Screenwriting articles
Comedy's Greatest Wish by Stuart Voytilla
This article posted with permission from The Writers Store. (http://writersstore.com)
Comedy has always taken a supporting role to the more serious Hollywood genres. During this awards season, it’s easy to recognize the year’s great dramas and epics; however, 2003 was a good year for well-written comedy and romantic comedy. And...
How The Great Story Does Its Work by James Bonnet
This article posted with permission from The Writers Store. (http://writersstore.com)
The purpose of story, as I see it, is to guide us to our full potential and the nature of story is to conceal that purpose in an enticing sugar coat (the entertainment dimensions) that lures us into the experience....
Finding the Right Writing Partner by Claudia Johnson & Matt Stevens
This article posted with permission from The Writers Store. (http://writersstore.com)
Some of the greatest movies and TV series have been written by script partners, from Billy Wilder’s legendary collaborations with Charles Brackett and I.A.L. Diamond to the Academy Award-winning work of the Coen Brothers. Each year the list of script...
Beyond Theme: Story's New Unified Field by James Bonnet
What is the true source of unity in a great story and how is that unity achieved? According to the dictionary, unity is the state of being one. And today it is generally agreed that a story should be about one thing ’ but what is that one thing? Is...
Beyond Theme: Story's New Unified Field - Part II by James Bonnet
This article posted with permission from The Writers Store. (http://writersstore.com)
In Part I of this series (read Part I here), I began an examination of the true source of unity in a great story and how that unity can be achieved. I introduced you to four of the elements that...
The Power And Importance Of Human Connection To A Great Screenplay by Claudia Johnson
This article posted with permission from The Writers Store. (http://writersstore.com)
For years I gently browbeat my students. ‘Dig deeper,’ I said. ‘The best stories are about the human heart.’
I wasn’t quite sure what I meant. I knew I didn’t mean that old Hollywood saw ’ throw in some love...
Beyond Theme: Story's New Unified Field - Part III by James Bonnet
This article posted with permission from The Writers Store. (http://writersstore.com)
In the first two parts of this series I began an examination of the true source of unity in a great story and how that unity can be achieved. I introduced you to eight of the elements that can influence...
Top Ten Reasons to Write with a Partner by Claudia Johnson & Matt Stevens
This article posted with permission from The Writers Store. (http://writersstore.com)
Want to double your chance for success in this business? If so, we strongly suggest you write with a partner. Yes, you have to find the right person, and when you start selling your scripts, you’ll split the money, but...
The Real Key to a Writer's Success by James Bonnet
This article posted with permission from The Writers Store. (http://writersstore.com)
We all know how incredibly hard it is to get a screenplay produced. We have all heard talk about all the great scripts out there that never got made. And that might be true. But why is it true? If...
What's Wrong With The Three Act Structure by James Bonnet
This article posted with permission from The Writers Store. (http://writersstore.com)
The three act structure is not a story structure. You can’t find it in myths and legends or other great stories of the past and you can’t find it in nature. So why is it being applied to the screenplay...
Do You Really Want to be a Screenwriter? by Michael Hauge
This article posted with permission from The Writers Store. (http://writersstore.com)
Almost every writer and every serious film fan at one time or another has at least considered writing a screenplay. Lured by the power of the big (or small) screen, and by stories of all the fame, success, awards and...
No Limitations: The Screenwriter as Writer
by Michael Halperin
One of the myths of the motion picture industry states that screenwriters only write for the big or small screen. Somehow writers become entrenched in this head-messing idea. “My screenplay didn’t sell”…”my agent hasn’t called”…”Oh, My God, what will I do?”…”Do I have to go back to...
The economical screenwriter
by Christina Hamlett
Back when I used to run a touring theater company, there was only one rule regarding the amount of furniture and props for any given performance: If It Doesn’t Fit in the Car, It’s Not Going. (Fortunately, I was also penning all the plays the troupe performed...