Story Into Screenplay Update: Surveys, Screenwriting and Savings

First off, I would like to thank everyone that took part in the Story Into Screenplay survey last month. I appreciate your input and will try to develop the blog and the overall web site into a useful and entertaining resource for screenwriters at all levels. I would also like to thank all of those who took advantage of the free one-hour consulting sessions. I appreciate your questions and I hope that you'll also take advantage of the discounted sessions available in August.

New Screenwriting Projects

A major reason why I haven't posted any blog entries recently has been that I've been working on several promising projects. I have a new project that was shot earlier this month and will be submitted to the upcoming Cinespace project I mentioned in a previous post. The project is scheduled to be turned in July 31 and will be eligible for screening at the Houston Cinema Arts Festival in November.

I'm also working closely with a Houston-area director and producer on a short sci-fi script. Casting auditions will take place this week, with shooting scheduled for September. Assuming that all of these projects come through, I'll have three short films based on my scripts completed by the end of 2015 to add to my filmography.

Summer of Screenwriting Opportunities

I've also had some meetings on some potential TV projects. I'm not yet at liberty to discuss the details, but these projects look like they could be fun and reach a wide audience. I will also have an interview posted on the Fountain of Youth “Summer Into Screenplay” program  for young screenwriters in August.

As you can see, it's been a busy summer already for me. However, as vacation season winds down, days get shorter, and kids go back to school, you may look back at your summer and see that you didn't accomplish as many of your screenwriting goals as you wanted. While the end of summer can be full of distractions, it can also offer some unique opportunities.

Story Into Screenplay Loyal Readers Program

Loyal Story Into Screenplay readers can qualify for both a FREE one-hour consulting session and a discount on continuing sessions. The normal price for one-on-one consulting sessions is $50 per hour. The Loyal Reader Discount entitles you to an initial FREE session and continuing sessions at $40 per hour, a 20 percent discount from the standard rate.

How to Qualify for the Loyal Reader Discount :
1. Are you reading this right now?
If you answer, “Yes,” congratulations! You qualify for the Loyal Reader Discount!

All you have to do is email your contact information and screenwriting goals to storyintoscreenplayblog[at]gmail[dot]com with the subject “Loyal Reader Discount”. Houston-area Loyal Readers can schedule a face-to-face meeting. Loyal Readers outside the Houston area can schedule a phone consultation.

You must book your FREE consultation appointment by Saturday, August 15. Your FREE consultation will include:

• Discussing your screenwriting education and experience.
• Assessing your screenwriting goals
• Finding your strengths and weaknesses as a screenwriter
• Demonstrating my screenwriting strategies
• Determining the best strategy for future screenwriting consultations

After the FREE consultation, you will be eligible to receive your first paid consultation session at the discounted rate. When you book your first paid consultation by Monday, August 31, all your subsequent consultation sessions will be at the discounted rate. Any initial paid consultations booked after August 31 will be at the full rate.

How to Receive the Loyal Reader Discount:

1. Email storyintoscreenplayblog[at]gmail[dot]com.
2. Enter “Loyal Reader Discount” in the subject line.
3. Include your contact name, phone number, screenwriting goals and schedule availability in the message.

In the future, the Loyal Reader program will also include discounts on coverage reports, script analysis and much more. You can also sign up for our email list or Like us on Facebook to get the latest updates.

You can also check out the blog of Bay Area screenwriter Paul Zeidman at Maximum Z. I had the pleasure of chatting with Paul a few weeks ago. His blog offers some great insights into his own screenwriting efforts.

For my next entry, I'll discuss how the recent Pixar movie Inside Out shows that "emotional depth" is not always necessary for creating strong characters.

Screenplay Reading: I WILL Read Your F*&^ing Script, But...

In 2009, Josh Olson, the screenwriter of A History of Violence, posted an article titled "I Will Not Read Your Fucking Script".

