No Second Act = No Story
GUY: Here’s my pitch: A guy must bond with his gambler father to get closure on his childhood. ME: Great. What’s the second act? GUY: Well, it’s whatever happens between page 25 and page 90. ME: Right, but how is…
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How Is Act Two-A Different from Act Two-B?
The midpoint is the most arguable of the story points in the classic three act structure. It’s the axis upon which the second act revolves, it clarifies the arc, the stakes, and the tone of the exploration of the script.…
The Easiest Screenwriting Exercise in the World
Think of a common object, something tangible, smaller than a garbage can, the kind of object you can buy at a store. For instance: hairspray. Say one thing about the object’s appearance. Something specific, but still in the realm of…
How To Write Good Scenes
Beginning writers struggle to write good scripts. I posit that they struggle to write good scripts because they struggle to write second acts. Further, I posit that they struggle to write second acts because they struggle to write scenes.
What Makes a Great Antagonist?
Q: What do you think makes a great antagonist? Do they always have to have a legit reason (at least to them) of why they are doing bad things? Is it as simple as having a few quirks that people…
Imagine Vividly, Communicate Clearly
The failure of the student is the failure of the teacher. I want to get better at explaining screenwriting. What do you really want to know about the craft? If I had to express screenwriting into four words, it would…
Second Act Screenwriting Tip
When people write loglines or a “premise test,” they often write one that misses the meat of the story. Stories aren’t just about the setup of an idea, it’s about the execution of that idea. That execution occurs in the…
True Romance’s Original Ending
Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage. ~Laozi After posting my True Romance Story Map/Beat Sheet, I received a question regarding the ending. The person asked how the movie had changed…
Don’t Write in Variables. Commit To Specifics.
When I’m coaching a client, I usually run into some version of this conversation:
