Hello, everyone.  As you well know, I do these posts so screenwriters can get information they don’t normally get from a typical screenwriting class, screenwriting workshop or screenwriting course.  I teach this information in my own private groups, but normally most instructors don’t have the time to delve into more specific areas of screenwriting like the one I am going to talk about today.

From years of working with aspiring screenwriters and helping them get their scripts produced, one glaring weakness has become clear to me – most beginning writers don’t pay enough attention to their narrative, the description of action and setting.

This is usually the last thing a professional screenwriter learns on his way to commercial success.  First the beginning screenwriter usually grasps an understanding of structure, then character development and a good understanding of writing snappy dialogue and the ability to construct a scene.

But few screenwriters understand just how critical it is to grab the reader’s attention with narrative that has style and pulses with energy.

You will see this talent in the screenplays of all the great screenwriters working today, like Tony Gilroy who wrote the Bourne movies and Michael Clayton.  It is the defining mark of the consummate professional.

These successful screenwriters pay as much attention to the craft of their narrative as they do to the finesse of their dialogue.

This trend really started more than two decades ago when Shane Black began to write screenplays like Lethal Weapon and The Last Boy Scout.  The prose of his scripts had real edge and style and it was a revelation to the buyers at that time.  As a result, it wasn’t unusual for Shane Black’s original screenplays to be sold for more than a million dollars.

As someone who reads a lot of screenplays for a living, I can instantly tell in one or two pages if I’m in the hands of a professional screenwriter or not – and believe me, I’m not alone.  How do I do that?  Because I can instantly gauge the skill the screenwriter uses to craft his or her narrative.

Is the narrative written with style and pacing?  Is there a conscious display of clever word usage?  Does it capture the genre of the story?  Is there a rhythm to the writing?  Is it visual and does it capture the scene without being too wordy?

There are many tips and tricks that professionals employ to make their narrative jump off the page.  Please join me for my webinar on May 8^th by going to:  https://www.writersstore.com/make-your-film-narrative-pulse-with-energy?lid=gbtwspromo

The webinar will be archived for a year so you can listen it at any time.  I will give many examples of how to employ those skills in making you a complete screenwriter, helping your screenplays rise to the top when scrutinized by readers, producers and buyers.

Until then – KEEP WRITING!

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Hello, everyone.  As you know I try and post information that you don’t normally receive in most screenwriting courses, screenwriting classes and screenwriting workshops.

Last week I sent out a post that was inspired by Waldo Salt, the screenwriter of such exemplary films as Midnight Cowboy and Coming Home.

He made the observation that what makes the difference between a great screenplay from a good one was the amount of emotional bonding the audience feels towards the protagonist.

As I observed earlier, this is seemingly obvious and simplistic but actually when truly understood is exceptionally important for all writers.

There are many films that are similar to Casablanca but it is our deep emotional connection with the Humphrey Bogart character (Rick Blaine) that truly raises the level of why this film is so memorable and will live on forever in the annals of great screenwriting.

We spoke last week about how bonding with the protagonists of Nurse Jackie and Homeland makes these series rise above the level of expertise that we see in Boardwalk Empire, where the protagonist, Nucky Thompson, is a compelling and well developed character but not someone that truly moves us emotionally.

Let’s think about some other great screenplays that could have just been genre films but our deep emotional connection to the protagonist makes them great films not just mediocre ones.

For example, how many cop movies are extremely similar to the Bourne Identity and yet the emotional connection Tony Gilroy was able to elicit towards his protagonist, Jason Bourne, made this film rise above being a “B” level action film.  I didn’t read the novel so I don’t know if there was the same strong connection to the hero in that book, but Tony Gilroy knows about bonding an audience emotionally with his characters (Michael Clayton being the other screenplay that comes immediately to mind).

How about another genre film like Lethal Weapon which becomes a classic cop/buddy film in the hands of Shane Black.  Martin Riggs (played by Mel Gibson) is a detective having a meltdown.  He wants to kill himself because of the death of his wife.  By the end of the movie he has found hope and friendship through his relationship with his partner (Danny Glover).

The last scene of the film is when his partner asks him to come in and join a Christmas celebration and Riggs accepts, showing just how far he’s come (he’s now grown from self hatred and loneliness to unity with other human beings).

We have spoken a great deal about character arcs and this is one of the best character arcs you will ever seen.  We end up bonding deeply with this protagonist and as a result Lethal Weapon will not be discarded upon the dustbin of oblivion like so many other cop films that have been made.

Let’s think long and hard about the emotional connection of our heroes and heroines.  How can we make an audience bond with them on a deep, emotional level?  I’ll talk more about this subject in the weeks to come.

