Better Management

5 BEST MODERN SCREENWRITING BOOKS #1 Writing Movies for Fun and Profit by Robert Ben Garant & Thomas Lennon  See our complete list on our website - http://www.better-mgmt.com/screenwriting-tips/5-best-modern-screenwriting-books

5 BEST MODERN SCREENWRITING BOOKS #2 Save the Cat! by Blake Snyder See our complete list on our website - http://www.better-mgmt.com/screenwriting-tips/5-best-modern-screenwriting-books

5 BEST MODERN SCREENWRITING BOOKS #3 The Story Solution: 23 Actions All Great Heroes Must Take by Eric Edson See our complete list on our website - http://www.better-mgmt.com/screenwriting-tips/5-best-modern-screenwriting-books

5 BEST MODERN SCREENWRITING BOOKS #4 The Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure For Storytellers and Screenwriters by Christopher Volger See our complete list on our website - http://www.better-mgmt.com/screenwriting-tips/5-best-modern-screenwriting-books

5 BEST MODERN SCREENWRITING BOOKS #5 Save The Cat! Stikes Back by Blake Snyder See our complete list on our website - http://www.better-mgmt.com/screenwriting-tips/5-best-modern-screenwriting-books

7 WAYS TO WRITE MORE OFTEN 1) MAKE SMALL REALISTIC GOALS Don’t tell yourself you’re going to write 50 pages in a week if you've never done that before. Instead, make small realistic goals that you know you can stick to. Such as writing 1 page a day. It's only 1 page, but it's still better than nothing. 2) TURN OFF THE INTERNET Make the internet a reward instead of a distraction. When you hop in front of your computer, don't go on the internet for the first hour or tell yourself you won't go on the internet until you get X amount of pages done. Many times we lose those creative juices we had when we sat down because the internet is so distracting and addictive. 3) APPLAUD EVERY SMALL VICTORY Criticizing yourself for not writing or not coming up with the perfect idea doesn't do anyone any good, but applauding yourself for a small victory will only encourage you to write more. 4) JOIN A WRITING GROUP Almost everybody needs accountability and having a group of peers who work with you as you write can help immensely and create the accountability you need. 5) THE 5 MINUTE A DAY RULE Just promise yourself to write 5 minutes a day even if it's the last thing you do before you go to bed. You never know what will spark in 5 minutes and many times 5 minutes becomes much longer if inspiration hits. This will also keep your story in your mind every day. 6) REWARD YOURSELF AFTER YOU WRITE Have a favorite TV Show? Watch it after you write X amount of pages. Want to see a new movie this weekend? Treat yourself to see it after you write and work on your own movie. Creating a reward will make you want to earn that reward. 7) TELL YOUR FRIENDS YOU'RE SENDING THEM PAGES We often lack accountability when it comes to oneself, but when others depend on us, we get our asses into gear. Tell 5 - 10 friends that you'll be e-mailing them your script by a certain date. Then that date will become the deadline you need to drive your script forward. Make sure these friends are the ones that stay on top of you if you don't.

1) THE SCRIPT ISN'T FUN If we’re going to read a script from beginning to end, it should be a fun read. If it’s a horror, make us scared. If it’s a comedy, make us laugh. We go to the movies because it's fun, so make sure your script is fun. 2) TOO MUCH ACTION DESCRIPTION Amateur writers often use way too much action description. It slows the pace of the script and so often a lot of that action description isn't needed. 3) ON THE NOSE DIALOGUE We can forgive a little on the nose dialogue, but if a script is full of it then it shows a lack of creativity from the writer. 4) BAD HANDLING OF EXPOSITION If characters are talking in paragraphs about their backstory and it’s clear exposition just to get the exposition out then it’s not fun. Make sure the exposition is handled through moments where we don’t realize this is exposition. 5) SHOW DON'T TELL Why have your protagonist tell us about a moment when we can see it? If something life changing happened to your protagonist then show it to us! Don’t just talk about it. We might not remember every piece of dialogue, but we’ll remember a scene that changed the protagonist. 6) NOT KNOWING WHEN TO FADE IN AND WHEN TO FADE OUT There should only be one FADE IN at the top of the script and one FADE OUT at the very bottom of the film. Amateur writers put more of these in the middle of their scripts. 7) KEEP IT LESS THAN 110 PAGES (ESPECIALLY IN COMEDY) Sure, there’s an exception to this, but you’re story better be incredible. A script from a first time writer that’s 124 pages is just a headache to a reader. For the most part, people don’t want to read scripts over 100 pages. If a reader has the choice to choose a screenplay that’s 94 pages and a screenplay that's 115 pages, they’re much more likely to choose the 94-page script. 8) COMEDIES NEED TO BE FUNNY Comedies need to be a mix of great story and great laughs. If you’re gonna submit a comedy, make sure we laugh. Pump up the jokes in scenes that need more jokes before submitting. 9) CHARACTERS HAVE SIMILAR NAMES Don't have a Josh, Jake, John, and Jeff! Make sure every character has a different name than your other characters. It gets confusing when you keep reading names that start with the same initial. 10) THE FIRST 10 PAGES ARE BORING The first 10 pages of a screenplay are the most important. They have to hook the reader to wanting to read the rest of screenplay. Once we are hooked, it's easier to forgive other parts of the screenplay, but if we're not hooked then we'll pass on the screenplay.

Your script should be able to answer YES to most of these 25 questions. ​Characters 1) Are we rooting for the hero? 2) Is the hero actively pursuing a clear goal? 3) Is the hero relatable to the general public? 4) Does the hero have  a character arc? 5) Is there a strong antagonist? ​6) Are the supporting characters interesting? Dialogue 7) Do the supporting characters have a distinct voice that stands out from the hero? 8) Is the dialogue clever and not "on the nose?" 9) Is the dialogue snappy and relatively easy for an actor to memorize? Concept 10) Is the concept original? 11) Does it have a hook? 
 12) Does the movie have a theme? 13) Are there other films with similar themes that can be used for comparison? 14) Is the script a great example of its genre?  (If it’s a comedy, is it funny? If it's a horror, is it scary?) Formatting and Grammar 15) Is the script accurately formatted? 16) Is it free from misspelled words and typos? Marketability 17) Is this story marketable? 18) Does the screenplay have a clear audience? 19) Is the audience large enough for the movie to make a profit? Structure 20) Do the first 10 pages hook you in? 21) Does the second act sustain your interest? 22) Is the third act satisfying? 23) Is there strong conflict from start to finish? 24) Is the exposition handled nicely? 25) Is the story compelling and does it have a strong narrative drive?