# Script Strategy

> Storytelling, Screenwriting, Playwriting Consultants


## Posts

- [How to Break Screenwriting Rules -- Three Examples](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/11/11/how-to-break-screenwriting-rules-three-examples/): “Imperfect” Film Classics – How to Break Screenwriting Rules – Part I Part of the beauty of independent cinema is that no one expects these films to match some sort of formal template.  While I love a well-constructed classic like Die Hard, I would definitely get bored if every film ended with the evil German falling from a skyscraper and the main character (sort of) reuniting with his estranged wife. Now that’s not to say that a film is perfect by virtue of its being independent. In fact, I think a lot of independent cinema is actually wildly overrated. That ... Read more
- [Three More Horror Films for Screenwriters' Halloween](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/10/21/three-more-horror-films-for-screenwriters-halloween/): Three More Horror Films for Screenwriters’ Halloween It’s easy enough to take potshots at modern would-be “hommage” horror films.  The reason for this is because they don’t offer anything new. They actually just give us the same concept as something else: a bunch of young people in a remote farmhouse stalked by a demented killer; a book made of human skin from which people simply insist on reading out loud; a killer with a dumb-looking mask stabbing horny teenagers; etc., etc. The best of these, e.g. Scream–a metatextual classic among horror films for screenwriters–can give us a wink-wink, nudge-nudge read ... Read more
- [Three Horror Films for Screenwriters -- Halloween Edition](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/10/14/three-horror-films-for-screenwriters-halloween-edition/): Three Horror Films for Screenwriters — Halloween Edition Most horror movies are shit. There. I said it.  That’s not because there are a lot of cheap and nasty horror films out there. Actually some of those can be quite good. Or even if they fail, at least people are actually trying.  The problem, these days, is that we have lost touch with what makes a really good horror film. It’s not all jump scares or torture porn. The worst thing, for me, is seeing thoroughly inept horror movies be feted. I guess that’s because we’re so starved for the good ... Read more
- [How to Write a Relatable Character for Screenwriters -- Case Study: Don Draper](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/09/29/how-to-write-a-relatable-character-for-screenwriters/): How to Write a Relatable Character for Screenwriters The next person who tells me a character needs to be “likeable” gets a punch in the face. “We need a reason to like your heroine; maybe you should give her a baby.”  “Your hero should Save the Cat in the first ten pages.” “I kept reading, but I just keep asking why I should like these people.” Now, it’s easy to be enraged by comments like this, but I have to go back to my pacifist roots and realize that these are the comments of people who are non-writers and they ... Read more
- [How to Engineer Coincidence for Screenwriters: 3 Examples (+2 Failures)](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/09/25/how-to-engineer-coincidence-for-screenwriters-3-examples-2-failures/): How to Engineer Coincidence for Screenwriters: Three Examples (and Two Failures) Contrary to popular belief, you want coincidence in your screenplay. Recall one of Pixar’s 22 Rules of Storytelling: “Coincidences to get characters into trouble are great; coincidences to get them out of it are cheating.” Think about it: how many great films would exist without some sort of coincidence at the very beginning? In some sense, the whole point of a screenplay is that coincidental things happen. You’re seeing things that are out of the ordinary occurring.  If we take the dictionary definition of “coincidence,” it is roughly “two ... Read more
- [Focus on What’s Different: How to Break the Rules as a Screenwriter](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/09/17/focus-on-whats-different-how-to-break-the-rules-as-a-screenwriter/): Focus on What’s Different: How to Break the Rules as a Screenwriter Stop Worshiping Structure Screenwriting is more than just fucking templates.  Blake Snyder’s Beat Sheet, John Yorke’s Five-Act Structure, Aristotle’s Poetics all give us models for how a story should unfold. And of course these models can be somewhat useful. If you’re lost and need a way to scaffold a story that otherwise refuses to be tamed, they’re great. But… if you’re obsessed with demonstrating how perfectly your script fits the model, you’re almost certain to miss what actually makes your story special: how your story could break the ... Read more
- [Part II: Use Irony in Film for Screenwriters – Creating Hooks ](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/09/16/part-ii-use-irony-in-film-for-screenwriters-creating-hooks/): Part II: Use Irony in Film for Screenwriters – Creating Hooks  Are you one of those writers who wants to live in a broom closet, popping speed, chain-smoking and tapping away on a vintage typewriter, writing your brilliant script free-form on one uncut roll of paper like some Jack Kerouac manqué? You’re writing to entertain audiences. Boil it down to one sentence. If this core irony doesn’t strike with other people, it’s useless—in fact its uselessness tends to be in direct proportion to how brilliant you think it is, unless you really hate yourself enough to write for the “movinpitchers.” ... Read more
- [How to Develop Irony for Screenwriters -- Part I (Same as Dramatic Irony?)](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/09/08/irony-for-screenwriters-the-same-as-dramatic-irony/): Irony for Screenwriters — The Same as Dramatic Irony? A good heuristic is that the literal meaning of a statement is the exact opposite of the actual meaning of that statement. Or whatever Ethan Hawke said. Irony is of course a bit more complicated than that, at least in screenplay terms. In particular, Irony doesn’t require exact opposites. Nevertheless, if this is getting heady, just run with the Reality Bites definition. It’s better than a kick in the teeth. Or Alanis Morissette’s definition, for that matter. Is This Dramatic Irony? The key question for us is how we can develop ... Read more
- [How to Write a Scene for Screenwriters -- One Simple Rule + Three Exercises](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/09/04/how-to-write-a-scene-for-screenwriters-one-simple-rule-three-exercises/): There’s nothing quite like reading the work of new writers. Ah… fresh meat writing fresher meat. It’s often a mishmash of scenarios that aren’t actual scenes, and lots of scenes that don’t really mean anything to the plot as a whole What we begin to see after a while is that people don’t really know where to draw the line of what makes a scene and what doesn’t make a scene. There isn’t enough conflict. There isn’t any sort of irony. There isn’t a protagonist and an antagonist. Nobody is trying to get anything. There are any number of ways ... Read more
- [How to Develop Your Own Voice as a Screenwriter: Three Techniques](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/09/01/how-to-develop-your-own-voice-as-a-screenwriter-three-techniques/): How to Develop Your Own Voice as a Screenwriter: Three Techniques It’s commonly said that screenplays with “a voice” are those that get readers’ attention.  Now we’re faced with a problem of definitions, what the hell, then, is a screenwriter’s voice? It’s sort of easy to imagine the voice of a novelist, for example, because you can imagine Hemingway’s simple sentences or Faulkner’s interminable sentences or, for that matter, David Foster Wallace’s interminable (and ultimately crushing) neuroticism.  With film, it’s a little bit more difficult. You might think about Tarantino’s penchant for poetic dialogue about mundane issues that (seem to) ... Read more
- [How to Write a Story With a Message for Screenwriters](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/08/30/how-to-write-a-story-with-a-message-for-screenwriters/): How to Write a Story With a Message for Screenwriters (Without Being Totally Fucking Obnoxious) As screenwriters, it is our place–our job, if you will–to describe the world as we would like to see it. This is a vital practice, because it allows the viewer to imagine a world of possibility beyond the never-hits-bottom shitshow into which consensus reality has devolved. Frankly, I do believe that entertainment can provide an excellent bulwark against fascist ideology-creep–if, and only if, however, this serves the story. Curiously, however, when the world goes to shit, creative folks seem to go off their nut and ... Read more
- [How to Write a Hybrid Concept for Screenwriters -- With Examples](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/08/19/how-to-write-a-hybrid-concept-for-screenwriters-with-examples/): How to Write a Hybrid Concept for Screenwriters — With Examples Hybrid Concept is an unholy desecration of Concept that is useful as little more than a marketing tool. So why learn how to write a Hybrid Concept logline? Simple: a Hybrid Concept logline creates a shortcut to emotion by referring to very obvious films—preferably ones that put shit-tons of asses in seats—and is mostly designed to communicate to folks who travel light in the brain cavity. In short, Hybrid Concept is how you would pitch to a totally uninterested philistine in a desperate attempt to get said philistine interested in ... Read more
