ScriptIdiot!
The Business of Screenwriting
The Business of Screenwriting is a series of Go Into The Story articles based upon my experiences as a complete Hollywood outsider who sold a spec script for a lot of money, parlayed that into a screenwriting career during which time I’ve made some good choices, some okay decisions, and some really stupid ones. Hopefully, you’ll be the wiser for what you learn here.24/7/365Act Two bluesAlways be nice to the assistantsBidding WarAnatomy of a Deal [Part 1]Anatomy of a Deal [Part 2]An
On Writing
“Writing, like life itself, is a voyage of discovery. The adventure is a metaphysical one: it is a way of approaching life indirectly, of acquiring a total rather than a partial view of the universe. The writer lives between the upper and lower worlds: he takes the path in order eventually to become the path himself.”— Henry MillerFor 100s more On Writing posts, go here.The Protagonist’s Journey: An Introduction to Character-Driven Screenwriting and Storytellingis a #
Sundays with "Conversations with Wilder"
Billy Wilder is my all-time favorite filmmaker. Consider just some of his movies: Double Indemnity (1944), Sunset Blvd. (1950), Stalag 17 (1953), Witness for the Prosecution (1957), Some Like It Hot (1959), The Apartment (1960), an oeuvre that demonstrates an incredible range in a filmmaking career that went from 1929 to 1981.One of the best books on filmmaking and storytelling is Conversations With Wilder in which Cameron Crowe, a fantastic filmmaker in his own right (Say Anything, Singles, Jer
Screenwriting 101: Christopher McQuarrie
“Screenwriting tip: It’s as simple as giving them exactly what they expect in a way they’ve never seen before.”--Christopher McQuarrieFor 100s more articles in the Screenwriting 101 series, go here.The Protagonist’s Journey: An Introduction to Character-Driven Screenwriting and Storytellingis a #1 Best Seller in Film and Television. Endorsed by over thirty professional screenwriters, novelists, and academics, you may purchase it here.
Tweestorm: Jeff Willis on Query Letters
Back when Twitter was fun, screenwriters would sometimes string together a series of tweets - what came to be known as "tweetstorms." Advice, personal anecdotes, reflections on the craft. It was pretty awesome.The only problem: Once the tweetstorm came ... it went.So, I took to contacting the writers and asking if I could reprint their tweetstorm at Go Into The Story. That way, they'd at least be stored where folks could access them in the future.Here's an example: In May 201
Spec Script Deal: "This Land Is Our Land"
Sony Pictures acquires thriller spec script "This Land Is Our Land" written by Casey Giltner. Via Deadline:Screenwriter Casey Giltner has sold elevated thriller spec This Land Is Our Land to Sony Pictures, Deadline has learned. Plot details are being kept under wraps.You may wonder what "elevated thriller" means as opposed to just "thriller." My take? The "elevated" part means the script has quality characters (i.e., complex).Sony Pictures has been active
On Writing
“What the budding artist needs is the privilege of wrestling with problems in solitude—and without a master. He must learn to think and feel for himself, to trust his own impulses, and to be brave enough to make mistakes.”--Henry MillerFor 100s more On Writing posts, go here.The Protagonist’s Journey: An Introduction to Character-Driven Screenwriting and Storytellingis a #1 Best Seller in Film and Television. Endorsed by over thirty professional screenwriters, novelis
Go Into The Story interview: Neil Drumming
My conversation with the writer-director of the feature film Big Words.Neil Drumming is a filmmaker, screenwriter, and journalist. He is a former staff writer and editor at Entertainment Weekly, and his work has appeared in Wired, The Washington Post, Vibe, Rolling Stone, Essence, and Vanity Fair. He wrote and directed his first film Big Words, which the New York Times describes as “weaving race, class, sexual orientation and politics — as well as the evolution of rap
Screenwriting 101: Chris McCoy
"Good dialogue comes from character development . The better you know your character, the more specific the dialogue is going to feel."--Chris McCoyGo Into The Story interview, November 2015For 100s more articles in the Screenwriting 101 series, go here.The Protagonist’s Journey: An Introduction to Character-Driven Screenwriting and Storytellingis a #1 Best Seller in Film and Television. Endorsed by over thirty professional screenwriters, novelists, and academics, you may
Tweetstorm: Eric Heisserer on the Screenwriter’s Creative Power
"The spec script gives you freedom to do whatever you want."Back when Twitter was fun, screenwriters would sometimes string together a series of tweets - what came to be known as "tweetstorms." Advice, personal anecdotes, reflections on the craft. It was pretty awesome.The only problem: Once the tweetstorm came ... it went.So, I took to contacting the writers and asking if I could reprint their tweetstorm at Go Into The Story. That way, they'd at least be stored where fo
The Importance of the Mentor Moment
In a movie, the Mentor's primary function is tied to the Protagonist's intellectual growth, their ability to incorporate insights into their inner nature and move toward Unity.Like all character archetypes, Mentors come in all shapes and sizes. We may tend to think of Mentors as wise old men like Gandalf.But they can also be earnest, but bumbling goofballs like Clarence in It's a Wonderful Life.Or even more comical like Weird Barbie in Barbie.As varied as they may be, movie Mentor
On Writing
“Writing is its own reward.”--Henry MillerFor 100s more On Writing posts, go here.The Protagonist’s Journey: An Introduction to Character-Driven Screenwriting and Storytellingis a #1 Best Seller in Film and Television. Endorsed by over thirty professional screenwriters, novelists, and academics, you may purchase it here.
