So… how are your screenwriting goals coming along?
Maybe you’re on track and hitting your milestones on time and on target. If that’s the case, keep going – I’m cheering you on!
But even if your best laid plans haven’t played out quite as you wanted, don’t throw in the towel just yet. There’s still plenty of year left.
And – the real point of today’s memo – even if you have a sneaking suspicion you’re not going to hit all of those lofty output goals you made back in January, don’t be tempted to write off the rest of the year.
When life gets busy and you don’t have the time or attention to work on a project of your own (or you’re just between projects right now) you can still sharpen your screenwriting skills.
And then when you do come back to your own writing, you bring even more to the table!
What can you do to become a better writer when you’re not writing?
As I’ve recommended before: find ways to practice story. Read screenplays, watch movies, and do it deliberately. Really analyze them. Pull the engine apart and put it back together again. If you do this enough times, you’ll be able to build virtually any story you want.
But reading screenplays and watching movies takes time! Time you don’t have frequently or regularly, right?
Today I want to encourage you to think smaller.
If you don’t have time to watch an entire movie or read an entire screenplay in one sitting, you can still get real value out of smaller chunks (of both stories and time).
Ways to practice story
Here are a few ideas:
- Watch one or two SCENES in an episode of TV. How is the scene structured? (Conflicting goals! Stakes! Escalations!) What devices or tricks does it use to convey its story and character information, but do so in a way that entertains?
- Watch one ACT of an episode of TV. Try to identify the beats in that act for one or more storylines. Contemplate what happens and how much the story moves forward. Also pay attention to the “act out” and see how it creates tension or intrigue that makes you want to come back after the commercial break.
- Watch one SEQUENCE of a movie. This is a little easier once you’re comfortable identifying a sequence, of course. If you’re not quite there yet, try watching one quarter of a movie (either Act 1, Act 2A, Act 2B, or Act 3). Specific things should happen in each of these sections of the story, so isolating and focusing your attention on just one section at a time is a very useful exercise. You’ll become intimately familiar with what usually happens, and what we – the audience – expect in each phase of the story. Later, you’ll be able to use this knowledge to fulfill or subvert expectations with your story.
Now, on the days you do have time to watch or read and analyze a whole movie, do that.
Analyzing movies and screenplays is still key
It’s no secret that I think it’s a great exercise to have in your rotation. After I wrote about the Mercury screenplay a few weeks ago, fellow writer J. commented about how it might be worth it to break down the scripts he’s reading so he can better remember them (and how they work), and I whole-heartedly agree!
It’s a great idea to memorialize your thoughts on a script after you read it, and movies too. The practice forces you to really think about them and then articulate your thoughts, which leads to deeper understanding and uncovering additional insights.
As I told J., I think the best way to make sure you’re thoroughly analyzing and not just casually observing, is to fill out a story chart of some sort. And of course I’m biased, but I like the one I put together – which asks you to identify the major plot points, character arc, and theme, giving you a solid look at the story from these angles.
I would also make special note of things like where escalations or big reveals occurred, interesting and effective story engines or devices, or anything else that makes the story work.
Inspired by this conversation, I put together a 2-page PDF that you can print and use to capture your thoughts on scripts and movies. Make notes as you watch or read, then fill in the rest as you think through what you’ve watched. Keep your completed charts as a log of everything you’ve read and watched, and as a reference library you can go back to anytime!
(Download the PDF here, and get some additional instruction on how to fill in the chart in this post.)