Eight Weeks to a Screenplay

 

 

 

                                       DOROTHY
                           Sure, I care about the job. Of course.
                           But mostly...
                                (very honest)
                           ... I want to be inspired.

Jerry Maguire Written by Cameron Crowe

 

Have you been struggling to finish your current screenplay? Do you often start writing only to realize after months of wasted time you have no idea where your story is going? Are you still waiting for inspiration? Do you keep promising yourself, this time is going to be different; this time I'm going finish the script and like it? Let's face it, why should this time be any different from all the ones before?

After all, it's not like you didn't make the same promise to yourself the last time. But all hope isn't lost. This time will be different. This time you will finish that screenplay before you realize you even had the option of quitting. This is the time you will write a screenplay in just two months.

"Two months," you say? "I've barely got any writing done in the past two years. How can I possibly get an entire script finished in just eight short weeks?" The answer is simple.

We won't concentrate on writing an entire finished screenplay in eight weeks. Instead, we'll focus on finishing smaller, more doable weekly tasks. And before you know it, in the end, the sum of those tasks will equal one finished screenplay. Correction, one finished screenplay you will be proud to have written.

And the best part is we can start immediately. So pull out a pen and mark you calendar because Week One begins right here, right now...

WEEK ONE -- BRAINSTORMING
 

                                       DANIEL
                           But how do I know if my picture's the
                           right one?
 
                                       MIYAGI
                           If it comes from inside you, always
                           right one.

Karate Kid Written by Robert Mark Kamen

 

The first question you must ask yourself is the most obvious one, yet it's the one that can doom you from the start: "What script should I write?"

Too many newbie writers have taken too much bad advice that destined their careers to fail before they ever began. I'm sure you've heard it all before: If you want to sell that million dollar screenplay… a) you need to research the market; b) you need to study what films are raking in the big bucks at the box office; and c) you need to find out the companies that are making those types of movies, then write a similar script and sell it to them.

That's great advice - if you want to waste the next year or so of your life.

You can't chase trends!

You can study the market all you want but the reality of the business is that what sells today is won't be selling tomorrow, let alone the time you finish and market your screenplay. I learned that lesson the hard way myself.

It was 1999 and I kept reading in the trades about all these Y2K projects that were being bought up and rushed through the development process. My Mom just happened to be the project leader on a Y2K Global Task Force at the time, so who better to write one heck of a Y2K-based script than me?

I blazed through the writing process. First thought to final registered draft took less than one month. And now I was ready to grace the Hollywood community with the Y2K script that would define all others - Y2-Chaos.

Only one problem. In that short one-month period, the studios realized that not only would it be impossible to get any of these projects made before the end of the year, but that even if they did, the films would have absolutely no replay value after the stroke of midnight Jan. 1, 2000.

My once-hot project was dead before a single person turned a single page. And to make matters worse, no one would even read it as a potential writing sample. And as for all the other Y2K projects I read about, only one was ever actually produced - a TV movie that came and went without much fanfare and has never resurfaced again.

If you picked a career in screenwriting for the financial rewards, you'd be better off writing down lottery numbers every week. You would at least have better odds at a multimillion-dollar career.

If you write because you couldn't imagine not writing then put that passion into your work. When you write from the heart, you will never be disappointed even if you never sell project.

And that's exactly what I ended up doing with Y2-Chaos. There were characters I created in it that I truly did like and they deserved better. They deserved to be read.

I thought to myself, what would I like to see these characters doing? They were already involved in a techno-type thriller and seemed well-situated there. So, if they won't be saving the world from the millennium bug, what else could they do?

I had grown up during the infancy of the hacker revolution and know more about that culture than I would ever admit to in writing. A couple of my favorite movies are WarGames and Sneakers. So, I took those DVDs off the shelf and watched them again. Only this time, I asked myself, "How can I do that better?"

I brainstormed my concept in every conceivable way. No matter how stupid or simple an idea was, I wrote it down. One idea led to another and pretty soon I had the story I wanted to tell. Y2-Chaos had become Hack Attack.

And I enjoyed the process of writing it as much as the satisfaction of completing it. Even if no one was interested in my script, I was proud of my work. It was the movie I wanted to see, and at least I got to see it in my own mind's eye.

But something different happened this time. People were willing to read it. Within two weeks I already had it optioned to a production company and they were having it read at studios by people with titles like "VP of Production" and "Head of Development."

