Was this forwarded to you? Click HERE to subscribe. The vital job of Act 1 that not enough people talk about. First acts are busy. There are character introductions, relationships to establish, worlds to build, and the inciting incident. It's a lot. At the end of the first act, the protagonist makes a choice, and then the narrative truly begins. Whether it's Perseus, Luke Skywalker, Thomas Anderson (Neo), Elle Woods, Frodo, Diana Prince, or Barbie, the more out-of-character that choice is,...
10 days ago • 8 min read
Was this forwarded to you? Click HERE to subscribe. Does the relationship trump the dramatic question? This is the last day of 2024. We're going to close this year's Weekly Emails with one of my favorite topics. The Dramatic Question. Whether you call it the central, primary, or principal, it's the singular dramatic action that we anticipate an answer to. Will Indy get the Ark? Will they stop Thanos? Will they get off the ship alive? Will the dude get the gal? Will the gal get the dude? And...
17 days ago • 6 min read
Was this forwarded to you? Click HERE to subscribe. Know what makes your screenplay unique. It is Christmas week! I am going on light duty, so this will be short, but I want to give you something to think about over the break. I hear a lot of loglines, and I obviously come up with plenty of story ideas myself. Not as many as I used to, but still... some. And the consistent question I have for all of them is, "What makes this story unique?" Followed by, "What makes this story fun?" With fun,...
24 days ago • 8 min read
To read online, click HERE. Screenplay structure is fractal. I approach each screenplay structure as a fractal and have found that the most satisfying screen stories follow this pattern. What do I mean by fractal? Beats make up the structure of scenes. Scenes make up the structure of sequences. Sequences make up the structure of acts. Acts make up the structure of the story. Generally, the patterns are consistent and repeat, with elements measuring roughly equal amounts of time. For example,...
about 1 month ago • 7 min read
To read online, click HERE. The button of a scene. The button is the last line of a scene. It is the final moment before we transition out of one scene and into the next. It is there to: Solidify the last emotion of the scene. Push us to the next one. But honestly, we rarely think of a button when a scene ends with a physical action because the action is so necessary to the scene we would never think to give it a name. But the button is what wraps up a scene. It is the final beat. The term...
about 1 month ago • 8 min read
To read online, click HERE. Thank you! As an online business, BLACK FRIDAY is stressful. But I know it's no picnic for you either. I get dozens of Black Friday emails from every email list I'm on, too. I am thrilled and grateful for all of you who took advantage of the sale. But I am also grateful for those who appreciate what I do and understand that sometimes you gotta sit through the commercials that pay for everything. So thank you. To all of you. And remember, any time I have one of...
about 2 months ago • 5 min read
To read online, click HERE. A Black Friday Sale. Well, I am an online business, so yes, damn it, we’re going to do a Black Friday sale! What if I offered Mastering Structure for 10% off, added Perfecting The Logine ($99) for FREE, plus another free mini-course, and then another FREE lecture? And then even more for the bundle? I can honestly say there will be no better deal until next Black Friday, and maybe not even then. Stay tuned—more info to come in the next few days. A screenwriting tip...
about 2 months ago • 5 min read
To read online, click HERE. The YES/NO of a scene. So much of the screenwriting I read just kind of moves along. Something happens, then something else happens. It's all very polite. No bad pages. But there aren't any great scenes, either. You need great scenes. You gotta make a meal of those moments. We need scenes that make us FEEL something. Because that's what we are here to do. We want the audience to feel something. And when we're done, all those small moments, all those big moments,...
2 months ago • 5 min read
To read online, click HERE. You're going to get notes. You're a screenwriter. You can't avoid it. It might be a friend, a fellow writer, an agent, or a producer. Perhaps you've hired someone specifically for notes. The world will never run out of notes. As long as you keep asking for notes, you will get them. And even some after that. Implementing notes is a skill we must develop. I have seen far too many (especially early) writers take every note they get, and I've seen some refuse any note...
2 months ago • 6 min read