And don’t forget to join my webinar on May 8^th, Creating A Great Read – infusing your narrative with energy and style.  This has always been the greatest weakness I see in screenplays I analyze.  You won’t regret getting these tips of the trade in making your narrative pulse with energy:  To join the webinar go to:  https://www.writersstore.com/make-your-film-narrative-pulse-with-energy?lid=gbtwspromo

Know that you don’t have to hear the webinar live, it is archived on this site for a full year.  I look forward to having you join us.

Until then – KEEP WRITING!

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Hello, everyone.  As you all know in these posts I try to do one thing above all else – give you information that you wouldn’t normally receive in screenwriting classes, screenwriting courses or screenwriting workshops.  Since we’ve been talking about writing for stars it makes me think of a word of advice from Waldo Salt, one of my screenwriter heroes (Midnight Cowboy, Coming Home, etc).

Waldo Salt wasn’t just a brilliant writer he was a mentor for many up-and-coming screenwriters and he said more invaluable things about the craft than anyone I’ve ever encountered.

One of his brilliant insights was about the protagonist, and how the most successful movies allow you to bond with the hero or heroine on a deep and emotional level.

This may seem obvious and elementary but it truly makes the difference between what is a decent film or even television series and what is truly memorable.

Let’s think about this when analyzing some of the television series that are currently on the air.  One of my favorites lately has been Nurse Jackie, played by Edie Falco.  This is a Showtime series that has garnered lavish praise as well as large audiences.  Then compare Nurse Jackie’s character (Jackie Peyton) to the protagonist of “Boardwalk Empire,” (Nucky Thompson, played by Steve Buscemi) a series on HBO.

Both shows are extremely well written with great acting and terrific production values.  But the character of Nurse Jackie truly moves us.  We bond with her on a deep level.  Not only is she extremely flawed but she is also a very capable person, a truly caring and knowledgeable nurse, who loves her patients and does everything she can to help them.  She may be a drug addict but that doesn’t mean she isn’t compassionate and highly professional.

This is what makes a great heroine, a wonderful anti-hero of sorts (anti-heroes also comprise the protagonists of Homeland, Breaking Bad, Justified, the Sopranos, House of Cards and many other shows now on television).  Great characters are complex, they aren’t just one thing or the other.  It’s this complexity that truly makes them real and human and compelling to watch.

Now compare Nurse Jackie to Nucky Thompson, the hero of Boardwalk Empire.  He’s also an anti-hero, he orders people killed, he cheats on his wife, he betrays those who are closest to him.  But we never truly bond with this character.  For some reason, he’s interesting to watch but never truly compelling in an emotional way.  We observe him from a distance but our hearts never really feel for him.

As a result, Boardwalk Empire I don’t think will ever have the staying power of Nurse Jackie.  Because what truly makes the difference in a great series is the amount of bonding we do with the protagonist – Claire Danes on Homeland and Tony Soprano from the Sopranos are also great examples of protagonists that we truly bond with and as a result will live on in our hearts and minds and on reruns.

Think about how deeply you can go with your heroes and heroines so the audience will truly bond with them.

And of course – KEEP WRITING!

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Hello, everyone.  As you all know, everything I write is focused on those subjects that aren’t normally spoken about in screenwriting courses, screenwriting classes or screenwriting workshops.  Only the most general topics are normally offered in these groups so I try and fill the void with this blog.

I posted on our “Secrets of Screenwriting Group” site on Facebook that I am doing a webinar for the Writers Store on May 8^th at 1:00 pm live.  It’s my favorite topic:  Creating A Great Read:  making your narrative pulse with energy and style.  Please join me by clicking on https://www.writersstore.com/make-your-film-narrative-pulse-with-energy?lid=gbtwspromo.

You can participate in the webinar at anytime, it’s archived there for a year.  I know you will get a lot out of it.

Moving on, we talked last week about the two great stars in House Of Cards (the great new original series on Netflix), Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright.  I’d like to riff on that awhile by addressing just how important it is that you compose for stars when addressing your screenplay.

When we’re writing studio movies, the writer has to protect the star by giving all the great stuff to the stars – the best lines, the best action, etc.  The protagonist carries the movie, he or she is the one we’re connecting with on a deep level – the protagonist must be the most interesting character.

And the reason that commercially your movie is getting made is because a star agrees to do it.  And that star isn’t stupid.  If they’re the reason a movie gets made, don’t you think they want all the good stuff – they definitely don’t want another character to outshine them in any way.  So you give them a great entrance, great moments, great dialogue, etc.

