Rewriting Your Script (Part 8): Revision Outline
In November, upward to 1,000 writers — myself included — took a crack at pounding out a script as part of the Zero Draft Thirty Challenge. Many of them reached FADE OUT / THE END. They’re probably like me, staring at my 86 pages of diamonds-in-the-rough amidst pages and pages of verbal manure pondering this question: How the hell do I rewrite this mess?
So I thought it would be helpful to do a GITS series on the rewrite process.
The first thing to acknowledge is that the same thing applies to rewriting as to writing: If there is no right way to write, there is no right way to rewrite. Every writer is different. Every story is different. And every rewrite is different.
That said, this week and next, I will lay out some keys to the rewriting process. If they help you, great. Use them with my blessing. If they don’t help you, feel free to chuck them… and find your own way.
But know this: Starting January 1, I invite you to join me in Rewrite Draft Thirty One: 31 days devoted to rewriting an original script. Hashtag: #RW31SCRIPT.
I will be hacking my way through my zero draft. If you have a draft from the recent ZD30 challenge or any script in need of revision regardless of its origin, mark your calendar. Take part in a communal effort to take our stories to the next level in this time-defined challenge.
Part 8: Revision Outline
Thus far in the rewrite process, you have done the following:
- A Clean Read: You have gone through your script page by page, line by line, highlighting areas you think work and those that need work.
- Character and Theme: You aggregated a list of all your story’s characters and themes, then analyzed each of them in relation to the overall story.
- Structure and Pace: You created a Scene-By-Scene Breakdown to give you a visual perspective on your script’s structure [Plotline & Themeline] and its pace [scene to scene, transitions].
Now you are ready for the final step in preparation for your rewrite: Revision Outline.
I’m not going to wade into any suggestions in terms of structural paradigms. Whatever screenwriting guru or personal approach to which you subscribe, great. Use that as a way of wrangling your outline into shape.
One area I will emphasize is this: Subplots.
The key to subplots is to track the relationships between Primary characters and Secondary characters, especially those who intersect with the Protagonist.
Here are some examples of subplots in movies:
The Wizard of Oz
Plotline: Dorothy travels to Oz and seeks to return home to Kansas.
Subplots:
- Dorothy’s relationship with Hunk (Scarecrow), Hickory (Tin Man), and Zeke (Cowardly Lion)
- Dorothy’s relationship with Auntie Em
- Dorothy’s relationship with Miss Gulch (Wicked Witch of the West)
- Dorothy’s relationship with Professor Marvel (Wizard of Oz)
The Apartment
Plotline: Baxter pursues career advancement by allowing co-workers to use his apartment for their romantic trysts.
Subplots:
- Baxter’s relationship with Dobisch, Kirkeby, Eichelberger, and Vanderhoff
- Baxter’s relationship with Fran Kubelik
- Baxter’s relationship with Dr. Dreyfus
- Fran’s relationship with Sheldrake
- Sheldrake’s relationship with his wife
- Miss Olsen’s story
- Fran’s brother-in-law Karl Matuschka’s story
The Dark Knight
Plotline: Batman versus Joker for the soul and safety of Gotham City.
Subplots:
- Bruce Wayne’s relationship with Rachel
- Bruce Wayne’s relationship with Harvey Dent
- Bruce Wayne’s relationship with Alfred
- Bruce Wayne’s relationship with Lucius
- Joker’s relationship with Harvey Dent
- Rachel’s relationship with Harvey Dent
- Batman’s relationship with Gordon
- Joker’s relationship with the local mob
- Lau’s story
- Coleman Reese’s story
Identify each of your story’s subplots. Make sure each has a Beginning, Middle and Ending arc. This does not mean the subplot only has three scenes — a subplot can have as many as 10 or even more scenes. Rather Beginning, Middle and Ending means there is a natural flow of the scenes in the subplot that advance its particular narrative.
Once you have figured out the B-M-E of each subplot, then you can work on cross-cutting between them in your Revision Outline.
Using your scene-by-scene breakdown as your starting point, you work and rework and rework some more your story. Me? I start from the beginning and ‘tell’ the story over and over until it flows one scene to the next. If something isn’t clicking, I work on that section of the story until it does work.
Bottom line: The Revision Outline should feel like a movie.
When it does, you are ready to start rewriting your script pages from FADE IN.
Bring the same energy and drive you did to pounding out your first draft because you know what? Your second draft is going to need rewriting as well. But if you’ve done your homework, you will be getting closer and closer to where your script needs to be.
This entire process from Clean Read to Revision Outline? You can do that for a third, fourth, whatever number of drafts.
Finally you are getting there, your script feels like it’s on its way. Time for the next step: The Polish. That is the subject of tomorrow’s post.
Part 7: Scene-By-Scene Breakdown
DON’T FORGET! Starting January 1, you are welcome to join me in #RW31SCRIPT, a month-long challenge to rewrite an original script from FADE IN to FADE OUT. Who’s with me? If you’re into it, join the Zero Draft Thirty Facebook page here.