- [How to Use AI as a Screenwriter: Three Simple But Effective Methods](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/08/16/how-to-use-ai-as-a-screenwriter-three-simple-but-effective-methods/): How to Use AI as a Screenwriter: Three Simple But Effective Methods Introduction AI has proven that it is here to stay.* While it’s busy taking all the entry-level white collar jobs, at least things like screenwriting are safe for the moment. No one is expecting AI to be able to produce a competent screenplay all by itself, even if you go to all the trouble of scaffolding scenes, structure, etc.** That is, at least until people are dumbed down enough not to be able to tell the difference between AI slop and an actual human-written screenplay. And, believe me, ... Read more
- [What the Hell is a Low Concept Film? Some Examples](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/08/11/what-the-hell-is-a-low-concept-film-some-examples/): What the Hell is a Low Concept Film?  Low Concept is a bit of a strange idea.  On the surface, it might be difficult to see how Low Concept films would sell at all, at least by the core concept behind them.  In fact, these films are only called “Low Concept” insofar as they are diametrically opposed to the “hook that sells the film” type of High Concept film. In one sense, Low Concept films are harder to sell because they are harder to pitch–unless you’re excellent at teasing out why a person would want to view the film.  While ... Read more
- [How to Write a Logline for Your Screenplay: Five Examples](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/08/08/how-to-write-a-logline-for-your-screenplay-five-examples/): How to Write a Logline for Your Screenplay: Five Examples — With Exercises! The point of a good logline is to appeal to the reader as quickly as possible. What you’re trying to do is to put enough information into the logline to present the hook of the film and make the reader ask to tell you more about the story. The key to this is to introduce the elements of Irony, Conflict, and Change:  Irony: this is the element that makes the story unique. Why this story, and why at this point?  Conflict: what sort of fight or struggle ... Read more
- [John Yorke’s Five-Act Structure for Screenwriters (Case Study: Fight Club) ](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/08/05/john-yorkes-five-act-structure-for-screenwriters-case-study-fight-club/): John Yorke’s Five-Act Structure for Screenwriters (Case Study: Fight Club)  There are screenwriting books that everyone references, and there are great screenwriting books. There are obviously a lot fewer of the latter, but John Yorke’s Into the Woods is one of them. There’s probably a good reason that Into the Woods gets fewer name-checks than, for example, Save the Cat, which is–not to put too fine a point on it–that stupid people like easy answers.* Into the Woods, however, proposes a structure quite a bit more sophisticated than the tired BS2. As such, it is of more use to experienced ... Read more
- [Five Examples of the All is Lost for Screenwriters](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/07/22/five-examples-of-the-all-is-lost-for-screenwriters/): Five Examples of the All is Lost for Screenwriters The protagonist’s progress is destroyed in one key moment. Her goal lies in shambles; the path forward now seems impossible. In Blake Snyder terms, this is known as the All is Lost moment.  This doesn’t necessarily mean literal death, although sometimes there is an actual death (think Obi-Wan getting cut down by Darth Vader). Most of the time, however, it is a metaphorical death: it is the crumbling of a dream, the loss of allies, failure of a plan, or a deep betrayal.  Sometimes, as we will see, it is all ... Read more
- [How to Write a Scene for Beginning Screenwriters](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/07/21/how-to-write-a-scene-for-beginning-screenwriters/): How to Write a Scene (or at least How I Write a Scene) Reader, please note: this is a distillation of my process. Yours might be different. I’d love to learn more about how you write scenes, particularly if it’s markedly different from this.  What follows is how I break down scene construction from intention to conflict to execution. In doing so, I attempt to make the process less mysterious and more repeatable.  With that in mind, let’s get into it. Identify the Purpose of the Scene Before I write anything, I ask a simple question: Why is this scene ... Read more
- [Just Enough Chaos: the Rough Draft of Your Screenplay](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/07/19/just-enough-chaos-the-rough-draft-of-your-screenplay/): Just Enough Chaos: the Rough Draft of Your Screenplay On one hand, you need structure: some kind of scaffolding to prevent the whole story from collapsing in on itself.  On the other hand, too much structure and you risk killing off the spontaneity, surprise, and strange energy that makes a screenplay feel alive. Famed film editor Walter Murch (Apocalypse Now, The English Patient, and The Unbearable Lightness of Being, among others) once described his preferred method of editing film not digitally, but using ten-minute reels arranged in shooting order.  This was his way of managing information: not too linear, not ... Read more
- [Idea Theft and Other Pointless Concerns](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/07/14/idea-theft-and-other-pointless-concerns/): Idea Theft and Other Pointless Concerns No one is going to steal your fucking idea. It’s just not that special. Get over yourself. (wait for it… wait for it…)  Now that we’ve cleared the room of the idiots, let’s get down to what I mean here. This is not an attack, but a friendly goad. If you’re serious about the craft of writing, you can’t be precious about your concepts. Feedback is Vital Idea Theft isn’t really a thing – what you need is feedback to see whether your idea is even worth stealing – no one without connections actually ... Read more
- [Engineering the Midpoint: Faulty Logic for Screenwriters](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/07/11/engineering-the-midpoint-faulty-logic-for-screenwriters/): Engineering the Midpoint through Faulty Logic for Screenwriters How People Come to Conclusions This post is about engineering the Midpoint of your film. But first we need to talk about how people form conclusions—especially the wrong ones. This involves two words that many people know but few actually understand: deduction and induction.  Let’s start with a quick definition. According to Angus Fletcher of Ohio State’s Project Narrative, deduction “works top-down to impose preexisting ideologies on subsequent discoveries.” That is, start with a rule and apply it to whatever problem arises. It’s a bit like an algebra problem: all the data ... Read more
- [Bad Guys Close In (Falling Action): Three Examples for Screenwriters](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/07/08/bad-guys-close-in-falling-action-three-examples-for-screenwriters/): Bad Guys Close In (Falling Action): Three Examples for Screenwriters The second part of Act II is often one of the hardest parts of a film to write. This is the section that Blake Snyder refers to as the Bad Guys Close In (BGCI). It also aligns with “falling action” or “descent into chaos” from classical sources. This is where it’s clear that the “fun and games” within the new world of Act II are over. The new world becomes its own dark mirror. This stretch of narrative must test the protagonist both internally and externally. We can expect plans ... Read more
- [The Law of Unintended Consequences in Film: Three Examples with Exercises](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/07/07/the-law-of-unintended-consequences-in-film-three-examples-with-exercises/): The Law of Unintended Consequences in Film: Three Examples and Three Exercises “The Law of Unintended Consequences” sounds more complicated than it really is, but this principle is important to understand because it can be a goldmine for screenwriters. In short, the law is this: an action will invariably have consequences; some of these are likely going to be things that were never considered before taking the action.  This is often referred to as second-order effects (and of course there exist third-order, and so forth) or knock-on effects. These are all essentially ways to describe the same thing. Now when ... Read more
- [How to Create Suspension of Disbelief for Screenwriters](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/07/07/how-to-create-suspension-of-disbelief-for-screenwriters/): How to Create Suspension of Disbelief for Screenwriters As a big fan of speculative fiction, I have long been interested in determining where one can draw the line between believable fiction and the sort of fiction that disturbs the audience to the point where they’re knocked out of the story. That is, how to develop and maintain what Coleridge called suspension of disbelief.  As master of speculative fiction Neal Stephenson puts it: “The key to any storytelling is getting the readers to suspend their disbelief. And there’s all kinds of triggers and little tells that can break that… and once ... Read more