The article describes how Olson's reading of a two-page synopsis from an aspiring screenwriter turned into weeks of torture. Olson discusses how the writer had no clue about the requirements of basic sentence structure and grammar, never mind story arcs and character development.

What I was handed was, essentially, a barely coherent list of events, some connected, some not so much. Characters wander around aimlessly, do things for no reason, vanish, reappear, get arrested for unnamed crimes, and make wild, life-altering decisions for no reason. Half a paragraph is devoted to describing the smell and texture of a piece of food, but the climactic central event of the film is glossed over in a sentence. The death of the hero is not even mentioned. One sentence describes a scene he's in, the next describes people showing up at his funeral. I could go on, but I won't. This is the sort of thing that would earn you a D minus in any Freshman Comp class.

As I mentioned in my first post on this site, people often who believe they have a "great idea" for a movie, but don't take the time and effort to develop that idea into a cohesive and intelligible story. They see the end product of so many bad Hollywood movies that they're convinced that they can do better.

The truth is, with all the elements that go into the creation of a film, audiences should be more surprised when the process creates a wondrous experience and less upset when it results in a turkey. The script, while essential, is only a part of that process.

My business cards carry the slogan, "Turn Your Story Into A Screenplay." Everybody has ideas, concepts and stories, but very few know how to turn them into screenplays.

That's where I come in. Unlike Olson, I will read (and have read) some incoherent, unorganized scrawlings that attempt to pass themselves off as scripts. Also, unlike Olson, I am willing to help those poor, misguided souls who believe that writing a screenplay takes no more effort than ordering a mochaccino and sitting in front of a laptop for an hour or two.

But....it'll cost you.

Granted, not as much as some professional consultants with extensive IMDB credits or walls full of awards, but it will cost you.

Two complete read-throughs of a full-length script can take two hours or more, with another two to four hours required for notes, edits and analysis. That's four to six hours just to read the script and assemble the notes before the real work begins.

Proper grammar, spelling and formatting are absolute requirements, as most readers won't even touch a script without these elements. This goes for scripts, synopses, treatments and even loglines. If you can't show the basic writing and communication skills, your "million-dollar ideas" are essentially worthless.

If you have a dream of selling one script and making big bucks in Hollywood, regardless of your writing skill, read Olson's article and allow him to burst your bubble.

If you aspire to tell meaningful stories and want to share them with others as those stories play out on a screen, I can help.

If you've never written a screenplay, but you believe in your story, I can help.

If you want to create memorable characters that audiences will want to see and actors will want to portray, I can help.

When you're ready to turn your next story idea into a screenplay, get in touch with us at StoryIntoScreenplayBlog [at] gmail [dot] com.

If you want to receive updates on our latest posts, Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.

5 Reasons Why You Need a Screenwriting Consultant

Don't get me wrong. I'm not against collaborating with people on spec projects for which they show a deep passion and commitment to seeing made into scripts. I've done it on a few occasions and the end results show some serious promise.

However, I am vehemently against is working with individuals who have “million-dollar ideas”, who promise to “split everything fifty-fifty” and who lack an understanding as to how professional writers work.

Let that phrase sink in: professional writer. While I create scripts because I love the process and I enjoy helping those who need it, I also want to make a living at doing what I love.

Here are some of the reasons why people with "million-dollar ideas" need to invest a few dollars in hiring a professional screenwriting consultant.

Three Acts vs. Four Quarters: How a Super Script Resembles the Biggest Football Game

Nearly every screenwriting class teaches the classic “three-act structure”. In a two-hour film, Act I takes up the first half-hour, Act II takes place over the next hour, and Act III runs through the final half-hour.

However, most rookie writers run into problems with their scripts halfway through Act II. How do they fill that entire hour between the end of Act I and the start of Act III? 

With less than one week to go before The Super Big Game With That Trademarked Name, we'll look at how to break down a script into four equal quarters and how the story's dramatic tension should move like a thrilling football game.