Chapter | five
Structure: Learn the Rules or Get Off the Field
If there's a secret to screenwriting – a magic key that unlocks the vault of good writing and awesome screenplays – then structure is it. Understanding structure is like understanding the code behind the program, and once you lock it into your brain, it's there for life.
Structure isn't just a set of boring, unsexy “rules.” It's your battle plan, your narrative compass, and your moral code. It'll be there for you from the start of the outlining process, through the hair-tearing drama of the first draft, all the way to the final polish. Genres will evolve and dialog will go in and out of fashion, but structure will never let you down.
Screenwriting Tip #39:
Study structure until it ...
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