Did it ever get made? No. But something else happened. Everyone who read it loved the writing. My passion for the story came through the words and even though they weren't interested in that specific screenplay, they wanted to see more of my work.

That script eventually led to a development deal on a totally separate project because I wrote from the heart and not the head. If you write with passion, it will show. It will define you as a writer and not just a script.

Don't follow the trends. Follow your passion.

Does that mean you shouldn't keep up with what's selling at the box office? Of course not. If zombie movies are the current big thing, then the next day everyone is looking to buy up all the zombie movies they can. You might just have one ready to sell.

But if you don't, by the time you wrote a new script, you would probably miss out on the trend. You would also be competing against all the other zombie movies everyone else rushed out to write. If you write the story you want to tell, you are the only one who could have written it.

Audiences' taste in genres will constantly change. But one thing they will always go for is a good story. Just tell the best story you can.

Don't ask yourself, "What script should I write?" Ask yourself, "What story do I want to tell?"

OK, now it's your turn to do some work. This week I want you to think of the story you want to tell. I want you to brainstorm that story. Write down everything that comes to mind. Don't censor yourself because you never know when a seemingly stupid idea can lead to something good.

Go out and watch some movies that have similar stories and ask yourself, "How can I do it better?"

Come up with the theme of your story, a list of your characters, the troubles you can get them into, the scenes you would like to see them in, and the words you would like them to say.

What is the movie you want to see?

Next week we will take these random ideas and put them in a usable outline.

WEEK TWO -- OUTLINING
 

                                       PRINCESS FIONA
                           Hey, wait. What are you doing? You
                           know, you should sweep me off my
                           feet...out yonder window and down a
                           rope onto your valiant steed.
 
                                       SHREK
                           You've had a lot of time to plan this,
                           haven't you?

Shrek Written by Ted Elliott & Terry Rossio and Joe Stillman and Roger S.H. Schulman
Based upon the book by William Steig

 

You wouldn't head out on a cross-country trip without a road map, so why would you send your characters out on their journey without a plan?

You spent all last week brainstorming your story. Hopefully, you now know the story you want to tell and have a bunch of great ideas to tell it. If you're anything like me, your desk is probably cluttered with notes, bits of dialogue, and scene descriptions written on Post-its, scraps of paper, backs of movie tickets, and anything else that was available when inspiration struck.

Now we will organize that clutter into a usable outline. I think I just heard a collective groan. I'm amazed by how many writers have problems with this.

I had a friend who would write each and every scene on a 3"X5" index card and then arrange the cards on a 4'X8' bulletin board in his office. He would spend months staring at this wall of shingles - arranging, rearranging, crossing out, and rewriting cards. He looked like Einstein trying to solve the theory of cold fusion.

One small problem though, he spent so long trying to get his outline just perfect, he never actually wrote any scripts. He was living the illusion of being a writer without ever writing anything.

Outlines are not Rubik's Cubes; there is no one perfect solution.

Yet, writers are always getting bogged down with their three-act structures. What's their setup, their confrontation, their resolution, their plot point one and plot point two? What do I need to happen on page 30, 60, 90, and so on?

I'm going to let you in on one of the best kept secrets of screenwriting. I take that back, it's the best kept secret of any kind of writing.

Just tell a good story!

If you tell a good story, everything else will fall into place. When you watch a movie you love, are you sitting there thinking, "Oh, we're 30 minutes in, so this scene must be plot point one and the beginning of Act Two?" If so, the movie's no good because it has you thinking about its structure instead of drawing you into its story.

There's more to life than the three-act structure. There's the four-act structure, five-act structure, seven-act structure, nine-act structure, the hero's journey, leap-frogging, sequencing, and the Navajo story circle. Just to name a few.

They're all just guidelines, tools for you to examine if your story isn't moving along.

Unfortunately, everyone has had the three-act structure drilled into their heads, even people who aren't writers. Just try to explain to a development exec that your story doesn't follow the three-act structure: "It's more of a cross between the Navajo story circle and leap-frogging."

His eyes will glaze over and he won't hear another word you say. He'll just think to himself that if he's too confused about any other type of structure, then the audience will be confused by the story, too. Before he even hears your story!

It's best to keep quiet about anything that deviates from the three-act structure and just tell your story. If you do that, no one will notice your structure.

