As screenwriters, we're constantly told to "think in film" — to imagine each scene unfolding in our mind as if it's being played out on the big screen. To complicate that sagely advice, we're also told not to use camera angles or shot descriptions in our scripts.
So what can you do?
Simple: skip the camera directions and find better ways to convey the same imagery.
Here are some examples:
Let's say you're writing a script about a [click to read more...]
{ 3 comments }
At one time or another, every writer searches her heart and mind for a great story idea and comes up short. The muse is silent. The motivation is gone. The driving force that compels her to write just isn't there.
At this point, the writer has two options. One: wallow in self-pity, bemoan the situation and dwell on the lack of creative flow in the hopes that some interesting tidbit of an idea might magically present itself. Or two: take action and find something to get those creative juices flowing again.
While it often seems like the best ideas just appear in the mind — usually popping in at the most inconvenient and untimely moments — those ideas don't [click to read more...]
{ 1 comment }
In working on my novel, I’ve discovered one of the less talked-about differences between screenwriting and novel writing: point of view.
I never realized what a luxury it was to be able to write without having to worry about which character’s point of view should be used for a particular scene. In screenwriting, the point of view belongs to the audience. Even if the main character is present in every scene, the story still unfolds from the audience’s point of view as they watch that character in action. In a movie, all the characters could be on-screen together in a single scene, but the screenwriter doesn't have to consider which of those characters' points of view should be used in the script.
With a novel, the reader is your audience, but the story is told from one or more points of view. If several characters are present in a single scene, the author needs to decide which of those characters should be the POV character, and the author needs to determine whether that character should be granted the POV for that scene alone, for several scenes or chapters, or even for the entire novel. Screenwriters never have to wonder if a scene should be written from [click to read more...]
{ 2 comments }
