Go Into The Story

Daily Dialogue — January 11, 2019

“ Hello Peter, what’s happening? Ummm, I’m gonna need you to go ahead come in tomorrow. So if you could be here around 9 that would be…

Re the Michael Arndt 90 minute video on Endings, here is my interview with Mike and a link to that…

LINK

Thanks, everyone, for your observations and reflections about the characters in AQP.

One of the strengths of this movie is one enters into the lives of Lee, Evelyn, Regan, and to a lesser degree Marcus as Protagonist…

Reader Question: How insane is it for a 46 year-old to try to start a Hollywood writing career?

It’s crazy, but then it’s crazy for ANYONE to expect to break into the business.

Script Analysis: “A Quiet Place” — Part 4: Themes

Read the script for the hit horror movie and analyze it all this week.

2019 Dialogue-Writing Challenge: Day 8

A chance for you to work on your dialogue chops and win free prizes!

The Business of Screenwriting: The power of “no”

In the event you break into the business as a screenwriter, you need to be prepared to say this word: “No.”

Daily Dialogue — January 10, 2019

Sheldrake: Look, Baxter, I’m not stupid. I know everything that goes on in this building — in every department — on every floor — every day…

Reader Question: What’s the best way to approach pitching?

There’s not one way to pitch, but this way works.

Script Analysis: “A Quiet Place” — Part 3: Characters

Read the script for the hit horror movie and analyze it all this week.

2019 Dialogue-Writing Challenge: Day 7

A chance for you to work on your dialogue chops and win free prizes!

Script To Screen: “Midnight Cowboy”

The last scenes from the 1969 movie Midnight Cowboy, screenplay by Waldo Salt, novel by James Leo Herlihy.

Daily Dialogue — January 9, 2019

Ed Masry: You’re emotional, you’re erratic. You say anything, you make this personal, and it isn’t. Erin Brockovich: Not personal? That is…

Thanks, Mark and Cameron.

Re plot points and act breaks: We can get so hung up on these when a good story should feel organic. When Cameron wrote this:

Story Summaries: From Loglines to Beat Sheets

Learn six different types of story summaries and how to use them to develop your scripted projects.

Script Analysis: “A Quiet Place” — Part 2: Plot

Read the script for the hit horror movie and analyze it all this week.

2019 Dialogue-Writing Challenge: Day 6

A chance for you to work on your dialogue chops and win free prizes!

Screenwriting 101: Stephanie Shannon

“I think it’s important to just sit down and to do it. That was my biggest obstacle I had to overcome, was that it took me years to…

Daily Dialogue — January 8, 2019

“You think when I was a kid I dreamed of running a fucking chemical company? No. I dreamed of retiring. Of being fed tropical fruit on a…

I’m waiting on my article on First Reformed as well!

Re Chayefsky: If you haven’t seen Network, please do yourself a favor and watch that movie. It’s a brilliant satire which is as relevant…

Thanks for those comments, Mark, and I’m glad you enjoyed doing the scene-by-scene breakdown.

There is an important lesson here for aspiring screenwriters: The trend nowadays is NOT to include camera shots and directing jargon. Why…

Script Analysis: “A Quiet Place” — Part 1: Scene By Scene Breakdown

Read the script for the hit horror movie and analyze it all this week.

2019 Dialogue-Writing Challenge: Day 5

A chance for you to work on your dialogue chops and win free prizes!

Daily Dialogue theme next week: Boss

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On Writing

“Usually, a story is triggered by a notion I have of a character in a particular situation, and the various reactions that character might…