Go Into The Story

Black List writers on the craft: Story Concept

“It comes from a place of some question or theme I want to explore. And then, just by keeping my eyes peeled– listening to music or reading…

Screenwriting Advice From The Past: The Kinds Of Stories That Sell [Part 5]

“The amateur must always remember that people go to the motion picture theater to forget their troubles and become young again in a world…

Daily Dialogue theme next week: Movie Theater

Join the Daily Dialogue crew: 4,062 consecutive days and counting.

Interview (Written): Richard Curtis

The noted screenwriter talks about his latest movie Yesterday.

Daily Dialogue — June 29, 2019

“You know, certain words and phrases just keep drifting through my mind. Things like, incarceration, cavity search, death by electrocution…

Werner Herzog calls three-act structure “brainless”. Is it?

The famous writer-director is teaching an online filmmaking class and his comments about three-act structure are noteworthy.

Subplots: Part 5

Subplots, Relationships and Character Functions in the movie Up.

Black List writers on the craft: Story Concepts (Part 5)

“It starts with a character, and then an arc, and then I build the story around that arc.”

Keys to Screenwriting: Brainstorming

“If you keep asking questions, they help you go deeper and deeper into your brainstorming process.”

Writing and the Creative Life: 18 Things Highly Creative People Do Differently

Are you creative? Chances are you do some things differently.

Daily Dialogue — June 28, 2019

“I have never done anything for anybody who couldn’t do something for me. I string along an eager kid with promises I’ll pay him money. I…

Reader Question: How to know which characters to keep and which to cut?

If you know a character’s narrative function and that function is essential to tell your story, keep them. If not…

Subplots: Part 4

Back to the Future is a master class in subplots.

Hero’s Journey as Psychological Journey

When we think of the Hero’s Journey, what comes to mind is a geographical adventure. The Heroine starts out in their Ordinary World…

Black List writers on the craft: Story Concepts (Part 4)

“I really think that ultimately any story idea I ever come up with comes directly from an emotional experience. Your stories are already in…

The Business of Screenwriting: Act Two Blues

The weird synergy between the Protagonist’s suffering in the middle of their story… and that writer’s life.

Daily Dialogue — June 27, 2019

“Hello? Hello. Hello. Hello? Hello.”

7 Character Development Keys

Start with character. End with character. Find the story in between.

Subplots: Part 3

Imagine each subplot. Track each subplot’s ‘plot’. Place subplot beats in appropriate narrative ‘spots’.

Need writing inspiration? Go to an airport

All those arrivals and departures represent a non-stop flow of stories.

Black List writers on the craft: Story Concepts (Part 3)

“I listen to people talking about life when I’m out. Little seeds can come out of overhearing people. Even if it doesn’t launch an idea for…

Script To Screen: “The Thin Man”

A scene in the first in a series of successful Thin Man movies and, of course, it features drinking alcohol… or the aftermath thereof.

Daily Dialogue — June 26, 2019

“I can’t stay too long, they’ll come looking for me. Dr. Hill… Dr. Hill, there’s a plot. I know that sounds crazy, you’re probably…

Subplots: Part 2

A series on a critical narrative element in any screenplay and analysis of the movies Casablanca, Die Hard, and The Shawshank Redemption.

How much is enough backstory?

An analysis of the movie ‘Taxi Driver’.