- [When Does Satire Fail? Ten Misinterpreted Satirical Films.](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/07/04/when-does-satire-fail-ten-misinterpreted-satirical-films/): When Does Satire Fail? Ten Satirical Films Misinterpreted by Being Taken Seriously. After an interesting pub conversation yesterday–regarding one of the satirical films on this list, in fact–I decided that it might be interesting to give a rundown of a few films that are notoriously misinterpreted. There’s no point in trying to define “satire” or date it back to Swift and his modest proposals, Aristophanes and the withholding ladies of Attica, or whoever else might be considered an originator.  The one thing that seems to be constant about satire is that the authoritarian-minded somehow lack the fundamental ironic capability to ... Read more
- [How to Solve Story Problems Without Logic: Techniques](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/07/03/solve-story-problems-without-logic-techniques-for-creative-breakthrough/): How to Solve Story Problems Without Logic: Angus Fletcher’s Techniques for Creative Breakthroughs It’s not uncommon to find story problems you can’t simply think your way out of.  Forcing it just means looping through through bad ideas that only make the story worse. But then, in the middle of yoga or the shower or (Billy Wilder’s favorite) on the toilet, inspiration finally strikes. You find a reasonable solution to the story problem. That’s not because you figured it out with System 2 thinking–that’s because you let go. The problem is that in real-life situations, we don’t often have the time ... Read more
- [Five Examples of the Midpoint for Screenwriters](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/07/01/five-examples-of-the-midpoint-for-screenwriters/): Five Examples of the Midpoint in Screenwriting: the Most Crucial Beat in Your Film When it comes to the lived experience of watching a movie—and writing one that works—very few beats carry as much weight as the Midpoint. While the Act II break (circa the 25% mark) introduces us to a new world and the All Is Lost beat (circa the 75% mark) fully humbles the protagonist, the Midpoint functions as the tent pole that holds the entire story structure upright.  If Act II begins the journey into the “new world” and the Low Point represents the nadir of that ... Read more
- [How to Write an Open Ending: 3 Examples for Screenwriters](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/28/how-to-write-an-open-ending-3-examples-for-screenwriters/): How to Write an Open Ending: 3 Classic Examples  To hell with Aristotle–resolution is overrated. Open endings don’t mean laziness or indecision. They give us reason to project or reflect or wonder. These are the sorts of endings that don’t promise things will be OK–even if we know that something has fundamentally changed.  As the credits roll, the characters may have solved their old problems, but now they face “new and better problems,” as a mentor used to say. That is, they aren’t faced with the same challenges as at the beginning of the film, but rather fresh ones that ... Read more
- [How to Write a “Fun and Games” Section (Rising Action) for Screenwriters](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/27/how-to-write-a-fun-and-games-section-rising-action-for-screenwriters/): How to Write a “Fun and Games” Section (Rising Action) for Screenwriters Your characters have entered the New World of Act II.  Now what?  Act II can be notoriously difficult to nail down, especially for new writers. It’s not really clear how you’re supposed to deal with everything that has happened thus far and actually keep the momentum going all the way to the midpoint.  This means–in Snyder terminology–the Fun and Games section (also commonly referred to as the “Rising Action” section). It’s everything that helps That doesn’t necessarily tell us much about what it’s meant to be.  Perhaps more ... Read more
- [Screenwriting for Busy Professionals](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/26/screenwriting-for-busy-professionals/): Screenwriting for Busy Professionals So, you have a job. Good. Contrary to what the film industry might have you believe, that’s not a liability—it’s an asset.  Now you don’t have to worry about what indignities you’d be expected to subject yourself to in order to succeed in the notoriously abusive film industry.  Now–at least we can hope–there’s been a healthy movement away from the casting couch since #MeToo. However, there’s still a problem with any industry that prioritizes people who are able to (afford to take on) internships.  You’ll notice that there’s a reason those of independent means or very ... Read more
- [The Tyranny of Likeability (When Writing Female Characters)](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/24/the-tyranny-of-likeability-when-writing-female-characters/): (you can assume that links are affiliate links) The Tyranny of Likeability When Writing Female Characters Oh, man. Likeability sucks so much. It’s too often used as a cudgel whenever someone can’t figure out anything intelligent to say about your script. That doesn’t mean they’re necessarily wrong–I mean if you actually wanted your character to be likeable–but that’s certainly not always the point. Particularly if your character is a woman.  The question, if you’re writing a strong female character, is whether the pushback you’re getting is because of the above, something legit wrong about the character, or–too often–some fucked up ... Read more
- [Five Examples of the Break Into Two for Screenwriters](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/24/five-examples-of-the-break-into-two-for-screenwriters/): Five Examples of the Break Into Two for Screenwriters Those of us who geek on screenplay structure have a tendency to refer to the Break Into Two–which I may well call the Act II Break, so forgive me–as some sort of specific moment that shifts us into the new act. In practice, however, it’s often not that clear. What we see is that the shift into Act II is often a cluster of scenes that 1) create an often irreversible rupture of the character’s everyday reality and ultimately ends in 2) a choice that define the character’s new reality. You’ll ... Read more
- [How to Write a Horror Film with No Monster: Wake in Fright ](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/23/how-to-write-a-horror-film-with-no-monster-wake-in-fright/): How to Write a Horror Film with No Monster: Wake in Fright  Welcome to a different kind of horror. This post explores how to write a horror film with no monster—at least not in any sort of conventional sense.  Ted Kotcheff’s Wake in Fright (1971)–a film that Nick Cave calls “the best and most terrifying film about Australia in existence”–demonstrates how setting, situation, atmosphere, and psychology can become the antagonistic force.  The film is a deeply unsettling experience where the horror grows not from a queasy sense of place–but more importantly, what that place can turn a person into.  Let’s ... Read more
- [How to Write a 250-Word Synopsis of Your Screenplay – Step by Step](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/20/how-to-write-a-250-word-synopsis-of-your-screenplay-step-by-step/): How to Write a 250-Word Synopsis of Your Screenplay – Step by Step The story is clear in your mind.  The months or years it has taken to develop characters, arcs, reversals, and all has produced an excellent product. But let’s be honest. No one wants to read that shit.  The hardest thing to do as a writer is to get other people actually to sit down and read your stuff. Unless you’re paying them, I guess, and even then it’s often a gamble. This is why sales documents for scripts are so important–if you can’t get someone’s attention with ... Read more
- [Example of a Five-Act Film: The Big Lebowski](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/18/example-of-a-five-act-film-the-big-lebowski/): Example of a Five-Act Film: The Big Lebowski Screenwriters are usually taught to think in terms of the three-act structure: setup, confrontation, resolution.  And then there are the films that never really quite fit into that mold. It’s not to say that they don’t have a structure, but it seems more drawn-out and episodic. Interesting things keep happening, but there’s not really one key reversal at the midpoint.  One of the clearest examples of a five-act structure screenplay is the Coen Brothers’ masterful The Big Lebowski (1998).  Let’s explore how The Big Lebowski functions as a five-act film and what ... Read more
- [Five Examples of the Refusal of the Call for Screenwriters](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/17/five-examples-of-the-refusal-of-the-call-for-screenwriters/): Five Examples of the Refusal of the Call (Debate) for Screenwriters What Happens Between the Inciting Incident and the Act II Break The waters between the Inciting Incident and the Act II Break are often muddy.  For viewers, it might feel like the story is meandering or still setting up. Honestly, viewers will put up with this for a while. Things aren’t as tight as the old Save the Cat beat sheets would have you believe. However, if the writer isn’t careful, it can become a major trap: get this section wrong, and the momentum from your Inciting Incident evaporates. ... Read more
