@storyandplot

Daily posts on screenwriting. Writer of 8 films, including WINCHESTER + others. I share what I've learned as a pro at https://xitter.cf/t.co/TECqRNjU1B and @UHouston 🐾

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Joined July 2010
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Does your protagonist really need an emotional wound?

There is an ever-growing trend to emphasize and rely on a character's past trauma to define and explain a character.

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How to be a more talented screenwriter.

Much like moviemaking, it's a combination of skills working together to create a whole.

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The key to a sensational inciting incident.

The most common understanding of the inciting incident is that it is the event that gets everything started.

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Your protagonist doesn't need to be likable.

There is a common misconception that a protagonist needs to be likable. This is only sometimes true.

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Controlling the tone in your screenwriting.

I am currently rewriting an action-comedy based on the director's notes. Through the process, there is a lot of discussion about tone.

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The two ingredients for tension in your screenwriting.

Nothing keeps us engaged in a story more than tension. It's one of the most effective tools we have to keep the audience watching.

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Five Questions For Every Scene

Screenwriting is scene work. One of the throughlines of both ​Mastering Structure​ and ​Idea To Outline​ is to move away from seeing movies as plot points and recognizing them as scenes an…

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Put the reader of your screenplay in the audience

The days of screenplays being written for production are mostly over. Today, the screenplay is written to be read. Production (hopefully) will come later.

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Finding The Core Belief: The Impact of the "Flat-Arc" Protagonist

Much of my teaching focuses on the transformation of the protagonist. While this covers most stories, there are other types of transformation.

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How To Incorporate Screenplay Notes From Friends, Writers Groups, and Others.

A couple of weeks ago, I discussed how to ​navigate development​ when working for others. This week is a different kind of development challenge because you will be the final arbiter of which note…

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How Hollywood became so IP-obsessed.

The first thing to understand is that Hollywood has NOT run out of new ideas.

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Navigating Screenplay Development Without Getting Fired.

Early in my screenwriting career, I argued, didn't take notes well, and was essentially what the ancient mystics called, "a massive pain in the ass."

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