4 Tips To Help Writers Brainstorm Ideas

A 4-minute video excerpt featuring… me.

I pack a lot into this video excerpt of an interview I did back in August with the fine folks at Film Courage — Karen Worden and David Branin. In just four minutes, I talk about:

• Story concepts are everywhere
• Don’t just wait for ideas to show up, be intentional
• Creative advice from a two-time Nobel Prize winner
• Keeping a story concept file
• Key questions to ask to assess the viability of a story idea
• The importance of a story’s conceit

Here is the interview excerpt:

I cannot emphasize enough the importance of your story concept. As the Hollywood film and TV business has become more and more about their marketing departments, a project with a strong, identifiable story concept is critical to its success. Don’t take my word for it. Check out these quotes:

“Most aspiring screenwriters simply don’t spend enough time choosing their concept. It’s by far the most common mistake I see in spec scripts. The writer has lost the race right from the gate. Months — sometimes years — are lost trying to elevate a film idea that by its nature probably had no hope of ever becoming a movie.”

— Terry Rossio (Aladdin, The Mask of Zorro, Shrek, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl)

“Ideas cost NOTHING and require ZERO risk. And yet, oddly, the LEAST amount of time’s usually spent in the idea stage before a small fortune is dumped on a whimsy that’s still half-baked… Ideas cost nothing yet have the potential to yield inexplicably long careers and happy lives.”

— Kevin Smith (Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Zak and Miri Make a Porno)

Be proactive. Think story ideas every day.

A spec script with a strong story concept is much more likely to resonate with potential reps or buyers.

There’s more of the interview to come over the next few weeks, so check out the video clips at Film Courage. Let me know if you agree, disagree, or if you learned anything from the conversation.

Twitter: @filmcourage