It's a good idea to at least think about your story in the simplest form of the three-act structure so you can answer any questions they may ask. And that is:

• Act One - Introduces the conflict.
• Act Two - Is the conflict.
• Act Three - Resolves the conflict.

So, now that structure isn't as intimidating, let's write our outline. Just like there's no right or wrong structure, there's no right or wrong way to write an outline. You should write it out in whatever way works best for you.

I have personally experimented with several different methods and have found that my specific project dictates what style I should use.

William Goldman likes to use one-word descriptions of each scene that sums up their purpose.

DRIVING
STORM
CRASH

That's the opening of Misery. Each word reminds him of the main idea of the scene. This method requires you to really know your story and what each scene is about.

I have used this style effectively on personal stories of mine when I just need a little reminder of what I want to say in each scene. I also like this method because it gives you a solid structure to work from but still lets your characters express themselves during the writing process itself.

I have also used the act by act, scene by scene, fully detailed outlines. These are the types popular in TV series where you want to know exactly what will happen in every single scene, including main dialogue that needs to be said.

These outlines are almost as long as the final scripts themselves and are very easy to write from. They are really useful when you want to get feedback on your story before you start writing the script.

Often, I use something between the two extremes - more of a step outline or beat sheet. I give a brief description of story sequences that I want to convey. They might even include specific dialogue or thoughts I want to make sure I get across.

You need to find the method that you feel most comfortable with in helping you plan your own screenplay. And keep in mind that nothing is permanent. Cut and paste are wonderful tools. If your characters start taking your story in an unexpected yet welcomed direction, you can always shuffle or delete scenes later.

An outline is nothing more than a guideline to keep you on track from point A to point B in the most efficient manner.

OK, so let's get to work. Take all your notes and start arranging them in the style you think will work best for your project.

Chances are you don't have every single scene written in your notes yet, so arrange what you have and start filling in the blanks. Does it feel like a good story? Does each scene move your story forward? Do you have redundant scenes that convey the same information? This is the best time to correct all that.

The clearer and more fleshed-out your outline is now, the easier the writing will be later.

I also like to write out a rough logline in this stage. It's not necessarily the golden one-liner I will use later on to pitch the project with, but just a rough, written out idea of what my story is about.

Do all my scenes work toward that meaning? If they don't, they probably don't belong.

Don't worry if anyone else can't understand your outline, only you need to right now. Can you see your story unfolding? Is it the story you want to tell?

Next week we'll take your outline and start writing the script.

WEEK THREE -- ACT ONE
 

                                       FORRESTER
                           No thinking - that comes later. You
                           must write your first draft with your
                           heart. You rewrite with your head. The
                           first key to writing is... to write,
                           not to think!

Finding Forrester Written by Mike Rich

 

When you build a house, you don't start by framing a single wall, installing its windows and doors, plastering that wall, and painting it until you have the wall just perfect before you move on to the next wall. You build a house by first laying its foundation and then roughing in the entire frame, stud by stud. And that's exactly how you write a screenplay.

You already have your story's foundation (the outline) and now we will rough in its frame (the rough draft).

A creative writing professor once told me, "If it's worth writing, it's worth writing badly." What he meant was if you want to write something then just start writing.

After all, scripts are not written, they're rewritten.

Everyone wants to write the best they can, but too many attempt to work out their words in their heads before ever putting them on the paper. They censor themselves searching for the perfect prose.

All too often their minds spin in circles until they forget what they were trying to say in the first place. They give up before they ever begin. They convince themselves they can't be writers before they ever actually write.

Don't worry about getting it just right; just get it written.

When I write my rough draft, all I want to do is get the basic flow of my story on the page. I'm not concerned with writing the perfect descriptions or finding the right dialogue. If inspiration happens to strike, great, I'll write it in. But all I want right now is to flesh out my outline into a screenplay format.

Here's an example from my current outline:
 

Scene 1 -- Panama City - A parade - Everyone loves Steve except for
Butch. - Slow-motion - Silence - Butch fantasizes about Steve getting
killed.
 

My rough draft becomes this:
 

FADE IN:

EXT. PANAMA CITY, PANAMA - STREET -- MORNING

A parade is in full motion.

STEVE, a 20-something athlete rides his bike as he waves to his fans.

The scene turns to slow-motion and the sound fades out.