Spec Script Deal: "Bleed the Night"
Fox Entertainment Studios acquires horror spec script "Bleed the Night" written by Keith Cooper and Zoe Cooper, story by Keith Cooper and Justin Dyck. Via Deadline:Bleed the Night opens with a lonely teenager answering a mysterious ad reading “MUST LOVE BLOOD.” She then meets a charismatic young vampire who offers her the friendship and freedom she’s always craved — turning one summer night in 1994 into a bloody crime spree that tests just how far she’
Interview: Reckless Creatives
The popular podcast hosts Sadie Dean and Jeanne Veillette Bowerman in conversation with yours truly.It's always a delight to talk with Jeanne and Sadie as both have been an integral part of the online screenwriting community. Also, they're just fun human beings!Recently, we discussed all things related to spec scripts, this on the heels of the release of my free eBook: "Spec Script Deals: 1991-2025".You can listen to this Reckless Creatives interview here: LINK.All OG Pipelin
Go Into The Story interview: Meghann Artes and Anna Hozian
My conversation with the writing-directing-producing team for the short film drama Stronghold.Meghann (L) and Anna (R)Meghann Artes and Anna Hozian are two talented filmmakers. They are also my colleagues at the DePaul University School of Cinematic Arts where we all teach. The duo collaborated on a short film project Stronghold which recently completed a successful film festival run. Since I've intersected with many screenwriters interested in making their own short films, I thought Anna a
Screenwriting 101: Tim McCanlies
“That second act, for me, is the most fun, because the first and third act have such clearly defined functions. The first act you have to set up the problem or problems, introduce all your characters — there are so many things that you’ve got to do, there just isn’t room for the fun stuff. And the third act is almost an extended scene in a way — the chase, the fight, etc. But in the second act, you really get to cut loose, find out w
Tweetstorm: Mike Sweeney 0n ‘New Screenwriting Rules’
Back when Twitter was fun, screenwriters would sometimes string together a series of tweets - what came to be known as "tweetstorms." Advice, personal anecdotes, reflections on the craft. It was pretty awesome.The only problem: Once the tweetstorm came ... it went.So, I took to contacting the writers and asking if I could reprint their tweetstorm at Go Into The Story. That way, they'd at least be stored where folks could access them in the future.Here's an example: In 2015, s
On Writing
“There really are no characters in plays; there are relationships.”--Arthur MillerFor 100s more On Writing posts, go here.The Protagonist’s Journey: An Introduction to Character-Driven Screenwriting and Storytellingis a #1 Best Seller in Film and Television. Endorsed by over thirty professional screenwriters, novelists, and academics, you may purchase it here.
Go Into The Story interview: Jeffrey Lieber
My talk with screenwriter and TV writer-producer whose credits include co-writing the pilot for the series Lost.Jeffrey Lieber was early and active presence on Twitter. A Hollywood writer whose movie credits include Tangled and Tuck Everlasting, and TV credits include Miami Medical, The Whole Truth, Pan Am, Necessary Roughness, Impulse, and NCIS: New Orleans, he offered sage advice to prospective screenwriters. In 2013, I conducted a Go Into The Story interview with him. Here it is in its entire
Screenwriting 101: Garry Marshall
"There are three different drafts of a screenplay in the development process. The first screenplay is for the studio, when they say, 'Okay, we like this.'The second screenplay you write so the actors can read it, or so you can get an actor to do it. You change the screenplay so one part is better, so you can get a better actor.Then the third screenplay is, 'You can’t shoot this screenplay on this budget.' You’ve got to rewrite the whole screenplay again, fo
