bo Hopkins, Paolo Bonacelli, Paul L. Smith, Randy Quaid, Norbert Weisser, Peter Jeffrey, John Hurt

Script To Screen: “Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery”

A scene from the 1997 comedy Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, written by Mike Myers. Plot Summary: A 1960s hipster secret agent is brought out of cryofreeze to oppose his greatest enemy in the 1990s, where his social attitudes are glaringly out of place. INT. THERAPIST'S OFFICE

Daily Dialogue — September 17, 2014

EXT. WINTERSET — MAIN STREET — DAY Richard and Francesca drive up to the general store to buy groceries. Francesca heads for the store as Richard crosses the street. FRANCESCA: Want anything special for dinner? RICHARD: Hmm. How about that brown sugar meat loaf you make? FRANCESCA: (smiles) Okay. She enters the

If you have any questions…

…about the craft of screenwriting, the business of screenwriting, the meaning of life, feel free to head to comments and post them there. I’ll be happy to share my thoughts. The cool thing is often what happens is readers come along and provide more observations, so there can be

An Argument Against Screenplay Formulas (Part 2): Formulas lead to formulaic writing

David Seltzer is a longtime screenwriter who has amassed over 30 writing credits in a career stretching back to 1966 including the movies The Omen, Lucas, Punchline and Dragonfly. Here is a quote from Seltzer which I posted as part of the ongoing weekly Screenwriting 101 series: I think people

Interview [Written]: Stephen King

This goes out to all you English and creative writing teachers out there, an excellent interview this week in the Atlantic with author Stephen King with his take on teaching. Stephen King’s On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft has been a fixture in my English classroom for years,

Twitter Rant: Eric Heisserer on Drafts, Parentheticals, Respect

Tweetstorm: Eric Heisserer on Drafts, Parentheticals, Respect If you are an aspiring screenwriter, Twitter is an amazing resource. Eric Heisserer (A Nightmare on Elm Street, Final Destination 5, The Thing, Hours, Story of Your Life) is probably the Hollywood screenwriter most willing to go online and provide a tweetstorm on

Movie Trailer: “Ned Rifle”

Written by Hal Hartley NED RIFLE is the third and final chapter of Hal Hartley’s tragicomic epic begun with HENRY FOOL (1997, TIFF) and continued with FAY GRIM (2007). At once a saga concerning the Grim family of Queens and how their lives are turned upside down by the

Classic 70s Movie: “Young Frankenstein”

September is Classic 70s Movie month. Today’s guest post comes from Barbara Thomas. Movie Title: Young Frankenstein Year: 1974 Writers: Gene Wilder & Mel Brooks, based on the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley Lead Actors: Gene Wilder, Marty Feldman, Peter Boyle, Madeline Kahn, Teri Garr, Chloris Leachman, Gene Hackman

Screenwriting 101: Scott Rothman

“One of the big lessons I learned, when I wrote that script that got me into NYU. It wasn’t this great script, but it was definitely better than anything I had done prior. I had made a terrible movie with one of my really good friends in San Francisco

Daily Dialogue — September 16, 2014

“I tried so hard to make it go away. I thought that I could do it for you and for the kids. I can’t… I just… I can’t.” — Far From Heaven (2002), written by Todd Haynes The Daily Dialogue theme for the week: Adultery. Trivia: This was the

Reader Question: Given the odds against success, how do you keep motivated?

Question from 14shari: The road from unpaid screenwriter to paid screenwriter is long, winding and unpredictable. It’s not certain that you’ll ever be one. How can one keep yourself motivated? Shari, what you say is true. The odds against success as a screenwriter or TV writer are long.

An Argument Against Screenplay Formulas (Part 1): They are selling you a lie

When I first broke into the business in 1987, there were just a handful of books about screenwriting. Now it’s become this “thing”. You can’t walk into a Barnes & Noble in some remote outpost like Minot, North Dakota and avoid slamming into a whole section of titles

Tweetstorm: Eric Heisserer on Minimalist Screenwriting Style

“Find the most powerful word and use it.” Back when Twitter was fun, screenwriters would sometimes string together a series of tweets - what came to be known as "tweetstorms." Advice, personal anecdotes, reflections on the craft. It was pretty awesome. The only problem: Once the tweetstorm came ... it

Movie Trailer: “Young Ones”

Written by Jake Paltrow Set in the future when water is hard to find a teenage boy sets out to protect his family and survive. IMDB Release Date: 17 October 2014 (USA)

Classic 70s Movie: “All the President’s Men”

September is Classic 70s Movie month. Today’s guest post comes from Arnaud Talaia. Title: All the President’s Men Year: 1976 Writers: Carl Bernstein & Bob Woodward ( authors of the book) / William Goldman (screenwriter) Lead Actors: Robert Redford & Dustin Hoffman Director: Alan J. Pakula IMDB Plot Summary: Reporters

On Writing

“I write because I don’t know what I think until I read what I say.” — Flannery O’Connor

Daily Dialogue — September 15, 2014

“Well, what am I supposed to do? You won’t answer my calls, you change your number. I mean, I’m not going to be ignored, Dan!” — Fatal Attraction (1987), written by James Dearden The Daily Dialogue theme for the week: Adultery. Trivia: When Glenn Close finally secured the part