Screenwriting How-To Articles

Host Gray Jones interviews Lee Aronsohn, co-creator and showrunner of "Two and a Half Men" and EP of "The Big Bang Theory," and actor/writer/producer/director Jason Kyle, the founders of the Creators Writing Room.

Ashley Scott Meyers talks with Writer/Director Jessie McCormack about her new TV/Web Series "Piss Off, I Love You," and discuss making movies or shorts with an iPhone and how networking at film festivals helped launch her career.

Compelling characters are the backbones of any story. Kira-Anne Pelican, PhD explains why some characters stick in our minds more than others, and what makes a character memorable.

Do you really have to live in L.A. to succeed as a screenwriter? One of Script's readers, who is now a WGA screenwriter, shares how he successfully navigates the industry from outside of L.A.

To create a satisfying and compelling story for audiences, writers must not protect their protagonist. Joanne Wannan shares advice on keeping the protagonist active in the climax of your story.

Screenwriter Jay Thornton and his six-year-old son, Quentin, review "Sonic the Hedgehog" and how one scene can have create maximum impact.

Dan Goforth talks with Marci Henna about making the novel into a film, and about how it spurred her to make the jump from novelist to screenwriter.

Ashley Scott Meyers talks with Horror Filmmaker Darren Lynn Bousman about his new feature "Death Of Me" (2020). Bousman has a long career as a Writer/Director, his credits include "Saw II," "Saw III" and the upcoming "Spiral" (2021).

Expository scenes are absolutely necessary, but extremely hard to write well. Ray Morton shares insights into what he feels is the best exposition scene ever written, penned by Lawrence Kasdan in his marvelous screenplay for 1981’s "Raiders of the Lost Ark."

Who else but Tom Stempel would think to compare the scripts of 1943 and a 2019 film, both about Marie and Pierre Curie? And he throws in Burt Reynolds, Kurt Luedtke, and at no extra cost Ariel Winter. Don’t worry, you’ll find out who she is.

Michael Hauge explains the three most common mistakes screenwriters make in Act I that make a story fizzle fast.

"Nomadland" director, writer, producer, and editor Chloé Zhao and producer Peter Spears spoke with New York Film Festival Director of Programming Dennis Lim at a press conference to discuss their NYFF58 Centerpiece selection.

Ashley Scott Meyers talks with filmmaker Sam Macaroni about his new comedy "Guest House" (2020), featuring Pauly Shore, Aimee Teegarden and Billy Zane. Sam Macaroni Directed "Guest House" and wrote it with Sean Bishop and Troy Duffy ("The Boondock Saints" - 1999).

Once in a lifetime, if a writer is lucky, they discover a story so compelling that they can’t rest until they bring it to the masses, even if it breaks them. Writer/Director Todd Robinson discusses his experience championing for "The Last Full Measure," adapting true stories, and applying the Hero's Journey to real life.

What exactly *is* low budget? Does it mean just a small drama? No action scenes? Writing for budget is complicated, and a small drama might be more expensive than an action screenplay. In Part 3, we look at fun things like "Dog Juice" and "Imagination Harvesting" and Story-Driven screenplays and why you might want to Avoid Dialogue!

Readers are the gatekeepers to Hollywood, and their coverage can make or break your chances of success. ScriptHop Co-Founders create an innovative way to present your work to industry executives that changes the game for pitching and selling your screenplay.

James Di Martino, Australian writer/director of the Horror movie "The Faceless Man" (2019), discusses how he went from a marketing background into making shorts and now a feature film. James talks about running a Kickstarter campaign, and how he started his own production company.

What exactly *is* low budget? Does it mean no space ship battles? Just a small drama? Writing for budget is complicated, and a small drama might be more expensive than an action screenplay. In Part 2, we look at the importance of Genre, how Interesting Structures can elevate your story, and avoiding the Uncontrollables

Susan Kouguell shares insights from Steve McQueen about "Lovers Rock," a film in his new five-film anthology, showing at the New York Film Festival.

Screenwriters and filmmakers often impact society in ways never expected. Frank Deese explores the "The China Syndrome" - the film that launched Hollywood's social activism - and the effect the film had on the world's view of nuclear power plants.

Host Gray Jones interviews Elaine Loh, TV writer on the new "Gossip Girl" and "Dynasty," and also award-winning film writer/director and actor.

There are many ways to discuss and frame theme as a story tool. Writer Jay Thornton dives deep into the use of Controlling Theme to keep an audience engaged and on the edge of their seats.

It's part of every screenwriter's job to give and receive screenplay notes, but it takes a certain skill set and awareness to do it right. Bob Saenz shares essential advice on giving and taking notes.

Writer/director Jeff Barnaby discusses "Blood Quantum," zombie movies and pitching at Cannes Film Market.

Screenwriter Jay Thornton and his six-year-old son, Quentin, review Pixar's "Onward," and examine how to make an audience care about your characters.

