Screenwriting Tips

I hope these tips can be of assistance and guidance to those who want to take up screenwriting as a career.

Tip 1: If you’re trying to sell a screenplay, put all your efforts in writing the 1st page. The sooner your screenplay catches a person’s attention on page 1 the better. Producers don’t have time to read a whole screenplay so when they do request one, you have to make them want to read the whole thing. Producers say they read the first 10 pages before deciding if it is worth the time to be put into production. But most of the time this is a lie. They only read the 1st page. If by the end of page 1, your screenplay hasn’t caught their attention then you can be sure it’s going to be put in the T pile. T for trash.

Tip 2: Queries. Keep them short and simple. Remember this is the first piece of writing from you the producer is going to see. So you want to make a good impression. Don’t include irrelevant information like who your mother was or who you’re related to. They’re not interested in your mother. They’re only interested in screenplays that can produce a movie that will make it big at the box office. One word. Professionalism.

Tip 3: Keep your writing brief. Producers like to see a lot of white in their screenplays. This means less descriptions and more action. Don’t spend a quarter of a page on a string of descriptive language just so you set out the perfect scene. That’s not important.

Tip 4: Character development. Don’t make up a storyline and chuck characters in to play it out. Let your characters drive the story. Your characters are the reason the story happens. It’s their decisions that make a difference. No producer wants to read about 2 dimensional characters. Put a story behind every character to give them more depth. Give them unique characteristics. I don’t mean give David brown hair and Julie red. I mean does David have a particular reaction in a certain situation? Does he become incredibly shy around women and begin to stutter?

Best wishes!