Go Into The Story

2024 Zero Draft Thirty March Challenge: Story Prep — Character Development

A series to help prepare writers for next month’s Zero Draft Thirty writing challenge.

Character-Driven Storytelling

Read the entire Twitter thread of my conversation with the #scriptchat community.

On Writing

“Simply this: you sit down and make a list of the ten things that have to happen in your novel — the character actions or physical events…

Page One: “1408” (2007)

Screenplay by Matt Greenberg and Scott Alexander & Larry Karaszewski, short story by Stephen King

Thanks for that appreciation of Logan's Run ...

Like the movie "Mad Max: Fury Road." So much of those eye-popping moments are practical effects, which makes the movie all that more…

Reader Question: What makes a movie a big budget versus small?

There are choices a writer can make at the script stage which directly influence a project’s budget … and its potential viability for…

The Theology of Cinema: Purgatory

“If we look at purgatory metaphorically, a circumstance in which the visitor must suffer in the ‘furnace of affliction in order to…

Video: A Conversation with Martin Scorsese

Hosted by filmmaker Edgar Wright.

Page One: “22 Jump Street” (2014)

Screenplay by Michael Bacall and Oren Uziel and Rodney Rothman, story by Michael Bacall & Jonah Hill

Reader Question: Are there any script rules that really shouldn’t be broken?

Or this: “How can you break screenwriting rules if there are none?”

Script To Screen: “Erin Brockovich”

A compelling scene from the 2000 movie Erin Brockovich, written by Susannah Grant.

Video: Christopher Nolan in Conversation

A BFI hosted 45-minute Q&A with the noted filmmaker.

Page One: “2010: The Year We Make Contact” (1984)

Screenplay by Peter Hyams, novel by Arthur C. Clarke

2024 Zero Draft Thirty March Challenge: Story Prep — Genre Bend

A series to help prepare writers for next month’s Zero Draft Thirty writing challenge.

Reader Question: Should I write a science fiction script on spec or not?

I get this question occasionally, something like this:

Script To Screen: “Excalibur”

A key early scene in the 1981 movie Excalibur, screenplay by Rospo Pallenberg and John Boorman, book by Thomas Malory.

Page One: “The ‘Burbs” (1989)

Written by Dana Olsen

2024 Zero Draft Thirty March Challenge: Story Prep — Gender Bend

A series to help prepare writers for next month’s Zero Draft Thirty writing challenge.

Read all 10 WGA Award Nominated Scripts

Original Screenplays: Air, Barbie, The Holdovers, May December, Past Lives. Adapted Screenplays: American Fiction, Are You There God? It’s…

Writing Tip: Adverbs = Bad Writing?

A seemingly innocuous Stephen King quote provokes online controversy.

Page One: “Fast Times at Ridgemont High” (1982)

Written by Cameron Crowe

2024 Zero Draft Thirty March Challenge: Story Prep — Script Diary

A series to help prepare writers for next month’s Zero Draft Thirty writing challenge.

Script To Screen: “The Fabulous Baker Boys”

The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989) is a wonderful romantic comedy, written and directed by Steve Kloves who later went on to write 7 out of the…

Reader Question: Do characters “own” a scene?

Ownership is less important than underlying conflict between characters.

Page One: “Past Lives” (2023)

Written by Celine Song