Go Into The Story

Negative Fear, Positive Fear

“Fear of writing, understandable, but a negative influence. However, fear of NOT writing and what that prospect could mean, that can be a…

Interview (Part 3): Sean Malcolm

My interview with the 2019 Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting winner.

The Business of Screenwriting: Don’t stand in water where you should be fishing

I use fishing as a metaphor for one’s approach to screenwriting. Seriously.

Daily Dialogue — February 20, 2020

“Write me well.”

The Power of Conflict in Storytelling

We have all heard the old saying, “You can’t have drama without conflict.” Yet the power of conflict in storytelling extends beyond merely…

Interview (Part 2): Sean Malcolm

My interview with the 2019 Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting winner.

Script to Screen: “Joker”

Joker kills Murray on live TV in the 2019 movie, written by Todd Phillips & Scott Silver, based on characters by Bob Kane, Bill Finger…

Daily Dialogue — February 19, 2020

Frodo: Sam, I must go, I was a ring bearer, you will never truly know what it did to me.

“Momentum is the midwife of creativity.

I like that!

Write. Every. Day. The single best piece of advice I’ve ever received and given.

Second best piece of advice: Finish what you start. Or as I like to say about a first draft: Get the damn thing done!

Great Scene: “Alien”

The famous “chestburster” scene from the 1979 horror science fiction movie.

Interview (Part 1): Sean Malcolm

My interview with the 2019 Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting winner.

Screenwriting 101: Charles Randolph

“I like the experience of reading to feel like an experience of film. So I use spacing, add more air for a scene that should move quickly…

Daily Dialogue — February 18, 2020

Jesse: Listen, all this bull shit about us not seeing each other again. I don’t want to do that. Celine: I don’t want to do that either…

Q&A: Meg Gardiner

My conversation with the Edgar-winning novelist about the craft of writing, how she won ‘Jeopardy’ three times, why she is an “escaped…

Scene Description Spotlight: Express Your Voice

On February 24, I’ll be offering a terrific one-week online class. It’s called Scene Description Spotlight which sounds super practical…

2020 Zero Draft Thirty March Challenge!

One month. Fade In. Fade Out. Write an entire zero draft.

On Writing

“The way I see writing is it’s a long process of terror punctuated by periods of intense, unsurpassed pleasure. Because you’ve dealt with…

Daily Dialogue — February 17, 2020

“Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn.”

The Theology of Cinema: Redemption

“Metaphorically bondage can translate into being tied to some event or circumstance in the past, a character bound to it emotionally, even…

Go Into The Story Script Reading & Analysis: “1917”

The entire 6 part series delving into the award-winning World War I drama.

Great Scene: “Amadeus”

Compare screenplay to screen: The wondrous scene in which Mozart dictates the Requiem Mass to Salieri.

Interview: Bong Joon Ho

Several interviews with the writer-director of Parasite which won 4 Academy Awards: Best Film, Best Foreign Film, Best Director, Best…

Daily Dialogue — February 16, 2020

“Hello, Travis.”

Script Analysis: ‘1917’ — Part 6: Takeaway

Read the script for the award-winning war drama and analyze all week.