- [How to Write a Vampire Film: Lessons for Screenwriters](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/17/how-to-write-a-vampire-film-lessons-for-screenwriters/): How to Write a Vampire Film: Lessons for Screenwriters Rules, Story Worlds, and Fetishism Vampires navigate the boundary between life and death, pleasure and horror, intimacy and violence. Notably, the best vampire films establish clear rules, build rich, moody environments, and explore the inherently sensual, parasitic nature of the vampire figure. These elements ground the supernatural in a world that feels viscerally real—and often frighteningly erotic. Below are five vampire films that offer screenwriters serious lessons in how to construct a rich, genre-specific vampire story. Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992, dir. Francis Ford Coppola) Lesson: Build rules and mystery around the ... Read more
- [Examples of the Inciting Incident  (Catalyst) in Films](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/16/examples-of-the-inciting-incident-catalyst-in-films/): Six Examples of the Inciting Incident  (Catalyst) in Films The Inciting Incident—also called the Catalyst—is the moment in a screenplay when we realize: Something is actually going to happen here. It’s the first rupture in the routine, the out-of-the-ordinary event that causes the story to veer off course.  This is not the Act II turn, which often involves a clear decision on the part of the protagonist and definitely involves a full-blown commitment to a new world. The inciting incident, however, is our first indication that the normal world set up in the Setup (yes) is starting to crack.  The ... Read more
- [Five B-Movies for Screenwriters to Learn From](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/16/five-b-movies-for-screenwriters-to-learn-from/): Five B-Movies for Screenwriters to Learn From Budget limitations, genre constraints, and creative freedom: here’s how low-budget cult classics made the most of limited resources. Screenwriters often think they need a big budget to tell a big story.  But the truth is, great writing thrives under constraints. Whether it’s time, money, or production value, B-movies have long served as fertile ground for innovation in screenwriting if only to accommodate these facts. The five films below weren’t blockbusters—but each offers a masterclass in tone, structure, irony, or adaptation.  Most of all, they prove that if your script is strong enough, the ... Read more
- [How to Create an Unlikeable Protagonist](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/16/how-to-create-an-unlikeable-protagonist/): How to Create an Unlikeable Protagonist “I just felt like the protagonist wasn’t likeable.” Shoot me now. For those of us who have been writing for more than five minutes, it’s pretty fucking obvious that any of the most iconic protagonists in film and television are not likeable at all. Alcoholics. Drug fiends. Criminals. Narcissists. Killers. And yet we follow them and root for them.   This begs the question: is this advice wrong? Or are we misunderstanding what “likeable” actually means? The question “does your protagonist need to be likeable?” comes off as a paradox, but I argue that ... Read more
- [Screenwriting as a Tool for Critical Thinking](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/13/screenwriting-as-a-tool-for-critical-thinking/): Screenwriting as a Tool for Critical Thinking It’s no secret that we’re in an age where critical thinking takes a back seat to hot takes, the overweening bullshit of narcissist blowhards on both extremes of the political spectrum, and the stupid-making rectangles in all our pockets.  What’s worse, the things that used to make a certain amount of sense* – logical consistency, fact checking, deductive reasoning, etc. – have been co-opted by a bunch of CrossFit gym owners and disgraced members of great families who love to tell people to “do the research.”  It’s only that “the research” can be ... Read more
- [Sustainable Narratives: Can Screenwriting Live Without Endings?](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/13/sustainable-narratives-can-screenwriting-live-without-endings/): Conclusions vs. Sustainable Narratives: Are Screenwriters Ready to Live Without Endings? Conclusions are for young people. They’re bedtime stories so you can get to sleep. Adults need sustainable narratives: ongoing stories that don’t end. – Douglas Rushkoff  Advice on how to write a good drama stretches back (at least) to Aristotle. Interestingly, however, is how tightly we cling to some of Aristotle’s main assumptions 2500 years later. From the Poetics to Save the Cat, three-act, five-act, whatever, we’ve been wading through variations of the same structure: setup → complication → climax → resolution.  It’s basically a sex act from the ... Read more
- [Seinfeld for Screenwriters: 3 Exercises to Build Your Irony Muscle](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/13/seinfeld-for-screenwriters-3-exercises-to-build-your-irony-muscle/): Seinfeld for Screenwriters: 3 Exercises to Build Your Irony Muscle “A show about nothing.” The show’s elevator pitch echoes decades later. Yet Seinfeld is about something: it is about irony. Every episode of Seinfeld is an irony engine firing on all cylinders. What separates Seinfeld from most crap sitcoms is that the show was never limited to a single ironic premise (which is basically the point of a sitcom). Rather, Seinfeld’s superpower lay in its modular structure that would allow for a different ironic concept each week. Here we examine Seinfeld’s Irony Machine. I. The Death of the Core Concept ... Read more
- [3 Tips to Avoid a Second-Act Slump in Your Screenplay](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/12/3-tips-to-avoid-a-second-act-slump-in-your-screenplay/): 3 Tips to Avoid a Second-Act Slump in Your Screenplay Nothing kills a script for a reader than a… dragging… second… act. Your Act II is long and messy and feels like a slog even though the story shows a lot of promise.  Think of Act I as setup and Act III as payoff. These might be tidy (particularly so if Act I is solid), but Act II naturally acts as a bridge. That bridge can easily sag under its own weight–that is, this is the place where all the silly, indulgent shit creeps in. This is where you have ... Read more
- [How to Align Your Character Flaw With Your Premise](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/11/how-to-align-your-character-flaw-with-your-premise/): How to Align Your Character Flaw With Your Premise Starting With Character: The Flawed Foundation Great characters start out wrong. Selfishness. Cowardice. Arrogance. Codependency. Denial. Emotional distance. Your protagonist carries a flaw that compromises how they interact with the world. Without a flaw, there’s no arc, no reason to care. Step 1: Define the Flaw What’s broken in your character? One thing she can’t admit about herself? This is a deep emotional deficiency, not just a cute quirk. Flaws are perhaps better thought of as fears rather than traits. A person who can’t connect isn’t merely cold, but terrified of ... Read more
- [A Minimal Hollywood Classic: Beetlejuice and its Streamlined Narrative](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/10/a-minimal-hollywood-classic-beetlejuice-and-its-streamlined-story/): A Minimal Hollywood Classic: Beetlejuice and its Streamlined Narrative Beetlejuice (1988) is an unforgettable film: a rollercoaster of anarchic excess that somehow has a stunningly simple, but brilliantly written plot.  Clocking in at only 92 minutes, the real magic of Tim Burton’s classic film is not only the outrageous visuals or the manic energy of Michael Keaton’s title character, but in the narrative restraint holding it all together.* Beetlejuice gives us a killer lesson in narrative economy. Underneath the wild production design, cartoonish makeup, and peerless tone is a streamlined plot structure. Get it? Keeping the story clean and structured ... Read more
- [How to Promote Yourself as a Screenwriter—Without Social Media](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/10/how-to-promote-yourself-as-a-screenwriter-without-social-media/): How to Promote Yourself as a Screenwriter—Without Social Media “If you’re judging a yogi on their number of Instagram followers, it’s probably much more about what their ass looks like in a pair of Lululemons than their dedication to an eight-limbed path.” –Jamie Wheal The Algorithm Won’t Save You The social media storm isn’t sustainable.  Whether it burns itself out because it sucks or is eventually regulated like smoking, its current cultural dominance is almost certainly temporary. The only chance that social media has for lasting until the end of the world is if it is successful in its obvious ... Read more
- [3 Tips to Deal with Bad Feedback on Your Screenplay](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/09/3-tips-to-deal-with-bad-feedback-on-your-screenplay/): 3 Tips to Deal with Bad Feedback on Your Screenplay You send off your screenplay with a mixture of hope and dread—and what comes back feels like a punch to the gut.  The notes are uninspiring, off-base, or just plain wrong. some are just insulting. Perhaps the reader simply didn’t get it. Perhaps s/he did.  Either way, you’re now stuck with a delicate challenge: how to deal with feedback that feels bad–at least to you. After all, you put your hard work–part of your soul–into your script. You obsessively revised before you let any other eyes go over it. Now, ... Read more
