Reader Question: What is your favorite book about screenwriting?
A question via Twitter from Damien Straker:
https://twitter.com/DStraker90/status/593614695422005248
My response: .@DStraker90 My favorite screenwriting book? I have 4. Only 1 is about screenwriting: “Adventures in the Screen Trade.” I’ll blog other 3.
Here are my four favorite books about screenwriting:
“Adventures in the Screen Trade”: Written by arguably the ‘dean’ of contemporary American screenwriting William Goldman (Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Marathon Man, The Princess Bride, Misery), and published in 1983, it was the very first book I read about the craft. While the business has changed over the years, Goldman’s insights into multiple aspects of the screenwriting trade are truthful, informed, and invaluable for any writer, aspiring or professional.
“Poetics”: The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle not only codified many of the principles which lie at the foundation of narrative form, his reflections about story are considerable and educational. You may think you know what Aristotle said through secondary sources, but if you haven’t actually read “Poetics,” you should put this at the top of your reading list. As a resource, check out the comprehensive series we did on GITS going through “Poetics” chapter by chapter, involving a host of Aristotelian experts whose commentary post to post is exceptional.
“In the Blink of an Eye”: Written by famed movie editor and sound designer Walter Murch (The Conversation, Apocalypse Now, The English Patient) and published in 2001, this is one of the best ‘screenwriting’ books I’ve ever read. It gets you thinking about visual storytelling in a way no book on writing does, at least that I’ve read. Plus it opens your eyes to the importance of key aspects of the craft like scene transitions, scene construction, cross-cutting between subplots, and on and on. Murch writes from an editor’s viewpoint, but his insights are directly applicable to screenwriting.
“Making Movies”: Written by esteemed director Sidney Lumet (12 Angry Men, Dog Day Afternoon, Network, The Verdict) and first published in 1995, this is perhaps the single best book on filmmaking there is in that it covers the gamut, both memoir of Lumet’s 40 plus years in the business and the craft and making of movie. While screenwriters may tend to sit in a room all day, it behooves us to know about the actual filmmaking process, and this book provides a detailed overview of most of those aspects, wrapped up in anecdote after anecdote from Lumet’s long and stories career.
But Scott, what about all those dozens and dozens of books about the craft by so-called screenwriting ‘gurus’?
If you benefit from them, fine. Hey, it’s your time and money. But my advice: Go to the primary sources instead. Interviews with professional screenwriters, many of which you can find here, here, here and here. Read their screenplays, which you can do here. Analyze their screenplays, like here. Watch their movies. Much better in my view to immerse yourself in the world of cinema and learn what you can from your direct connection with writers and filmmakers themselves.
If, however, you want to read some screenwriting books, I recommend the four listed above. Even though three of the four aren’t directly about screenwriting, if you have eyes to see, you will glean much in the way of insight into the craft from their pages.
Have you read any of these four books? If so, what’s your reaction to them? And if you have other recommendations, feel free to post in comments.
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