                           BUTCH (V.O.)
               He is nothing but a big stupid oaf. Just
               look at him. He thinks he is so cool.
               Sometimes I wish he would just
               disappear.

The scene returns to full speed and sound.

A Pterodactyl flies down and pulls Steve and his bike off into the
clouds. A helmet falls from the sky and the crowd claps.

                           BUTCH (V.O.)
               Yeah, I know. Dinosaurs are extinct.

 

Nothing great, I know. I'm just getting the basic flow on the page. I'll have plenty of time to get it exactly where I want it during the rewrite phase.

This draft is for my eyes only, which is why I never let anyone read my rough drafts. When I want to get feedback on my story, I may give someone a detailed outline or just verbally describe my story. No matter how you explain that your rough draft is just that, people will always read it like it should be more; like you probably did when you read my example. I do at least one or two rewrite passes before letting anyone read my script.

More on that later. For now, let's concentrate on getting our basic frame down. Surely anyone can write as badly as my example. So let's get to work on your rough draft.

This week we're going to concentrate on Act One, introducing the conflict. Keep in mind that you write a script for the reader and not the movie audience. A person will sit through some boring scenes to get to the good stuff. After all, they just threw down 10 bucks on their ticket and they want to get their money's worth.

A reader is just looking for an excuse not to turn the page. He or she has piles of scripts to get through, so why waste time with something that's boring? So, how do you keep from being boring?

You start by opening your story with a scene that grabs the reader. It should represent what the story has in store for him or her. Think James Bond. It doesn't necessarily have to introduce your protagonist. It just needs to get the reader to want to read more.

In the next five to 10 pages or so after that, there are a few things you want to establish:

• You want to introduce your protagonist.
• You want to set up what his or her conflict is.
• You want to clearly establish the genre of your story.

Basically, the reader should have a good idea what he or she is in for and should want to go along for the ride.

Do you have to show all that in just 10 pages? No, feel free to get it all in on the first one. No, really, stop laughing. Some commercials tell their entire story in half that time so why couldn't we at least introduce ours?

Here is an example from The Longest Night by Eric Heisserer:
 

FADE IN:

EXT. ICY DOCKYARD -- DUSK

Wood planks cling together in plus-sign formations across the lip of
the Arctic Ocean. Among the battered whaling ships, a small freighter
bearing the Red Cross logo bobs at the dock.

From its deck emerges GORMUND, as oily and wrinkled as a gas station
dollar bill. Bundled against the cold, Gormund hurries down the
gangway.

He steps onto snow-packed tundra and passes a sign:

                       WELCOME TO BARROW, ALASKA
                          Northernmost US City

EXT. BARROW -- DUSK

A mote of civilization on the ass of Old Man Winter.

The LOCALS (mostly fishermen) drink and dance to loud music under
tents outside town hall. Cheap Christmas lights dangle from the
bleached jawbones of bow-head whales, suspended over doors.

Gormund approaches a SMILING LOCAL, their breath illustrated in
plumes. The Local shoves an open beer in Gormund's hands.

                           GORMUND
               What's the occasion?

                           SMILING LOCAL
               Festival of lights. To celebrate the
               last sunset.
                    (pointing)
               For the next sixty-five days, we live in
               perpetual darkness.

An orange smear of a sun slowly collapses on the horizon.

Gormund stares at it, a smile spreading over crooked teeth.

INT. FREIGHTER HOLD -- DUSK

From the blackness, a metal door creaks open. Gormund's silhouette
frames the opening. Fluorescent light flickers on.

The entire hold is lined with TWO DOZEN TEAK COFFINS laid atop a
carpet of gray-brown soil.

                           GORMUND
               Soon, my masters. Soon...

 

Wow! It isn't any surprise it won the 2001 Page One Screenwriting Contest.

It is a little unfair to compare it to what we're doing now, though. That was from a final polished draft. The rough draft didn't read anything like it, but it did contain the same basic information.

From Eric's opening page, the reader clearly knows what to expect. He or she knows the story's genre, some of the characters he or she will face, what the conflict will be, how this story is different to similar ones before, and most important of all, it has him or her wanting to turn the page.

Does each of your scenes leave the reader wanting to turn the page?

Finish writing your rough draft of Act One. Don't stall your writing trying to find the perfect words. Just get your story down. I promise you we'll have plenty of time to rewrite your script later.