- [3 Tips for Editing the Rough Draft of Your Screenplay](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/09/3-tips-for-editing-the-rough-draft-of-your-screenplay/): 3 Tips for Editing the Rough Draft of Your Screenplay So you finally did vomited it out. You hit the final page of the very first draft of the script.  And now the creeping dread–this script totally sucks. You’re not alone: everyone’s first draft sucks.*  It’s not ready. It’s messy. No amount of trimming dialogue or fixing typos is going to help it. A few scenes are gold but others are just talky garbage. Dead weight.  Welcome to the rewrite. One of the first things to realize about screenplays is how finely crafted they are. Writing the script in the ... Read more
- [The First 10 Test: How to Hook a Script Reader](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/09/the-first-10-test-how-to-hook-a-script-reader/): The First 10 Test: Tips for How to Hook a Script Reader The first impression of your screenplay isn’t just important–when you’re submitting your script to agents or contests, it’s everything. In most cases, readers are literally instructed to read only the first ten pages of a script. If this doesn’t doesn’t hook the reader, the script goes in the (metaphorical) garbage bin.  Professional readers—whether at agencies, production companies, fellowships, or contests—read dozens of scripts every week, are notoriously bitter and underpaid, and–most importantly–they’re trained to smell weakness early.  Readers believe that they can tell within five to ten pages ... Read more
- [Premise vs. Plot: Great Idea, Bad Screenplay ](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/08/premise-vs-plot-great-idea-bad-screenplay/): Premise vs. Plot: Great Idea, Bad Screenplay  You might have a killer premise, but this does not guarantee a compelling script. You need plot, as well, for that.  Now a great idea with a bad script is probably rarer than it seems. Good premises are hard to create, so there is actually a very high correlation between a good premise and a good plot. That said, it’s certainly not always the case: just look at almost any Philip K. Dick adaptation outside the canonical three (Blade Runner, Total Recall, and A Scanner Darkly).  The problem is that you might have ... Read more
- [The Secret World of Screenplay Ghostwriting](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/06/the-secret-world-of-screenplay-ghostwriting/): The Secret World of Screenplay Ghostwriting The story behind most screenplays often involves a web of uncredited writers, “fixers,” script doctors, and quiet contributors. Welcome to the world of screenwriting ghostwriting: an industry secret hiding in plain sight. In this post, we’ll explore just how common ghostwriting is in Hollywood and beyond, the different types of uncredited or hidden writing roles, and — for aspiring screenwriters — how to actually become a ghostwriter yourself. What Is Screenplay Ghostwriting? Ghostwriting in screenwriting could refer to any situation where a writer contributes to a screenplay without receiving public credit. This can range ... Read more
- [Three Overrated Films That People Love – and How to Fix Them](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/06/three-overrated-films-that-people-love-and-how-to-fix-them/): Three Overrated Films That People Love – and How to Fix Them This isn’t about fun-terrible films like The Room or Plan 9 from Outer Space.  This is about films that had great potential and squandered it, which is a far graver sin than being hilariously and undeniably crap from the get go. These are the ones that people actually, and totally inexplicably, love. The problem is that there are severe flaws with each of these that have–absolutely since day one–seemed absolutely glaring to me. I won’t judge these films’ die-hard fans, but I will point these fans to better ... Read more
- [Five Screenwriting Lessons from Julia Ducournau's Raw](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/04/five-screenwriting-lessons-from-julia-ducournaus-raw/): Five Screenwriting Lessons from Julia Ducournau’s Raw Reports of viewers fainting or vomiting during its Toronto screenings dominated headlines. Yet… Raw is so much more than complex, nuanced, and intelligent than a teenage shock-fest. Rather, it is a brilliantly layered, artful, and darkly funny coming-of-age story. Julia Ducournau’s Raw–a searing debut– demonstrates a deft hand: a writer/director who understands standard cinematic storytelling yet how to bend it into something personal, strange, unsettling, and affecting.  For screenwriters, Raw is a masterclass in structure, metaphor, and emotional honesty. Let’s take a bite. (Sorry.) 1. Setting or Situation That’s Compelling (Outside the Main ... Read more
- [Five Screenwriting Lessons from Night of the Living Dead](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/04/five-screenwriting-lessons-from-night-of-the-living-dead/): Five Screenwriting Lessons from Night of the Living Dead George A. Romero’s 1968 classic Night of the Living Dead had a curious start. There’s little reason to suspect if would become one of the most influential horror films ever made and a staple of midnight television horror (back when such things actually existed).  The film was shot on a shoestring budget, used unknown actors, and had a raw, documentary-style look (that, quite honestly, bordered on amateurish).  Nevertheless, more than half a century later, Night of the Living Dead remains a touchstone for horror filmmaking and genre storytelling. Of course we ... Read more
- [Why Care About Screenplay Formatting? Arguments For and Against](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/03/why-care-about-screenplay-formatting-arguments-for-and-against/): Why Care About Screenplay Formatting? Two Arguments For and Two Against Screenwriting is often referred to as a fusion of art and craft—a way of shaping story into a form that’s both literary and functional: storytelling meets production planning. Nowhere is this tension more evident than in screenplay formatting. For beginners, formatting can feel at once rigid and trivial.  Why is it so important to write “INT. KITCHEN – NIGHT” in all caps?  Why is everything typed in 12-point Courier?  Why do people insist on precisely formatted margins and character indents? But here’s the bigger question: Does formatting actually matter? ... Read more
- [5 Simple Formatting Rules to Make Your Screenplay Look Professional](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/03/5-simple-formatting-rules-to-make-your-screenplay-look-professional/): 5 Simple Formatting Rules That Make Your Screenplay Look Professional If you’re using Final Draft, Scrivener, or WriterDuet, you’re already ahead of the game.  Such software tools take care of margins, alignment, and proper indents—essential elements that can make or break your script’s readability.  Still, formatting isn’t just about software; it’s about understanding what the format is for. A screenplay is a document meant to be read quickly and efficiently—not just by a director or producer, but also by actors, cinematographers, assistant directors, costume designers, and location scouts. Everyone on the crew uses your script to do their job. Here ... Read more
- [Reservoir Dogs: How the Opening Scene Tells the Whole Story](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/02/reservoir-dogs-how-the-opening-scene-tells-the-whole-story/): Reservoir Dogs: How the Opening Scene Tells the Whole Story — and its Lessons for Screenwriters Men in suits chatting about Madonna, tipping culture, and the meaning of a Madonna tune. It seems talky, possibly aimless. Underneath, however, the scene tells us everything we need to know about each character. Let’s explore how the first ten minutes of Reservoir Dogs foreshadows the personalities, values, and fates of every major character in the film. Tarantino’s razor-sharp dialogue and subtle blocking reveals who will live, who will die, who will betray, and who will bleed for loyalty. I. Tarantino’s Table of Contents ... Read more
- [Five Lesser-Known Techniques to Write a Scene ](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/02/five-lesser-known-techniques-to-write-a-scene/): Five Lesser-Known Techniques to Write a Scene  OK–we get it.  Your protagonist enters the scene with a goal, runs into an obstacle, must face a dilemma, and then makes a decision. That basic framework (GODD) is solid, but it’s also the minimum viable product. To wit: knowing how to play Chopsticks doesn’t make you Glenn fucking Gould.  If you want to take a serviceable scene and make it memorable, to memorable, you’ll need a deeper toolbox. Let’s go through five lesser-known techniques that make scenes truly come alive.  While these techniques don’t necessarily seem complex on paper, they distinguish blah, ... Read more
- [Eavesdropping: Listen in to Improve Your Screenplay Dialogue](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/01/eavesdropping-listen-in-to-improve-your-screenplay-dialogue/): Eavesdropping 101: Listen in Cafés to Improve Your Screenplay Dialogue Too often we’re told to “write realistic dialogue.”  That’s no excuse to transcribe everyday speech verbatim. If you did that, it would sound like shit. Real conversation is rambling, fragmented, repetitive, and often painfully dull. Screenplay dialogue, on the other hand, is compressed and alive with subtext, yet it feels real.  The trick, then is to write dialogue that sounds natural without copying real people word-for-word. The way to do this is to understand everyday speech—its rhythms, patterns, tics, and awkward silences—and bring the point across without simple mimicry. One ... Read more
