Interview (Part 6:) David L. Williams

My interview with 2022 Black List writer for his script Clementine.

David L. Williams wrote the screenplay Clementine which landed on the 2022 Black List. I had the opportunity to chat with David about his creative background, writing a Black List script, and the craft of screenwriting.

Today in Part 6 of a 6-part series to run each day through Sunday, David provides some advise to aspiring screenwriters.

Scott: You said, occasionally you may do a little biography or whatnot. How do you go about finding those characters? Is it more through the actual act of writing or do you front‑load a bit of that by spending time with them? If so, what do you do to locate and find and get those voices and stuff?

David: Awesome question. As cheesy as it may sound, I find that I have the most success when I’m discovering things about the character. It’s like the observation factor never stops. Yes, I use the observations that I’ve had to imbue characters. When I’m writing, I usually have a good sense, especially the protagonist. I know the main character before I even start.

I do a lot of discovery. As I go along, it’s all in my head, the things I want to see. Then I dig for reasons, I ask my characters questions, I do a little psychoanalysis. Then once I get those answers or if I know why I can’t get those answers, those kinds of things help with creating the characters.

One of my favorite things is to give characters a belief system ‑‑ what do they believe in and what are their principles. Those kinds of things will veer their actions and what they say and how they talk. I feel like that’s the case for a lot of people in real life, that you can associate a belief system to a specific person.

That helps me a lot. That’s the kind of thing that helps me write characters.

Scott: Do you ever think about theme?

David: I do think about theme. I don’t let a lack of a theme keep me from starting the writing process. I feel like I always end up with a theme, even if I didn’t set out to project something.

You remember how I said that a tone or a mood can get me excited for it. A concept, a lot of times, the theme will also have the same effect, where…for instance, I have a script called Intergalactic. It has a director attached. It’s about this teenage boy who can move objects in outer space. It’s a drama. It’s very much like Spectacular Now, or Perks of Being a Wallflower. It’s coming of age.

I was excited, yes, by the visuals, him being able to move planets across the sky and all that stuff, and the indie tone of those movies I talked about. One of the things I got excited about is, “Oh, you know what, maybe the chaos he’s sowing in the stars can represent something that’s happening within him.”

That’s the kind of thing that made me even more excited to start a project, and I know the theme and I go in with that.

There are other times where I’m just writing something entertaining. By the end of it, I’m like, wait a minute, this is about this. I’ve noticed that this is about this. When I go on to subsequent drafts, I try to pull that out more and make it more solidified and that kind of thing.

Sometimes, I don’t set out specifically to try and hammer in some theme, but I feel like I always end up with something, whether it’s before I start writing or after.

Scott: What are your goals when you’re writing a scene?

David: Oh, wow. I don’t think every scene has to be like this, but I feel like some of the best scenes are ones that have beginning, middle, and end.

Depending on the story you’re telling or what you’re trying to accomplish, it can be very cool if your scenes feel like their own stories, if they can hold up on their own. For me, what I like to do, I have the momentum from one line of description to the next. I try to have that continuity as well.

I try to have this connectivity between scenes to keep the flow going, which ties into the whole entertainment value, to be honest. It’s a flow thing for me. That’s what I try to focus on when I’m creating a scene.

Scott: Do you ever think you want to direct?

David: Probably not. I won’t completely rule it out. I am a writer through and through. [laughs] If there’s a very specific project, the same way that I’m certain there’s aliens out there in the universe, I’m certain that there’s a script out there somewhere that, if I read it, I’d be like, “I would direct this.”

Scott: The reason I ask is that you’re not only a very visual writer, but even the way that you strip out individual paragraphs, they suggest like, “Oh, that’s a camera shot. That’s the camera shot,” but not using camera lingo. No jargon, but it reads like that on the page.

David: I try to make my writing feel like a movie as much as I possibly can. Over the years, I’ve developed my own ways, whether it be through voice or just shear craftsmanship and practice, of being able to hold the reader’s hand. Basically, sit them down in a movie theater, and have them watch the movie.

I feel like there’s so many screenplays that feel like scripts. They don’t feel like movies. In many cases, obviously, that’s fine. Personally, I prefer that my screenplay feels like a movie. That’s why I’m doing that.

Scott: One last question for you. You meet an aspiring writer, like you’re at the Austin Film Festival or someplace. They come up to you, and they say, “Hey, so what’s some advice that you have for me to learn the craft, and try and break into the business?” What would some of your advice be?

David: I am a huge proponent of persistence, and also always writing as though the next script is going to help you in your career. When you’re done with that script, then continue the next one as though that’s the one that’s going to help you in your career. [laughs] I’m never satisfied, basically. To a healthy degree, I would suggest that writers try to write with that mentality.

Don’t think that you’re done just because you’ve finished a script, and stuff like that, or just because you’ve placed in a contest or anything. You have to have that relentlessness and drive. The one super‑cheesy, cliché piece of advice I always give is to keep writing. Keep churning stuff out. Don’t be afraid to generate ideas, write them down, and experiment with stuff as well.

That’s super important because, in this industry, a lot times, people depend on writers for the extra ideas, or to bring ideas to something that they’re already working on, even IP. You have to start making it your own. Keep writing. Be relentless. Please, no matter what, write like you’re dissatisfied all the time. That’s my opinion. That’s what works for me.

For Part 1 of the interview, go here.

Part 2, go here.

Part 3, go here.

Part 4, go here.

Part 5, go here.

David is repped by Verve and Gramercy Park Entertainment.

Twitter: @storytellerdave

Instagram: @davidgem

For my interviews with dozens of other Black List writers, go here.