This is where many writers fail.  Their protagonists are actually the least interesting character in their story.  The reason for this is the protagonist has to carry the plot. Therefore, they are loaded down with all kinds of exposition and important bits of plotting – they don’t get to pop in and do interesting scene stealing actions.

Don’t let this happen. Make sure your star gets everything. Make damn sure their character arcs are the most interesting of all. Give them the best moments. Your movie will have a better chance of getting a star attached and therefore will have a better chance of being sold.

Thank William Goldman for this great advise. He along with Waldo Salt has left many great bits of advise to us more humble and less talented souls who sit at their feet and beg for crumbs of their knowledge.

I shall leave it there for now. Have a great week-end and —

KEEP COMMUNICATING! It’s universal solvent that makes our universe work and allows us to be as human as possible. The only mistake anyone can ever make is stop from communicating. Don’t let that happen – ever!

And of course – KEEP WRITING!

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Hello, everyone.  As you well know, I’m constantly trying to provide insights that aren’t necessarily gained in most screenwriting courses, screenwriting classes or even screenwriting workshops.

I spoke about the great new original series on Netflix last week – House of Cards – and it still inspires me to post another example of how wonderful this show is and how much we can learn about great writing from analyzing what it does so admirably.

Kevin Spacey plays the Majority Whip, Francis Underwood and has an intriguing relationship with his wife, Claire, played by Robin Wright (Princess Bride and Forrest Gump).

She is just as miraculous here.  Francis and Claire are both power hungry and ruthless when it’s necessary.  Claire fires ¾ of her staff when it is required of her to do so and will help out her husband in his most dastardly deeds.  Most writers would make such aggressive and self serving characters as cold hearted creatures but the writers of House of Cards don’t fall into that trap.

They realize that people are extremely complex and can be more than one thing.  They can be cold and warm hearted at once, they can act with malicious forthright at times and yet be compassionate at others.

For Francis and Claire they are both having affairs with other people and yet they are still deeply in love with each other.  Claire knows her husband is having sex with a young reporter and does blink when he says he isn’t coming home that night.

And yet she still loves the man and they have very intimate moments of true caring.  They know each other’s secrets and share each others desires for power and influence.  But that doesn’t make them heartless.  They feel deeply.  They allow each other their flings and yet can be jealous, too, when they feel the affair is becoming more than just sex and power.

They are a true power couple who love deeply, fight with fervor for ascendance and do all that’s possible to win the laurels together and for each other.  And yet when one of them feels that the other is only using them they can betray their own loved one out of hurt and jealousy.

Talk about complexity and how the human heart actually works.  Everyone must see this show and others like it – Homeland, Nurse Jackie, Justified.  There are so many great things on television now – we are truly living in a golden age of television.

Watch this stuff and you cannot help but elevate your own writing to try and match what’s happening now on TV.  Tell me if I’ve missed anything good, as well.  A friend just told me The Americans is another great example of what television is doing so well right now.

Until then – KEEP WRITING!

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Hello, everyone.  As it’s my habit, I always try and provide information you won’t normally get in screenwriting courses, screenwriting classes or screenwriting workshops.  Here is another example of that.

Now that I’ve seen eight hours of the first season of House of Cards I have to talk about how great this show is, especially when it comes to creating great characters and great character arcs.

First there is Kevin Spacey, who is one of the finest actors in America.  He plays Francis Underwood, who is the majority whip.  He is charming, deceitful; a Machiavellian manipulator who is furious that he was wasn’t given the job he was promised by the president.

So now he is getting his due.  The man knows just how to use his power to get what he wants and it isn’t always pretty.  But Francis Underwood also has a sense of honor in his own twisted way.  He loves what he does and enjoys the simple things in life – like great barbecue for breakfast.  We can’t help but like this man because he is so clever and finds such joy in climbing the treacherous rungs of power.

He also discovers a congressman who is a drug addict and alcoholic and bribes him into recovering and challenges him to run for governor, at the same time forcing him to close a shipyard in his district that will put 12,000 people out of work.

Francis Underwood is as good as any Shakespearean hero.  And to top it off he has Robin Wright as his wife, gorgeous and self contained, a wheeler-dealer in her right who runs the Clean Water Initiative.  She doesn’t hesitate to fire ¾ of her staff when it’s expedient, but at the same time will bend over backwards to comfort a fallen politician.

There is such wonderful complexity in these characters.  They are not one thing or the other.  In lesser hands Francis Underwood would be a simple villain without the good heart, a man who simply wants power without reaching out a helping hand when he sees potential in others.  He is certainly ruthless but doesn’t really have a mean bone in his body.  Just don’t get in his way.

