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Why Is Mrs. Maisel So Marvelous?
Why Is Mrs. Maisel So Marvelous? Amy Sherman-Palladino and Daniel Palladino Tell All!
It is a rare surprise that a near perfect TV show is made. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, now in its second season on Amazon Prime Video, is one of those shows...
Create Your Pitch Part II: Sell, Don’t Tell
Lee Nordling on why all writing is selling, the danger of detail, evoking an emotional response, and conceiving your story in broad strokes.
Welcome to the second piece of the pitching pie-that’s-not-in-the-sky.“But I’m still...
Create Your Pitch Part I: Baiting the Hook
Lee Nordling on giving away the good part, the problem with high concept pitches, and the importance of hitting the producer between the eyes.
This begins a two-part series on various ways you can improve your hitting percentage with pitches....
Reality Check
In working with screenwriters for nearly three decades, I’ve noticed three writing issues that arise over and over again. In each case, a reality check should prove empowering.1. Appearance is importantAfter a tweet that touted my...
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Building a tapestry: Kenneth Lonergan on Manchester by the Sea
Kenneth Lonergan discusses making the story your own, the use of flashbacks, and rooting your script in realism.
Playwright and screenwriter/director Kenneth Lonergan returns to the big screen after a 16-year absence with Manchester by the...
Manager Andrew Kersey’s Advice To Screenwriters...
Manager Andrew Kersey’s Advice To Screenwriters: “Develop Your Craft. Develop Your Voice And Your Time Will Come.”
Creative Screenwriting Magazine spoke with manager Andrew Kersey who represents screenwriters. He shares his...
Why Is Mrs. Maisel So Marvelous?
Why Is Mrs. Maisel So Marvelous? Amy Sherman-Palladino and Daniel Palladino Tell All!
It is a rare surprise that a near perfect TV show is made. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, now in its second season on Amazon Prime Video, is one of those shows...
Test Your Story Concept
I recently taught a webinar for The Writers Store on Story Development. In it we talked about the importance of testing your story concept before you end up like Charlie Kaufman in Adaptation lost in a sea of notes and pages with no idea...
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8 Keys to Writing a Marketable Script
1. ONE GENRE TO RULE THEM ALL I recently sat through a webinar where writers were given the opportunity to pitch their concepts. One lady stuck out to me because she described her project as a suspense, thriller, and comedy, with horror elements....
“Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn.” 7 Tips for Great Dialogue
Jacob Stuart's advice on writing dialogue for screenplays.Hollywood has a short attention span. Unlike writers, who may have all day to sit and ponder, plotting out their next script, or revising and revising a screenplay until their fingers are...
7 Ways to Make Sure Your Screenwriting Career Never Takes Off
Often, I get asked: What are the commonalities you’ve seen among your writers who have broken in? What are the shared traits of working screenwriters? And, even more specifically, what are the most important things that a screenwriter can do...
How to Write Action Description
Alex Southey explores five different kinds of action description, and how they dictate tone in a script. Many people tend to assume that because it doesn’t affect the final film, action description doesn’t matter very much. But this couldn’t...