- [How to Develop Character Backstory (Without Spoken Exposition)](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/06/01/how-to-develop-character-backstory-without-spoken-exposition/): How to Develop Character Backstory (Without Spoken Exposition) One of the cardinal sins of novice screenwriting is the “info dump”—that moment when a character halts the story to say, “When I was a child, my father left me, and I’ve had trust issues ever since.”  This is precisely when the audience yawns and reflex-checks TikTok.  Let’s face it: exposition is the least cinematic way to reveal backstory. Yet still, understanding a character’s past is essential to understanding their present. Character backstory gives us empathy, tension, and motivation—to deliver it successfully, do so with restraint and in the language of cinema: ... Read more
- [Five Great Car-Based Dialogue Scenes for Screenwriters](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/30/five-great-car-based-dialogue-scenes-for-screenwriters/): Five Great Car-Based Dialogue Scenes—and What They Teach Screenwriters Most car scenes in movies suck. They’re static, filled with bad exposition, and often used as cheap transitions between more “important” locations. Screenwriters sometimes rely on movement or weird scenarios to make dialogue feel interesting—a strategy given the memorable name “The Pope in the Pool” by Blake Snyder, where attention is diverted from exposition with visual distraction. (Naturally, Snyder is a big fan of this approach. No comment.) But the problem is that if the action is something banal and repetitive and semi-stationary like driving, we don’t get the movement or ... Read more
- [Successful Morning Routines for Screenwriters](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/30/successful-morning-routines-for-screenwriters/): Successful Morning Routines for Screenwriters: Writing Before the World Wakes Up Inspiration doesn’t always strike on a schedule—but deadlines and distractions arise at any time. In an industry driven by both creativity and productivity, the elusive “perfect writing routine” can provide much-needed consistency. Naturally, many screenwriters identify as night owls, including me. In fact, there’s little worse than people who rabbit on about how much better the morning is, particularly because they always do it in a way that makes them seem superior. Honestly, I want to slap them. However, even if you’re naturally a night person, it’s worth giving ... Read more
- [Five Lesser-Known Romantic Comedies: Lessons for Screenwriters](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/29/five-lesser-known-romantic-comedies-lessons-for-screenwriters/): Five Lesser-Known Romantic Comedies — and the Lessons They Teach Screenwriters Today From the sharply-scripted screwballs of the ’30s to the high-concept, cloying, hyper-PC Netflix hits of the 2020s, the genre has continually evolved—and not often for the better.  Many contemporary rom-coms sell because apparently someone–teenage girls?–will always watch them. They are plodding, paint-by-number plots, absurd dialogue, and characters who can’t even figure out what trope they’re supposed to be. I’m looking at you, Do Revenge.  And yet, hidden in the filmographies of legendary directors—often those known for other genres —are five lesser-known romantic comedies that offer invaluable lessons for ... Read more
- [Three-Act Structure vs. Five-Act Structure in Screenwriting](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/29/three-act-structure-vs-five-act-structure/): Three-Act vs. Five-Act Structure: How Story Shapes Screenwriting Whether you’re writing a superhero epic or a dialogue-heavy indie drama, the underlying architecture of your script matters just as much as your characters and themes. Without a coherent structure, your story lacks rhythm, progression, and emotional payoff. In screenwriting, the two primary narrative frameworks are the three-act structure and the five-act structure. Each model has its own champions—Syd Field and Blake Snyder on one side, John Yorke and some clown called Shakespeare on the other. Each provides a different way to think about pacing, escalation, and turning points. Let’s explore what ... Read more
- [7 Proven Ways to Level Up Your Screenwriting Skills](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/28/7-proven-ways-to-level-up-your-screenwriting-skills/): 7 Proven Ways to Level Up Your Screenwriting Skills The craft of screenwriting is a lifelong education. Mastering it doesn’t happen overnight—it happens page by page, scene by scene, and draft by draft. Screenwriting is storytelling in architecture. Your screenplay is a blueprint–it’s not a completed work–yet this blueprint must evoke emotion, reveal character, advance plot, and create cinematic rhythm, all while staying lean and visual.  Fortunately, there are concrete ways to build these skills.  Let’s look at seven deeply practical, highly effective ways to improve your screenwriting skills, and why each of them works. Even if you only integrate ... Read more
- [7 Lessons in Comedy Writing from Animal House](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/28/7-lessons-in-comedy-writing-from-animal-house/): 7 Lessons in Comedy Writing from Animal House  “This situation absolutely requires a really stupid and futile gesture be done on somebody’s part.” — Eric “Otter” Stratton Recently, Chuck Palahniuk suggested that his subscribers rewatch the 1978 comedy classic National Lampoon’s Animal House. Not that I really need any excuse, but I hadn’t seen it in a few years.  As Chuck mentions, quite perceptively, Fight Club can’t hold a candle to Animal House in terms of toxic masculinity. It’s not an easy watch if you enjoy being offended. So here’s a trigger warning on basically every aspect of this movie. ... Read more
- [How to Handle Rejection as a Screenwriter](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/27/how-to-handle-rejection-as-a-screenwriter/): How to Handle Rejection as a Screenwriter Staying Resilient, Professional, and Creative When the Industry Says “No” Rejection is inevitable.  Scripts will be passed on. Coverage will be brutal. Contests will ghost you. Even when you do everything “right,” the answer might still be no — or maybe you hear nothing — or worse, you get a ludicrously asshole-y “no” from someone who clearly gave your script about 30 seconds’ attention.  But here’s the secret that working screenwriters, agents, producers, and executives all know: rejection isn’t the end.  It’s part of the job.  How you handle it says more about ... Read more
- [7 Tips for Writing a Horror Screenplay That Truly Terrifies](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/27/7-tips-for-writing-a-horror-screenplay-that-truly-terrifies/): 7 Tips for Writing a Horror Screenplay That Truly Terrifies How to Write a Horror Script That Gets Under the Skin Writing a horror screenplay is not just telling a story — it’s conjuring fear, tension, dread, and release. But crafting an effective horror script is more than just slamming doors, jump scares, and blood-soaked climaxes.  The best horror films reveal something deeper — about the characters, about society, or about ourselves. Let’s discuss writing horror that sticks. Here are 7 essential tips for writing a horror screenplay: 1) Start with a Core Fear — and Make It Universal The ... Read more
- [Do Screenwriting Books Actually Help? An Honest Look ](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/23/do-screenwriting-books-actually-help-an-honest-look/): Do Screenwriting Books Actually Help? An Honest Look  Screenwriting how-tos such as Save the Cat, Story by Robert McKee, or John Truby’s The Anatomy of Story are staples on the shelves of emerging writers. You might even see them on the shelves of the rare professional as well! But this ubiquity raises an important question: Do screenwriting books actually help? Or do they risk boxing writers into formulaic thinking, stifling creativity under the guise of structure? In fact, I often joke that “I’ve read them so you don’t have to.” However, the truth is not quite so black-and-white.  The books ... Read more
- [How to Write a Memorable Scene](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/23/how-to-write-a-memorable-scene/): How to Write a Memorable Scene  In every truly great film, there will be at least one–but hopefully more than one!–scene that lodges itself in the audience’s memory.   The horse’s head in the bed. Marvin’s head exploding. Ash getting strangled by his own severed  hand. Leo crawling down the stairs to the Lamborghini. Zuul living in the fridge.  These moments transcend plot; they become cultural touchstones. For screenwriters, understanding how to write a memorable scene is as vital as mastering structure or dialogue. A memorable scene can elevate an entire screenplay, linger in a reader’s mind, and become the reason ... Read more
- [Logline Examples from Famous Films: 10 Films in 25 Words or Less](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/23/logline-examples-from-famous-films-10-films-in-25-words-or-less/): Logline Examples from Famous Films: 10 Films in 25 Words or Less NB: this post is co-written by ChatGPT, who evidently writes terrible loglines! Let’s give Chatty some feedback and commentary.  A Logline is NOT a Summary First things first, Chatty wanted to call a logline a “summary” and, true to form, that’s what it provided.  Remember, the logline is an essential–but challenging–part of the screenwriting process. There’s a good argument to be made that there’s no point even embarking on a story unless you have a compelling logline down. Now the point here is that it’s compelling. A fucking ... Read more