What exactly *is* low budget? Does it mean no explosions? Just a small drama? Definitely not science fiction! And no special effects or spaceship battles! But writing for budget is more complicated than that, and a small drama about a family trying to save their farm might be more expensive than a science-fiction screenplay with a giant spaceship battle.

Having evaluated hundreds of scripts and coached hundreds of screenwriters over the years, Dave Trottier shares 20 screenwriting myths that don’t square with reality.

Screenwriters struggle to get their screenplays to stand out from the crowd. ScriptHop cofounder Scott Foster shares how the old "Scenario" magazine inspired and informed their new software platform, designed to empower writers to get their scripts greenlit.

Ashley Scott Meyers talks with Filmmaker Christian Sesma about his latest Crime/Thriller "Paydirt" (2020) which stars actors Val Kilmer, Murielle Telio and Luke Goss.

For the first time in 36 years, the Central Coast Writers Conference will go virtual. Hosted by Cuesta College, online workshops via Zoom will be Sept. 24-26, 2020, with a diverse group of instructors and information-packed sessions and master classes.

Even professional screenwriters need ways to rev their writing engines. Script found a Twitter screenwriting tip from filmmaker Magda Olchawska, where she shared 12 writing exercises from Aaron Sorkin.

Script digs into our archives to bring you advice on writing from the pros. Scott Z. Burns, writer of "Contagion," "The Report," and co-writer of "The Bourne Ultimatum," takes us back to 2009, sharing his experience writing "The Informant."

Mastering subtext helps you become a writer the industry wants to know, and a writer who gets repped. Barri Evins shares tips for writing subtext to take your screenwriting from a whisper to a roar.

Ashley Scott Meyers talks with writer/director Kyle Couch about Drama/Thriller "The Tent" (2020). They discuss the film, his writing process and how he was able to get "The Tent" set up.

Screenwriters believe myths to feel better, to justify their choices, and to convince themselves they are on the right path, even if the evidence sometimes suggest they aren’t. Ray Morton shares some truths to counteract the lies that aspiring screenwriters tell themselves.

Tom Stempel has found some relatively new movies to write about, including "Last Christmas," "The Way Back," "Queen & Slim," and examines how Billy Wilder might have approached "Never Rarely Sometimes Always."

Susan Kouguell interviews writer/director Isabel Sandoval about her film, "Lingua Franca," the themes that are important to her, and advice to emerging writers and filmmakers.

Ashley Scott Meyers talks with the well-known filmmaker Eric Bress about his latest credit, the unique thriller Ghosts of War (2020). This is a World War II movie that also serves as a supernatural ghost story.

With the millions of tweets streaming daily, we dig through the noise to find you the best screenwriting tips. Anna Klassen recently shared advice on outlining your screenplay, as well as the mindset needed to succeed.

Introducing "Rated Q Podcast," where Quentin, a six-year-old story aficionado, and his father, professional writer Jay Thornton, escape the drama of this crazy year, and create a fantastic and fun podcast, reviewing family-friendly movies. First up, "Scoob."

Want to get your writing noticed? Aiming to create compelling characters? Looking to engage your reader and move an audience? Barri Evins reveals the secrets of subtext so you can turn up the volume on your screenwriting and become a writer the industry is eager to know.

The best way to learn how to write is to read great stories as well as interviews of successful writers. We scoured Script's archives to share essential writing advice from interviews of pro writers and filmmakers.

Why do movies take so long to make? Let's look at the journey of "Black Wings Has My Angel" from filmmaker, Christopher Peditto, who refused to give up.

Filmmaker Gavin Rothery discusses creating Visual Effects for "Moon," as well as writing and directing his Sci-Fi feature "Archive" (2020), which stars Theo James, Rhona Mitra and Stacy Martin.

Script dug through Twitter and found some great screenwriting tips from Scott Myers of Go Into the Story. Get insights on the power of theme and the importance of a compelling logline.

The hit Netflix series, "The Umbrella Academy" launched season 2 with a bang! Bryan Young discussed the ins and outs of producing a hit streaming show, breaking into screenwriting, and so much more with one of the show's producers, Jason Neese.

When you sit down to craft your story, you are the master, but how do you maximize the story's potential? Ray Morton shares five questions to ask before you start writing your screenplay.

Host Gray Jones interviews Michael Jamin, TV comedy writer and showrunner who has written on such shows as "King of the Hill," "Maron," and "Beavis and Butthead," and is currently a consulting producer on "Tacoma FD."

Actor/Filmmaker Oliver Robins discusses his latest movie, a Thriller called "Celebrity Crush" (2019) which he wrote and directed. Robins got his start as a child actor in the hit movie "Poltergeist" (1982) and later directed movies such as "Man Overboard" (2008).

Script scours the time-suck that is Twitter to share screenwriting tips with our readers. William C. Martell nailed it in his tweet about the "rules" of screenwriting.