People are complex.  They can be cowardly and brave, loyal and unworthy, any polar opposites you can imagine.  Just watch Nurse Jackie on television as well and you will see another wonderful example of this.  We all have many layers to our personality.  We are not all one thing or the other.  Create characters that have warring sides to them – that have many colors.  And most of all – love your characters.  The writers of House of Cards love Francis Underwood and his wife Claire.  They may do terrible deeds at times but always for good reasons.

Next week we will discuss the always complex and fascinating marriage of these two people.  In the meantime, watch this show – you can get it on Netflix.  You won’t be sorry.

Until then – KEEP WRITING!

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Hello, everyone.  A new idea has just occurred to me and I wanted to share it with you.  As you know I try and provide the insights and formulas that you won’t normally hear in the typical screenwriting course, screenwriting class or screenwriting workshop.

We have been talking about how important the character arc is to every commercial and artistic film that’s out there.

But it now dawns on me that some plot lines necessarily lend themselves to a great character arc in ways other plots don’t.

Stay with me here on this one.  Consider the plots that have to do with somebody losing their memory:

The Bourne Movies and Total Recall for example.

When you write a film like this you can’t help but get a great character arc.  Why?  Because the protagonist is a blank slate at first and then comes to realize he’s involved in some conspiracy or jeopardy and must solve the puzzle of who he is before he’s killed or someone in high office is killed, etc.

We are all trying to figure out in some way or the other who we are and this particular plot just heightens that universal dilemma.

Let’s take another plot:  The Betrayal Plot for example.  Someone who you trust implicitly is discovered to be dishonest or even evil – Music Box by Joe Eszterhas did this brilliantly.  Remember Joe?  He was one of the first screenwriters who sold a spec for over a million dollars – his best script sale (Basic Instinct) was 3 million dollars.  But I digress.

Music Box is about a lawyer (Jessica Lange) whose father is accused of being a Nazi War criminal.  He’s a wonderful old man and grandfather and there’s no way in the world she can believe he’s done evil things.  But as the story unfolds and she becomes the one who defends him in an international tribunal, she begins to suspect that he actually is this Nazi criminal.

A plot like this can’t help but provide a great character arc because the character goes from one emotional extreme to another.  And it lays bare something we all secretly fear – that those closest to us aren’t necessarily who they appear to be.  That betrayal can happen to any of us.

Think of those closest to Ted Bundy, his girlfriend and colleagues who swore up and down that Bundy could not be a serial killer.  But behind that charming façade was truly the face of evil.

Let’s think of other plots that provide this same gateway into great character arcs because if we latch onto these plots we can’t help but have great characters as well.

Until then – KEEP WRITING!

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Hello, everyone.  As you all know I try my best to give your information and specifics that you won’t normally receive in your typical screenwriting workshop, screenwriting class or screenwriting course.  Even the ones in Hollywood.  So here we go again.

We’ve been talking about character arcs and I’ve pointed out that they are essential whether you’re writing a feature film, a novel or a series on television.

Character arcs are what make great stories no matter what genre you’re writing.

I gave one great example last week in the novel “Me Not You.”  Let’s look at one of the best shows on television right now, “Homeland.”

If you haven’t seen this show yet please rent it on Netflix and see what really good writing is all about.  All the characters are complex and interesting, none more so than the star, the female protagonist (Carrie Mathison) who is played by Claire Danes.

She is a C.I.A. operative who is brilliant at her job but also suffers from a form of bipolar disorder.  Her whole life is focused on keeping America safe but it comes at a terrible price, as she has virtually no personal life and feeds off the riskiness and danger of doing what she does.

As we start the series she is the epitome of a dedicated and risk tasking heroine who shows signs of deep insecurities.  But as the show continues she becomes more and more convinced that the P.O.W. who was finally released from Iraq after seven years of torture (Marine Sergeant Nicholas Brody) is not an American hero at all but a terrorist mole.

Carrie is convinced he’s secretly spying for the enemy and will eventually commit an act of treason.  We can’t tell if she’s right or not for the early part of the season but we suspect she may be onto something even though her superiors are vehemently against her and the Vice President of the United States wants to nominate this man for a senatorial seat.

The suspense is high and the mystery is great because we seesaw back and forth between believing she’s right and then questioning her decisions as well.

But as the show continues the heroine because increasingly erratic and she even has an affair with the man she’s stalking, convinced she can find out his secrets – and against all good sense even falls in love with Brody.

By the end of the first season Carrie has a full blown bipolar meltdown, losing her job and has to be committed.  It’s literally the stuff of Greek tragedy – she gave everything to protect her country and yet sacrificed her personal life and mental well being for everything she risked.

And by the end of the show the greatest tragedy of all is that we realize she was right all along – the man she sensed was a traitor is exactly that and he almost kills the Vice President and many of our leaders.

The plot is great but as in all great stories the plot is only there to service the character.  The real story is what happens to the protagonist and in this case the gradual disintegration of her mind and well being.

Remember what you’re actually doing when you write films – you’re revealing character and what makes people tick and how they either rise to the occasion or in tragedy how they fail.

We’ll talk more about character arcs in the weeks to come.

Until then – KEEP WRITING!

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Hello everyone.  As you have garnered by now, I try and provide information that isn’t normally heard in screenwriting classes, screenwriting workshops and screenwriting courses.  So, this week I thought we might broaden this discussion and talk about character and character arcs in art forms other than films.

Novels for example.  I’ve been reading “Me Before You,” by Jojo Moyes.  It takes place in the present outside of London.  Its protagonist is a very ordinary woman, who’s had a boyfriend for seven years, a dead-end job in a café and still lives with her family even though she’s 27 years old.

Not exactly heroine material but what makes her story interesting is what happens when she’s laid off from her job.  She can’t find work other than being a caretaker for a paraplegic who’s been wheel chair bound since having an auto accident.  He’s sarcastic and negative and wants to take out his own misery on the world.

At first our heroine is in complete terror of him.  She can’t handle his anger or his sarcasm and would easily quit her job except her family needs the extra income.

So she sticks it out and before long that thing we keep talking about – the character arc – begins to magically occur.  Before long she stands up to him and he actually appreciates that because everyone else just tries to appease him.

He’s nothing like her – he’s upper class, well educated and cultured.  (this is called the Unity of Opposites that we’ll discuss later)  As the story develops, they begin to become fast friends.  And even though she eventually moves in with her boyfriend, there’s a growing attraction between them as well because he actually listens to her and wants her to grow.

And as she gets closer to him, she discovers he’s decided to end his life.  His family has very reluctantly agreed to help him – but only if he waits six months and if at that time he still can’t abide his life any longer, they’ll assist him.

So our heroine now has six months to bring enough joy into his life so that he won’t decide to die.  And as she tries to save his life, she saves her own in return by experiencing things she never would have experienced without this mission.

This is the stuff of great stories.  Not only does our protagonist develop as a character but so does the man she’s caring for.

Will he end his life nevertheless or won’t he?  We have to keep turning the pages to see.

Character arcs are the heart of any movie, novel or play because it is the very mystery of our humanity.  Can we change?  Is it possible for us to face the obstacles of our lives and overcome them?  Great stories are all about this journey.  The growth of the character.  Not the movement of the plot.  The plot is really there to service the characters, not the other way around.

We’ll talk about this subject as it is the very heart of what will make your film succeed or fail.

Until then – Keep writing!

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Hello, screenwriters. As you all know, I attempt to bring to light information that you don’t normally receive in screenwriting courses, screenwriting classes or screenwriting workshops.

The latest topic we’ve been exploring is one of my favorites and there cannot be enough learned about developing great characters and showing in an artistic and visual way how characters grow over the course of a story.

Before we begin, for those who have recently joined this group, please don’t take a look at all previous posts by clicking on FILES – there’s a wealth of information there about all aspects of screenwriting.

I want to talk now about protagonists and secondary characters. It is very true that we need a character arc for your protagonist. Laos Egri categorized that journey as going from one emotional extreme to another – From trust to mistrust, for example, or love to hate, or hate to love (most romantic comedies).

Why are we ideally looking for emotional extremes? Because then the journey is greater – if I’m just going from hate to contempt (a little less hate) then the journey is not as interesting or dramatic – the more a character changes the better. For example in the Bourne movies, Jason Bourne goes from somebody who knows nothing about himself (he has amnesia) to someone who becomes painfully aware of who he is.  This character arc is extreme and dramatic. This is the ideal.

How about minor characters? Do they also need character arcs? Not really. Other characters can change somewhat but this can actually be a liability to you as a writer and to your script. For example, if another character in your story also has a dramatic character arc it tends to steal the limelight from your star. That other character may be more interesting and even more compelling than the protagonist. We don’t want this. We want the star to shine as brightly as possible.

This is smart both artistically and commercially.  In a great book about screenwriting from a great screenwriter (Adventures in the Screen Trade), William Goldman writes brilliantly about this.

In the next few weeks we will talk about protecting the star.

Until then – KEEP WRITING!

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