The 5 Notes I Always Give
![The 5 Notes I Always Give](/content/images/size/w600/2024/07/5-notes-I-always-give.jpeg)
So many of you seem to be making the exact same mistakes with your writing. And from my vantage point, they're all easily fixable.
Looking for New Stakes? Shame on You
Shame is, in many ways, like that gun being held on a crowd. Everyone can relate.
How to Write Better Comedy. Seriously.
Shows trying to tickle our funny bones have become so prolific that we have started to collectively yawn—it takes a lot more to stand out.
How Clothes Can Make the Man (or Woman) in Your Script
![How Clothes Can Make the Man (or Woman) in Your Script](/content/images/size/w600/2024/04/How-Clothes-Can-Make-the-Man--or-Woman--in-Your-Script.jpeg)
Indeed, clothes not only make the man (or woman), but they can tell us so much about a character the second they appear on screen.
How to Find a High-Concept Story Idea that Sells
![How to Find a High-Concept Story Idea that Sells](/content/images/size/w600/2024/04/How-to-Find-a-High-Concept-Story-Idea-that-Sells_.png)
First of all, let’s get clear on what ‘high-concept’ means.
This is How I Fangirl: I Wrote a Novel
![This is How I Fangirl: I Wrote a Novel](/content/images/size/w600/2024/03/This-is-How-I-Fangirl-I-Wrote-a-Novel.jpg)
But the way I see it, all fiction originates as fan fic in one way or another.
The New Heroes in Movies and TV Shows? Villains.
![The New Heroes in Movies and TV Shows? Villains.](/content/images/size/w600/2024/02/The-New-Heroes-in-Movies-and-TV-Shows-Villains-True-Detective.jpg)
Getting a fractured audience’s attention is getting harder and harder.
Raiders of the Lost Art: An Argument for Dialogue-Driven Set Pieces
![Raiders of the Lost Art: An Argument for Dialogue-Driven Set Pieces](/content/images/size/w600/2024/01/Raiders-of-the-Lost-Art-An-Argument-for-Dialogue-Driven-Set-Pieces.jpeg)
... well-rendered and delivered dialogue can surprise and turn a story on its head in ways that action scenes only very rarely can ...
The Three Things All of 2023’s Best Screenplays Have in Common
![The Three Things All of 2023’s Best Screenplays Have in Common](/content/images/size/w600/2024/01/The-Three-Things-All-of-2023-s-Best-Screenplays-Have-in-Common.jpg)
It is a shining example of how a film can be distinguished just as much by what its script doesn’t reveal as what it does.
Yes, Page Count Still Matters
![Yes, Page Count Still Matters](/content/images/size/w600/2023/12/Page-Count-Matters.jpeg)
Think like a salesman ... if you have a product you need to sell, which would you rather have? More potential buyers? Or fewer?
Wait! Don't Trash that Script
![Wait! Don't Trash that Script](/content/images/size/w600/2023/12/wait-dont-trash-that-script.jpeg)
As William Goldman said about Hollywood, “Nobody knows anything.” Learn all you can but trust your instincts.
Want to Tell Better Stories? Watch Foreign Films
![Want to Tell Better Stories? Watch Foreign Films](/content/images/size/w600/2023/11/Want-to-Tell-Better-Stories--Watch-Foreign-Films.jpeg)
Foreign films generally assume the audience is savvier, capable of putting two and two together without having to shove things down their throat.
Fix Your Script First
![Fix Your Script First](/content/images/size/w600/2023/10/fix-your-script-first.jpg)
When somebody finally gives you a chance and decides to read what you’ve got, it’s up to your writing to keep them engaged—not you.
Acting Exercises Writers Can Use to Flesh Out Their Characters
![Acting Exercises Writers Can Use to Flesh Out Their Characters](/content/images/size/w600/2023/10/Acting-Exercises-Writers-Can-Use-to-Flesh-Out-Their-Characters.jpeg)
If you consider creating and developing characters to be your writing Achilles' heel, you've come to the right place.