- [How to Find Time to Write Your Screenplay: A Practical Guide](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/21/how-to-find-time-to-write-your-screenplay-a-practical-guide-for-busy-writers/): How to Find Time to Write Your Screenplay: A Practical Guide for Busy Writers It’s notoriously difficult for writers to find time to write. Your day job, family, social life, and obviously the hellscape of social media all conspire to relegate your writing project to the bottom of basically any to-do.  So how is it that many thousands of screenwriters have managed to write powerful, polished scripts under circumstances painfully similar to yours?  First things first: a mindset shift.  Waiting for the muse to strike simply won’t happen. Any successful, productive writer knows that output comes from having your ass ... Read more
- [Lovers on the Run: Five Tales of Passion, Crime, and the Road to Ruin](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/20/lovers-on-the-run-five-tales-of-passion-crime-and-the-cinematic-road-to-ruin/): Lovers on the Run: Five Tales of Passion, Crime, and the Cinematic Road to Ruin Few cinematic archetypes are as enduring or seductive as the lovers-on-the-run narrative. At once romantic and anarchic, these stories blend passion with violence, idealism with nihilism. Whether seeking freedom, justice, or to fulfill an obsession with each other, these couples invariably leave a trail of emotional and physical wreckage in their wake. Let’s look at five important films in this genre: They Live by Night (1948), You Only Live Once (1937), Badlands (1973), True Romance (1993), and Natural Born Killers (1994). We’ll examine the plots, ... Read more
- [Ten Essential Tips for First-Time Screenwriters (or Tenth-Time!)](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/20/ten-essential-tips-for-first-time-screenwriters-or-tenth-time/): Ten Essential Tips for First-Time Screenwriters Embarking on the journey of writing your first screenplay is both thrilling and daunting.  The blank page can be intimidating. The world you can see so clearly in your mind doesn’t appear nearly as cleanly on the page. There are loads of common traps: weak protagonists, overwritten dialogue, poor momentum, or prioritizing character over plot (or vice-versa!).  By no means are these problems easily or immediately fixed, but here are ten tips for first-time screenwriters that can make the journey to your first screenplay simpler, more rewarding, and ultimately more cinematic! 1. Start with ... Read more
- [The Hero's Journey Part 2: Adventures in Independent Film](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/19/the-heros-journey-part-2-adventures-in-independent-film/): How an Independent Movie Might Use the Hero’s Journey as a Template Sprawling narratives such as Star Wars, The Matrix, or The Lord of the Rings track a protagonist as they leave the comfort of the familiar, venture into unknown territory, undergo trials, and return transformed.  Nevertheless, the Hero’s Journey isn’t reserved only for studio tentpoles. In fact, independent films often use the Hero’s Journey in inventive, intimate ways that ground in everyday emotion what could otherwise be read as an epic story arc.  With that in mind, let’s look at how an independent filmmaker can use the Hero’s Journey ... Read more
- [Five Lesser-Known Books for Screenwriters —and Why They're Valuable](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/19/five-lesser-known-books-for-screenwriters-and-why-theyre-valuable/): Five Lesser-Known Books for Screenwriters—and Why They’re Valuable (Hey everyone, if it’s an Amazon link here it’s an affiliate link. Click if you like or, you know, don’t.) Everyone bloody well knows Save the Cat, Story, and The Writer’s Journey. Some of you may even have read Into the Woods (which is actually great, by the way). However, in your screenwriting journey it’s often useful to look into books that aren’t necessarily strictly about screenwriting.  Outside this core canon lies a world of lesser-known—yet deeply influential—books that can spark your creativity, challenge your assumptions, and–particularly in the case of Robert ... Read more
- [Examples of the Call to Adventure in Film](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/17/examples-of-the-call-to-adventure-in-film/): Call to Adventure Examples in Movies: How the Hero’s Journey Begins In every great story, there is a moment when the ordinary world begins to fall away. The familiar fades, and something beckons the protagonist into the unknown. This crucial narrative beat is called the Call to Adventure, and it marks the true beginning of the Hero’s Journey—a storytelling structure made famous by mythologist Joseph Campbell in The Hero with a Thousand Faces and later adapted by Hollywood through works like Christopher Vogler’s The Writer’s Journey. Whether subtle or spectacular, the call to adventure serves one essential purpose: it kicks ... Read more
- [What Is a High Concept Film? Why It Matters in Screenwriting](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/17/what-is-a-high-concept-film-why-it-matters-in-screenwriting/): What Is a High Concept Film? Definition, Examples, and Why It Matters in Screenwriting In the world of screenwriting, few terms are thrown around as often or as confidently as “high concept.” But what exactly does it mean? What separates a high concept film from a standard one? And why do these kinds of movies dominate box offices and pitch rooms alike? Let’s explore the definition of a high concept film, its characteristics, the reasons behind its enduring popularity, and how you can craft one yourself. Whether you’re an aspiring screenwriter, a movie buff, or a creative producer, understanding the ... Read more
- [What is a Low Concept Film?](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/15/what-is-a-low-concept-film/): What Is a Low Concept Movie? Why They Appeal—and Why They Win Awards The film industry is often–and somewhat incorrectly–associated with what is known as High Concept: spectacle, high stakes, and loglines that can be pitched in a single sentence. [1] there exists a quieter, subtler cinematic tradition: low concept movies. While they may not have the immediate spandex appeal of superhero blockbusters or dystopian thrillers, low concept films continue to captivate audiences, move critics, and sweep major awards. But what exactly is a low concept movie? Why do these films resonate so deeply with viewers? And why do they ... Read more
- [The Hero's Journey in Indpendent Film: Three Examples](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/14/the-heros-journey-in-indpendent-film-three-examples/): The Hero’s Journey in Independent Film: Three Examples When thinking of the Hero’s Journey, the mind jumps to blockbuster-style films like Star Wars, The Matrix, or The Lord of the Rings. These sprawling narratives track a protagonist as they leave the comfort of the familiar, venture into unknown territory, undergo trials, and return transformed. But this timeless narrative structure isn’t reserved for studio tentpoles. In fact, independent films often use the Hero’s Journey in inventive, intimate ways that ground the epic arc in everyday emotion. So how can an indie filmmaker use the Hero’s Journey as a template? And what ... Read more
- [Understanding the Hero's Journey in Screenwriting: Three Iconic Films](https://scriptstrategy.com/2025/05/13/understanding-the-heros-journey-in-screenwriting-a-guide-through-three-iconic-films/): Understanding the Hero’s Journey in Screenwriting: A Guide Through Three Iconic Films The Hero’s Journey is one of the most enduring storytelling structures in screenwriting. First popularized by mythologist Joseph Campbell in his seminal work The Hero with a Thousand Faces and later adapted for writers by Christopher Vogler in The Writer’s Journey, the hero’s journey outlines a universal narrative arc in which a protagonist embarks on an adventure, faces trials, and emerges transformed. It is important to note that not every story follows this formula, nor ought it. There are legitimate concerns that the Hero’s Journey itself is the ... Read more
- [The Basics of Concept: High Concept, Low Concept, and Good Concept](https://scriptstrategy.com/2024/11/05/the-basics-of-concept-high-concept-low-concept-and-good-concept/): Why Does Concept Matter So Much? Simple: no one cares about how brilliant you think your idea is. They literally [1] only care about how much money it’s likely to make for them. Yeah, sorry. Someone probably forgot to tell you that in film school. That’s most likely because the film school was more interested in making money from you than actually getting you a foothold in the film industry. What matters is the quality (read: saleability) of your idea. And maybe you really do have a genius idea. Maybe it’s the next Jaws or Iron Man or Funny Games. ... Read more
