ALL ARTICLES
My Fast Track Transformative Experience
When I applied to the 2019 Fast Track Fellowship, I dreamed of winning the Grand Prize, but thought the possibility was remote. In fact, when I received the email, I had to read it several times before I actually believed it!
Fast Track week was...
“Emotional Procedural” How Showrunner Austin Winsberg Classifies Zoey
“Emotional Procedural” How Showrunner Austin Winsberg Classifies ‘Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist’
Musical comedy-drama Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist has been a welcome hit for NBC with its whimsical...
“Characters Should Be Understandable In Their Vulnerabilities”
“Characters Should Be Understandable In Their Vulnerabilities” Raphael Bob-Waksberg On ‘Bojack Horseman’
Talking animals have been seen in films and TV shows for decades. There was even a show about a talking horse...
Tell Me A Little. Show Me A Lot.
A screenplay, or movie script, is more of a format than an art.Good dialogue is individual to each character, but when it’s used as a crutch to explain the plot, the lines become blurred. That’s where an old saying in screenwriting...
Do you need to outline?
Most books say you do. So do many of the screenwriting seminars. One of the better known gurus says there are two types of writers – those who figure out the story before they begin writing and those who fail. Pretty strong words.But knowing...
“Be Careful What You Wish For” Screenwriter Jillian Jacobs
“Be Careful What You Wish For” Screenwriter Jillian Jacobs Talks ‘Blumhouse’s Fantasy Island’
Do you have a fantasy? Do you imagine going to a mysterious tropical resort where dreams can come true and anything is...
The Rarity of Rug-Pulls in the Modern Era of Entertainment
Pulling the rug out from under an audience is tricky work these days. We’ve all seen so many hours of entertainment, even the casual viewer has become well-versed in narrative structure, the tropes of Hollywood storytelling, and genre clichés....
The Five Pillars of a Successful Pitch
Our last Virtual Pitch Challenge was such a success that we decided to host another one, and WOW we were we blown away by the responses. It was abundantly clear that everyone who submitted took the advice from our last pitch panel and applied...
“Write Deeper Female Friendships”
“Write Deeper Female Friendships” Susanna Fogel Talks ‘Booksmart’ & ‘The Spy Who Dumped Me’
It’s been a busy time for writer-director & book author Susanna Fogel, especially with her female...
The Psychology Of Creativity For Screenwriters
Screenwriters, and all creatives for that matter, frequently grapple with the constant and tiring task of – creating. We have all suffered from writers’ block, a lack of inspiration and motivation, or a paucity of good ideas at some...
What Are The Biggest Misconceptions About Copyright Protection
One of the biggest misconceptions screenwriters have is regarding the establishment of a copyright in general. Many screenwriters believe that a copyright is solidly created at the moment of inception. However, while it is true that a copyright...
I Love Being a Writer
It’s no secret that when it comes to sitting down to actually doing the writing, we writers excel at procrastination. If, anywhere within a five mile radius of the computer, we happen to notice an unsharpened pencil, a window, a refrigerator,...
Getting Your Screenplay Moments Right
“Moments. Give the audience half a dozen moments they can remember, and they’ll leave the theatre happy.” – Actress Rosalind Russell“I heard you laugh in the right places. I heard you moved in the right places, and...
Leigh Whannell Discusses The Invisible Man
Horror film screenwriter/director Leigh Whannell is best known for creating the enormously successful Saw and Insidious movie franchises. Whannell spoke with Creative Screenwriting Magazine about his contemporary vision of the 1897 H.G. Wells...
Screenwriter’s Guide To Success
The creative life of a screenwriter is often filled with potholes, periods of drought and decisions largely out of your control. So how can a screenwriter plan their career? Focus on the creative process more than the outcome. Visualize signing your...
“Fix Problems in a Surgical Way” Jessica Sharzer
Film and TV Jessica Sharzer wrote the first episode of the Steven Spielberg, Edward Kitsis, and Adam Horowitz executive produced series Amazing Stories for Apple TV. Creative Screenwriting Magazine caught up with her to discuss her work and her...
Nonlinear Storytelling Techniques
Over the course of human history, art has always been reflective of the time in which it was created. Neoclassicism was born from the Age of Enlightenment. Abstract Expressionism exploded onto the scene during the Cold War as a release of social...
Mine the Material for Something Great
“I was always really enamored with entertainment, even as a small child,” said screenwriter Liz Feldman, adding, “so much so that at the age of ten, I asked for an agent for my birthday from my parents – not at all aware...
Lauren Neustadter On Changing The Narrative For Females
Lauren Neustadter is a seasoned film and television creative executive who held development roles at many prestigious companies including Offspring Entertainment and Fox Studios. She is currently the Head Of Film & TV at Reese...
The Dos and Don'ts of Pitching
As writers, pitching our stories can be an intimidating experience. After all, we are writers, not actors. Right? Not quite.
This very notion is a common misunderstanding about pitching. We don't want you to be an actor. We just want you to be...