Open big. Get the reader hooked. By page 10 we should know what we're in for. In the next 10 to 20 pages we should have met the main characters and know what their conflicts are. We should also turn up the heat and get them ready for their journey through Act Two.

Next week we'll dive into Act Two.

WEEK FOUR -- ACT TWO
 

                                       BILL
                           I' m past the point of no return. Do
                           you know when that is? That's the
                           point in a journey where it's longer
                           to go back to the beginning than it is
                           to continue to the end. It's
                           like...Remember when those astronauts
                           got in trouble? They were going to the
                           moon and something went wrong. They
                           had to get back to Earth but they had
                           passed the point of no return. So they
                           had to go all the way around the moon
                           to get back and they were out of
                           contact for hours. Everybody waited to
                           see if a bunch of dead guys in a can
                           would pop out the other side. That's
                           me.

Falling Down Written by Ebbe Roe Smith

 

Ah, the dreaded Act Two. This is usually where writers have the most problems. It's where their story gets stuck or stalls to the point of never moving again. It's the point that tempts you to quit, and many do.

But we're not going to let that happen to us. Just like the hero of our story, we're going to bravely face any and all obstacles in our way and forge a path to our ultimate goal.

It's no wonder people have the hardest time with Act Two. It's twice as long as the other acts and usually where we put the least amount of thought.

Act One and Act Three are fun to write. It's how our story began in the first place. We had a great idea to get our hero into trouble and a terrific way for him to get out of it. We're just not sure about everything else in between.

Conflict is story and Act Two is conflict, so Act Two really is our story.

If you're having problems with Act Two, you might be having problems with your story. Maybe your conflict is not big enough. It might be too easy to overcome. Most of the strongest stories have inner conflict as well as the more obvious outer ones.

The protagonist must solve his inner demons in order to solve his outer conflict. This is what character arc is.

A seemingly simple task of jumping in the ocean to save a drowning girl would take on a whole new meaning if the would-be lifesaver had an irrational fear of sharks. What if there actually were sharks in the water? What if they were circling the girl? What if the girl was the hero's daughter? You can see how easy it is to up the stakes.

Does your main character have an inner conflict? How does if affect his outer one?

In Act Two you constantly want to up the conflict. Keep pushing your hero to the point of no return. Just when it looks like it's going to get easy - Wham! - He's hit with an even bigger challenge. Until he faces his inner fears, he'll never solve his outer ones.

Think about your story. How can you up the conflict? How can you up it again? Are your scenes just rehashing the same problems for your hero or are they creating new ones, harder ones? Is there something emotional that your character must overcome? How can he finally face it to solve his conflicts, both internal and external?

Write your rough draft of Act Two. It should be between 30 to 60 pages.

Next week we will finally let your hero solve his problems when we dive into Act Three.

WEEK FIVE -- ACT THREE
 

                                       MARY
                           I never remember anything besides
                           beginnings and endings. Why is it that
                           the ending is always the most
                           beautiful part?

The Book of Stars Written by Tasca Shadix

 

A great story with a terrible ending makes for a terrible film. Try to remember some films you've seen that had great stories but terrible endings. Chances are you can't remember too many. Not because there aren't any, but because those types of films are easily forgotten.

Now try to remember films with terrible stories but great endings. Again, chances are you can't remember too many. Only this time it's because great endings leave you remembering the whole story was equally great, even if it wasn't.

William Goldman said, "Movies are about the last twenty minutes."

You opened big and got them hooked. You baited their interest and kept them turning the page. So now you've got to leave them with something to remember you by.

In Act Two, we were constantly increasing the challenges our hero faced. Act Three is where we finally let him resolve his conflict. It's not, however, just a wrap-up of every struggle he faced before.

This is where he'll fight the biggest battle of your story, the final showdown between hero and villain. In fact, Act Three can't even begin until the conflict can actually be solved. It's the turning point of the story. It's when our hero is finally able to overcome his inner conflicts to solve his outer ones. It's the all or nothing, lay it on the line, last man standing fight to the end.

It should still have some twists and turns. It shouldn't be predictable; however, the reader should feel the end was still believable. Some of the most memorable endings are the ones we didn't see coming but should have.

Your hero might not necessarily get what he wants but he should get what he needs. And he should have earned that reward through his own actions. Nothing feels cheaper than a hero defeating a villain because of an outside force or random event.

