book

The Screenwriter's Path

by Diane Lake

October 2016

Beginner

212 pages

6h 16m

English

Routledge

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Original Screenplays: What You Probably Want to WriteAdapted Screenplays: What You Should Really Think about WritingWhichever You Choose, a Story Is a Story Is a StoryTo Theme or Not to ThemeNew Media, Webisodes and TV: It’s a New World for the ScreenwriterChapter 1 Exercises
The Big IdeaThe LoglineThe PremiseChapter 2 Exercises
What Kind of Movie Is This, Anyway?Understanding the ‘Rules’ of the Top 7 Genres in Film TodayComedyRomantic ComedyActionThrillerHorrorSci-FiFamilyBreaking the ‘Rules’ of the Top 7 Genres in Film TodayChapter 3 Exercises
Whose Story Do You Want to Tell?Getting to the Heart of Your Main CharacterFive Character QuestionsWho Is This Person and What Does He/She Want or Need?What Is the Emotional Life of Your Main Character?Why Should I Care About Your Main Character?What Was Your Main Character’s Life Like Before the Story Starts?How Does Your Main Character Talk?Supporting Characters: Please, No Stock TypesDistinctivenessVarietyDepthChapter 4 Exercises

Let’s Talk ArcsWhy Character and Structure Aren’t Mutually ExclusiveUsing Subplots: A Major Crossroads for Character and StructureWhat If the Journey of Your Main Character Mirrors the Trajectory of the Film?How Understanding This Symbiotic Relationship Can Take You to a Higher Level of StorytellingChapter 5 Exercises
Obligatory Thanks to the Greek Guy: How Aristotle Made It All ClearAct I: Setting Up Your Story and Main Character’s JourneyThe Tyranny of Page OneWriting a Killer First 10 PagesEnding the Act with a Bang-up FinishAct II: Taking Your Main Character on a Wild RideAct III: Making the Impossible Possible—Bringing It All TogetherThe 7 StepsPage Numbers: Why Nearly All Scripts Are Around 100 PagesSeriously? I’m Supposed to Follow Some Cookie-Cutter Formula?!Why It Works: The Discipline of Storytelling ConstructionGoing Your Own Way: When to Break Ranks with the 7 StepsPacing and How to Feel ItWhat Makes a Story MoveWriting Action: More Words Means More CareDeviating from the Norm: Nonlinear Structure and the Anti-Narrative FilmChapter 6 Exercises
Writing Good Dialogue: Can It Be Taught?Working Like Crazy to Be ConversationalWhy Less Is Always MoreSubtext: Saying What’s Not Being Said Says It AllChapter 7 Exercises
Why Adaptations Are Favored Over Originals in the Industry TodayPublic Domain: Stories Free for the TellingPublished Stories: Contacting Authors and Acquiring OptionsHow to Know What Makes a Good Story for AdaptationBreaking Down a 400-page Novel into a 100-page Screenplay: A Daunting TaskSample Option and Shopping AgreementsOption AgreementShopping Agreement “Tasteless”Chapter 8 Exercises
MontagesFlashbacksVoiceovers/NarrationChapter 9 Exercises
FormattingTop 7 Things Not to Do in Your ScreenplayProofreadingChapter 10 Exercises
The Pitch: Every Writer’s TouchstoneThe Emotional Story: Make Sure You’re On ItThe Element of Surprise—And Why It Makes All the DifferenceThe Writer’s Life—And How to Live ItDecide on a Routine That WorksEverything Is MaterialForm a Writers Group and Stay With ItTravel. Seriously. Everywhere.
Rewriting: Hemingway Was RightProofreading—AgainPolishing It Until It ShinesLaunching It into the WorldPartying—Yes, This Is the First StepGetting Your Script ReadFinding an Agent, Manager or AttorneyEntering ContestsWebsites That Can Really Help
Understanding the Collaborative ProcessKeeping Up with TrendsKnowing the Players

Content preview from The Screenwriter's Path

Fade In

Why is it that everyone in L.A.—from the valet who parks your car to the ride handler at Disneyland to the thousands of college kids who are interning all over town—is working on a screenplay? Why do people descend on the town hoping that just being there will help them to break in as a writer?

It’s because we all love movies. I mean, we really love them. Most of us who travel the immensely difficult road to become a screenwriter spent the Saturdays of our childhood sitting in the movie theatre—probably really close to the screen, too. Why? Because we wanted to lose ourselves in those movies. We wanted to be taken to a place we’d never been before, we wanted to be swept away.

I’ve always thought it a real shame that I only have one ...