“The symptoms of a writer who hasn’t found their way clear of the needs of Self yet are easy to spot. I should say the symptoms are easy for everyone else to spot, that is, and not so easy for the writer themself to see. You’ll see a writer who does not trust the characters to speak and move on their own, but has to puppeteer them; a writer who does not trust the reader to understand what’s written. One who must insert parentheticals in various forms to explain the work to the reader; flashbacks to explain; big black blocks of text on the page to explain; question-and-answer dialog between characters who aren’t in a courtroom; walk-and-talk characters with their mouths full of dialog of what the story is about; too many stage directions that make the script read like a novel…” CharacterStructureScreenwritingGuideCraftReferenceConvergencePracticalScreenplayMiovie Book:ANATOMY OF A SCREENPLAY THIRD EDITION Source: ANATOMY OF A SCREENPLAY THIRD EDITION
“In a movie, people only talk when they want something. If your characters are not pursuing their needs in the scene, they are invariably talking about the movie they are in.” TalentPlotConstructionGuideScriptSequencingScreenplayStrong CharactersScenesWriters Tool Book:ANATOMY OF A SCREENPLAY THIRD EDITION Source: ANATOMY OF A SCREENPLAY THIRD EDITION
“A movie: tells the story; of a person(s); in the pursuit of an Objective(s); in the face of Opposition(s); with someone to talk to; with an underlying theme, in a clearly defined genre; with an emotionally satisfying resolution. Does yours?” KnowledgeToolsTechniqueConstructionProfessionalScriptSequencingScreenplayScenesWriters Tool Book:ANATOMY OF A SCREENPLAY THIRD EDITION Source: ANATOMY OF A SCREENPLAY THIRD EDITION