Does your story have a logical yet unexpected ending? If not, look deeper. How can you add an extra twist or shock that will impact the reader?

Write your rough draft of Act Three. It should be between 20 to 30 pages.

Next week the real fun begins when we take your rough draft and mold it into an inevitable masterpiece.

WEEK SIX -- REWRITE, REWRITE, REWRITE
 

                                       LLOYD
                                (from the top of the
                                aisle)
                           I shall never understand the weird
                           process by which a body with a voice
                           suddenly fancies itself a mind! Just
                           when exactly does an actress decide
                           they're her words she's saying and her
                           thoughts she's expressing?
 
                                       MARGO
                           Usually at the point when she's got to
                           rewrite and rethink them to keep the
                           audience from leaving the theater!
 
                                       LLOYD
                           It's about time the piano realized it
                           has not written the concerto!

All About Eve Written by Joseph L. Mankiewicz

 

Congratulations! You now have your rough draft written. The hard part is over and now the real fun begins. Remember, scripts are not written, they're rewritten. So let's get to rewriting.

Don't worry. It's not as overwhelming as it appears. Just like we broke up the process of writing our rough draft into smaller steps, we will approach our rewrites the same way. We won't focus on getting everything perfect the first time around. We will concentrate on smaller specific goals, one pass at a time. And before you know it, you'll have one polished screenplay fit to be read by the outside world.

Each pass will focus on either: format, story, character, dialogue, or action.
 

The Format Pass:

This is the easiest of passes. It's nothing more than making sure your screenplay follows an acceptable spec script format. You can study that format in several excellent books. I would also highly recommend investing in one of the available script formatting software programs.

Movie Magic Screenwriter and Final Draft are the top two choices and well worth the price. They're both comparable in features and cost. If you intend to write with a partner, you might want to check with him or her to see what program he or she uses so you can take advantage of any possible collaboration features offered.

I personally use Screenwriter because of its interactive script format, which is lacking in other programs. If you ever intend on writing an interactive script, you probably want to choose it as well.

If you're on a budget, there are free to inexpensive alternatives. Many are also stand-alone programs or macros to use with your current word processing software.

Some things to watch out for when formatting:

• Avoid camera directions and scene transitions like INSERT, DISSOLVE TO, CUT TO, etc. These are understood and just take up valuable page space and make for a distracted read.

• Avoid parentheticals whenever possible. Let the actors act. However, you can use them for quick bits of action or dialogue-related specifics we wouldn't get otherwise.
• Avoid "we see," "we hear," "there is," and "there are." It's a movie; of course we see and hear what you write. If we don't, then it doesn't belong in your screenplay.
• Use mini-scene headings whenever possible. You don't need to write complete scene headings for every single location, especially if they're all part of one master location. An example would be if a character is walking between different rooms in a house, you can establish the house as the master location and use mini-scene headings for the individual rooms.
• Study spec versions of scripts whenever possible. Most published versions are shooting scripts and follow a whole different format.

 
The Story Pass:

This is another easy one. Read though your script and if each scene doesn't follow or move your story forward, cut it out. This is where that rough logline you wrote back in Week Two can come in handy. If a scene doesn't fit with that logline, it probably doesn't belong.

You should also be looking at the length of your scenes. Can you achieve the same results in a shorter scene? Get your characters in and out in the most efficient amount of time. Get to the point of the scene. You shouldn't be writing pages of intros and exits because that's how it happens in real life. This isn't real life.
 

The Character Pass:

This is a quick pass and one of my favorites. You want to introduce each of your main characters in a way that will instantly give the reader a feeling for them. It is not a description of how they look and what they are wearing.

No one cares if you see your hero as a six-foot-three stud with blond hair and blue eyes wearing a white T-shirt and faded jeans. And in giving such specifics, you place irrelevant casting requirements on a script you haven't even sold yet. Few actors would fit into such restrictions.

But if you said your hero was, the kind of guy you only see on the covers of romance novels, the reader gets a clear sense of the character. And ultimately, any number of leading men can fill that role, regardless of height, hair or eye color.

This is one of the only times in your screenplay you're allowed to break the "if it can't be seen, don't write it" rule. It's acceptable to write whatever you want to express the overall sense of your character to the reader.

• He was the kid in high school with the pocket protector and taped-up glasses.

