FourStarting the Journey

Defining the Road Ahead

“Tragedy is an imitation of an action that is serious, complete, and of a certain magnitude; in language embellished with each kind of artistic ornament, the several kinds being found in separate parts of the play; in the form of action, not of narrative; through pity and fear affecting the proper purgation of these emotions.”

(Poetics, Part VI)

And there you have it. How to write a screenplay in one simple sentence. Goodnight and don’t forget to tip your server.

But wait, you say. What does Aristotle’s definition of dramatic narrative, as stodgy and archaic as it sounds, have to do with contemporary screenwriting?

Glad you asked.

Believe it or not, within that definition exists just about ...

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