- [Creating a Concept That Gets People Interested](https://scriptstrategy.com/2024/09/20/creating-a-concept-that-gets-people-interested/): How to make your idea idiot-proof! What are we going to get from this movie that intrigues the listener? When they want to know more, they will listen attentively to your pitch. There are two distinct sides to pitching. If you don’t have a good presence and you can’t get behind your own idea, then you’re screwed. No one will pay attention to you if they don’t really like you already. And if they do, they’ve probably already given you money, yes? Then again, being the slickest used-car salesman of them all won’t make any difference if your idea is ... Read more
- [Not All BS is Bullshit](https://scriptstrategy.com/2024/09/10/not-all-bs-is-bullshit/): Not All BS is Bullshit Just some of it, like the BS2 Beat Sheet Sometimes it’s easy to forget the value of the classics when they’re misinterpreted and reappropriated by the great unwashed.1 I’ve been charitable enough to re-read Save the Cat recently, and I am pleased to say that there is some useful stuff in there and that it’s a lot more nuanced than one makes it out to be. I can appreciate some of the subtlety and care with which Blake Snyder addresses his subject. All in all, I think Blake Snyder was a good dude, and I ... Read more
- [Getting High With Concept](https://scriptstrategy.com/2024/08/26/getting-high-with-concept/): Getting High With Concept Or… the Tyranny of Michael Bay Let’s get a bit deeper with when and where we encounter High Concept. Maybe we’ll even finally find a couple that don’t suck. Sorry, Michael Bay. You may notice that a disproportionate number of High Concept films have science fiction or fantasy elements. It’s possible to have a High Concept drama, such as The Fly by David Cronenberg, The Trial by Orson Welles, or Eyes Wide Shut by Stanley Kubrick. It’s possible to have a High Concept romantic comedy, such as Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind by Michel Gondry ... Read more
- [The Presuppositions of Screenwriting](https://scriptstrategy.com/2024/07/02/the-presuppositions-of-screenwriting/): The Presuppositions of Screenwriting When you presuppose, you make an ass out of “u” and “me” It’s funny the things that we assume, or presuppose, just to get any work done.  One of the major things that we assume–a “presupposition,” if you will—is that people will be affected or influenced by our writing.  After all, if that isn’t the case, what are we even trying to do as writers?  Once we reach a good enough standard of writing, that will certainly be the case. With enough technique, style, and flair we could probably make drying paint sound appealing. This is ... Read more
- [Give Yourself Permission to Write](https://scriptstrategy.com/2024/06/19/give-yourself-permission-to-write/): Two Approaches Analyzed… As they say*, don’t ask for permission; ask for forgiveness. Sometimes the biggest block to writing is thinking that you can’t imagine you’d be able to write anything useful. People who are sensitive enough to write well are often prone to this, but there’s a way around it. The flipside of this is that you may actually think that everything that you produce is going to be amazing and world-changing. Let’s get real for a moment: neither of these is true. What is true is that it feels great to have someone compliment your work. What is ... Read more
- [What Makes a Good Scene](https://scriptstrategy.com/2024/04/26/what-makes-a-good-scene/): What Makes a Good Scene And Why Newbies Often Write Shit That Isn’t a Scene There’s nothing quite like reading the work of new writers. Ah… fresh meat writing fresher meat. It’s often a mishmash of scenarios that aren’t actual scenes, and lots of scenes that don’t really mean anything to the plot as a whole What we begin to see after a while is that people don’t really know where to draw the line of what makes a scene and what doesn’t make a scene. There isn’t enough conflict. There isn’t any sort of irony. There isn’t a protagonist ... Read more
- [Mysticism vs. Structure in Screenwriting](https://scriptstrategy.com/2024/04/26/mysticism-vs-structure-in-screenwriting/): Mysticism vs. Structure in Screenwriting The paint-by-numbers approach just kills the wonder, doesn’t it? Let it all hang out when you’re writing, and apply structure when you’re editing. Just go for it, balls to the wall. Clean up the mess later. Ask for forgiveness, not permission. Get it yet? The fact of the matter is that we really don’t have a great idea of where ideas truly come from. However, I can attest to the fact that they have a tendency to come in the shower. Why, anyone can speculate: feeling relaxed, being fairly soon after waking, rubbing things on ... Read more
- [All Screenwriters Are Assholes](https://scriptstrategy.com/2024/04/26/all-screenwriters-are-assholes/): All Screenwriters Are Assholes (Relax; I’ll tar myself with that brush first…) Anyone who wants to be a screenwriter is an asshole. This probably includes you as well. So that’s you, me, and anyone else who’s ever even heard of Final Draft. All assholes! To paraphrase Plato in the Republic: only those who do not wish to tell their story can be trusted to do so. If not, you’re–oh, I don’t need to keep repeating myself here. The problem here is that we all have something burning deep inside us: there is a story in there that wants to get ... Read more

## Pages

- [Submissions Ghostwriting for Filmmakers and Production Companies](https://scriptstrategy.com/submissions-ghostwriting-for-filmmakers/): Submissions Ghostwriting for Filmmakers, Animators, and Production Companies The story is in place. The idea makes sense in your head. Hell, it makes sense in the script. But now it’s the crunch–and you’re short on time, clarity, and distance.  That’s where we can help. Our submissions ghostwriting and narrative support is designed specifically for small production companies, creative studios, and independent filmmakers and animators.  So if you need to seduce a grant panel, work through development snags, or hammer your story into a solid pitch–including pitch coaching–I can help you translate your creative instincts into those short, distilled documents that ... Read more
- [7 Tips for Writing a Memorable Romantic Comedy](https://scriptstrategy.com/7-tips-for-writing-a-memorable-romantic-comedy/): 7 Tips for Writing a Memorable Romantic Comedy How to Craft Love Stories That Charm, Crack Up, and Stay With Your Audience Good romantic comedies are the cinematic equivalent of a great first date: funny, charming, a little unpredictable — and they leave you wanting more. Bad ones are quite possibly the lowest form of art.  Given that the romantic comedy, by its nature, doesn’t require much in the way of fancy or slick direction, it is a writers’ medium. However, the challenge for screenwriters is to go beyond the cliché.  While the genre has familiar beats (the meet-cute, the ... Read more
- [Freebies](https://scriptstrategy.com/freebies/): Free Stuff! Beginner? Here’s where to start. If you want to write but have no idea where to begin, try the Ink on the Page PDF exercise guide. It’s the perfect way to get started with a group of exercises that can help you overcome the resistance so that you can finally, well, get some ink on your page! you can find more information here in the Ink on the Page PDF. Have an idea you want to make bulletproof? Check out this one:
- [Blog](https://scriptstrategy.com/blog/)
- [Script Services](https://scriptstrategy.com/script-services/): Free 30-Minute Strategy Session Discuss your idea and synopsis or up to 10 pages of your latest work. Contact me at rowan@scriptstrategy.com for more details. One-to-One Screenplay Coaching Work with me at any stage of the process: –idea generation and development –planning stages –drafting –thematic development –revision –writing strategy and planning –preparing submissions Available in 5-hour and 10-hour packages. Five hours: £420 or Ten Hours: £800 Script Doctoring / Ghostwriting Do you have an idea and need a writer? Have a script that needs some help? Whether your script needs full drafting, raised stakes, dialogue punch-ups, or a revision for ... Read more
- [About](https://scriptstrategy.com/about/): Rowan Hand (screenwriting) is a screenwriter and expert on the philosophy of narrative structure. He is one of modern film’s most approachable voices regarding writing practice and the intersection of storytelling, logic, and technology. ​As Head Coach at Script Strategy, Rowan helps writers and corporate clients alike develop a compelling narrative, whether at idea or screenplay stage.  Rowan has written ten feature screenplays, four of which have been optioned. His script Neptune’s Net, co-written with Hassan Saïd, was among ten finalists out of over 1000 entrants in the 2024 Screencraft Film Fund. He is the co-winner of the 2023 Watersprite ... Read more
- [Contact](https://scriptstrategy.com/contact/): Interested in learning more? Send an e-mail: rowan@scriptstrategy.com
- [Script Strategy: Consultants for Screenwriting, Playwriting, and TV](https://scriptstrategy.com/need-help-with-your-story/): Need Help With Your Writing? Having an idea is great. Having a polished story is all about the execution. That’s what we’re here for. Whether you’re writing a screenplay, a stage play, a TV pilot, or maybe you don’t know and you’re just getting started, we can help. Writing doesn’t have to be a lonely process, and some combination of accountability and feedback is always in order. You know you have a winning story, but it’s not coming through. We’ve all been there, and it definitely gets easier with a bit of pratice. Without guidance, however, you might find yourself ... Read more


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