• She's the kind of girl you would leave your wife for. In fact, she's the kind of girl your wife would leave you for.
• He's a pit bull with a badge.
• She's as pure as snow on a Christmas tree.
• She's as dumb as a doorknob and all the boys eventually get their turn.

How can you sum up your characters?
 

The Dialogue Pass:

"Dialogue is one of the least important parts of any script." I didn't say that. William Goldman did. Chances are your words will never make it to the screen. Directors will cut them and actors will change them. Does that mean you don't need to worry about making your dialogue the best it can be? Absolutely not!

Dialogue is a direct reflection of your characters and you as a writer. Bad dialogue translates into a bad screenplay. Bad screenplays don't get read.

Some tips on writing dialogue:

• Keep dialogue short and flowing. Anything over five lines is probably a speech and not a conversation.

• Don't have characters say what we can see. If you can do it with action, we don't need to hear it in words.
• Avoid on-the-nose dialogue and clichés.
• Keep your characters from sounding alike. Cast your characters in your head with your favorite actors or friends. It'll help give them individual voices. I also like to keep a running list of sayings my characters use. If I have one character greet people with a "Hello" then I avoid it for other ones. I'll use "HI" or "Hey" for them instead. You'll be surprised how effective a small thing like that can be.
• Most important of all, like everything else in your screenplay, dialogue should move your story forward and provide further detail into the characters.

 
The Action Pass:

Notice I said "action" pass and not "description." You're writing a movie and a movie is about movement. Your goal is to convey the imagery, intent, and feeling of your scenes to the reader in an active style. Your descriptions should be almost poetic or lyrical in nature. In fact, you should study poetry and songwriting.

Here's an example from the Bruce Springsteen's song, "Thunder Road":

The screen door slams
Mary's dress waves
Like a vision she dances across the porch
As the radio plays.

Just as effective as a description for a screenplay as it is a song lyric.

Some other tips on writing description:

• Avoid big blocks of description. Break long action scenes into no more than four-line sections.

• Avoid using the passive voice, adverbs, "very," "ly," "start to," and "ing." Don't overuse "and" and "but." They all make your writing sound weak.
• Use visual metaphors and symbolism to convey the feeling of scenes.
• Use descriptive verbs. Instead of "walks" use words like "strolls," "storms," or "marches." You can see how they each create a different visual image.
• Just like in character descriptions, don't describe how a location looks but sum up how it feels. The place makes Amityville look inviting.

Make at least one pass of each kind on your screenplay. My rough draft example from week three might come out something like this:
 

FADE IN:

EXT. PANAMA CITY, PANAMA - STREET -- MORNING

Festive music, cheers and applause.

The sidewalks are packed with people of all ages.

They wave signs written in Spanish, hold colorful balloons,
and throw confetti. You would think men just returned from
the moon, only this procession has no floats, no motorcars,
no marching men.

It appears to be a parade of one.

STEVE, a 20-something athlete, pedals his gear-packed
mountain bike. One hand on the handlebar, one waving to his
fans. He's a solid square-jawed looker, a real ladies' man.
A young Superman without the cape.

The scene suddenly goes into slow-motion as...

The music -- in fact all the sound -- fades into silence
like someone just pressed the "mute" button on the TV.

Steve still waves, the crowd still woos. The slow soundless
celebration continues on.

Like a DVD commentary, a voice breaks the silence.

                           BUTCH (V.O.)
               Man, how I hated him!

Steve is oblivious to the unseen narration.

                           BUTCH (V.O.)
               Just look at him, he thinks he's so
               cool. I bet if he had a cape, he would
               think he could fly.

Steve smiles to a group of young ladies in the crowd.

                           BUTCH (V.O.)
               Oh, and you see all those women? Do you
               think they were cheering for us? --
               Nope... They were all cheering for him.

The young ladies fawn at Steve's attention.

                           BUTCH (V.O.)
               They all think they have a shot at him.
               Hell, you see that one?

 

And so on. You can see how the screenplay takes on a style of its own. It still has the same information as it did in the rough draft, but now the tone and feel is fleshed out.

Continue fleshing out your own style. Focus each rewrite pass on a specific topic. Keep rewriting until you feel it's ready to show other people.

Next week that's exactly what we'll be doing. Let other people read your script.

WEEK SEVEN -- FEEDBACK
 

                                       ELWOOD
                           Well, try not to be so negative all the
                           time. Why don't you offer some
                           constructive criticism?

The Blues Brothers Written by Dan Aykroyd & John Landis

 

Sit back and take a deep breath. You deserve it. You made it to lucky week number seven. You now have a polished first draft. For some, this will be the easiest week yet. For most, it will be just the opposite. This is the week we will bare our souls and let others read our labors of love.

Some of you might belong to a writers' group. That's great. You already have a group of trusted readers. For those of you who don't belong to one, you might want to research to see if there are any in your area.

Many bookstores host them. You should also check your local online classifieds or right here on StoryLink to see if any groups are advertising for new members. If there are none, start your own. Writers' groups can be a great support system to your career.

Until then, you should make a list of five people you know whose opinions you trust. They shouldn't be parents, children, best friends, spouses, or lovers. They might not necessarily give you the most honest feedback because they want to be over-supportive and encouraging to you.

That'll probably make you feel good but it won't help you in the long run. What you need is honest feedback, good or bad, and you should tell your readers that from the get-go.

Once you have a group of trusted readers, have them read your screenplay and give you their thoughts. It can be helpful to get everyone together at the same time so their opinions can feed off one another's and build an open discussion of your work.

Don't be defensive to what they have to say. They're giving you their take on your script. There are no right or wrong opinions. Not everyone is going to like what you wrote. It's not personal.

If you're getting several of the same comments on a particular area, you want to examine them closer and see where you can improve on them. Keep in mind that it's your story, so if in your heart you don't agree with someone, don't change it just to please that critic. Success or failure should always be on your own terms.

So, print out some copies and get some feedback. While you wait, reward yourself for the work you've already done. Go buy that DVD you always wanted or go see that film you've been putting off.

Next week we'll jump right back in and take care of the extra paperwork.

WEEK EIGHT -- PAPERWORK
 

                                       SAM
                                (ushering them to the door)
                           I'm sorry, but I'm a bit of a stickler
                           for paperwork. Where would we be if we
                           didn't follow the correct procedures?

Brazil Written by Terry Gilliam & Tom Stoppard & Charles McKeown

 

Well, you made it, the eighth and final week. Hopefully, you received some valuable feedback from your trusted readers. Maybe you joined a writers' group or started one of your own. Nurture these new relationships. They'll be invaluable to your growth as a writer.

Now wade through your feedback notes and make any necessary changes to your script. Do a few more passes following the rewrite guidelines then make one more polish pass. Take another deep breath and let's dive into the rest of the paperwork.

First and most important, register your script. You'll want to register it with both the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and the U.S. Copyright Office. A common misconception among new writers is that registering with the WGA is a copyright, it is not.

A WGA registration just establishes the creation date of your work in a timely manner. It also gives you an option to have a WGA employee appear and testify in court concerning the date of the registration.

WGA registration lasts five years for the WGAw and ten years for the WGAE. You will need to renew it before the expiration dates at the then-current fee or your submission will be destroyed.

Copyright registration is a government registration and will last long after you do, 70 years after the death of the author to be precise. It takes longer for the application to process but you cannot even file a copyright infringement lawsuit without it.

If you're on a budget, file with the Copyright Office. If you have a few more bucks to spare, file with the WGA as well. Instructions, forms, and fees can be found on their respective websites.

Some other paperwork you might want to work on is all the related sales tools for your screenplay. These are extra materials you will use to pitch your story.

They include:

• Loglines: A one-sentence description of your story. Think TV Guide blurb.

• Synopses: A summary of the main points of your story. You'll want to write a one-page synopsis and an even shorter one-paragraph summary.
• Treatments: Your story in a narrative paragraph form. They can range anywhere from one to 30 or more pages, depending on its purpose.
• Query letters: A sales letter used to entice someone into reading your screenplay. Usually no more than a half-page long.
• Pitches: Telling your story verbally to entice someone into reading your screenplay. You should work out a few different pitches of varying lengths depending on the time you are given. A good bet would be the 30-second pitch, the one-minute pitch, the five-minute pitch, and the 15-minute pitch.

When you're done with all of that, take a little break. Not too long though, after all, you can have another script finished by the end of next month.

I wish you all the luck in the world on your new screenplay. I'll be on the lookout for my invitation to its premiere screening.

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