Advice > Screenwriting Advice: Screenwriting Tips & Help
Using these featured screenwriting tips can provide new inspiration and thought patterns for screenwriting. Featuring everything from celebrity screenplay advice to quick-list tips on screenwriting, writers are bound to learn something new and expand their writing styles. Also recommended are The Writers Store's expert screenwriting advice articles, hand-selected screenwriting books, and popular screenwriting software for sale.
2017 For Your Consideration Screenplays
2017 Oscar Nominated Screenplays – Free Download Ask any professional screenwriter how to become a better writer and they will say “read screenplays.” Reading produced screenplays not only provides a clear example of how to navigate challe...
Read more... | Published: 02/16/17
Great Movies and Why They Work
You don't need to go to film school to recognize the key elements of great movies. These same elements are present time and time again in the great movies, and they are worth highlighting: These movies tend to have strong single line - with one...
Read more... | Published: 05/15/15 | by John Truby
5 Keys to Writing a Summer Blockbuster
It used to be that summer was the season for blockbuster movies. Now it’s a year-round phenomenon. Hollywood is in the business of selling films to a worldwide audience, which means they are always looking for a script with blockbuster potential. ...
Read more... | Published: 06/13/11 | by John Truby
Don’t Break the Chain - Jerry Seinfeld's Method for Creative Success
When it comes to making New Year's resolutions, we writers aren't exactly the norm. Most people resolve to lose weight, dreaming of the day they can hold up their "fat jeans," as if in a weight-loss commercial. We want to hold up a few freshly p...
Read more... | Published: 01/01/14 | by The Writers Store
Write your Screenplay in 10 Minutes a Day
I know you’re busy. Trust me, I’m with you. You’ve got work, school, kids, you name it. Family counts on you, friends need you – someone’s probably e-mailing, texting or instant messaging you right now! So how in the heck are you going to find ti...
Read more... | Published: 08/03/10 | by Pilar Alessandra
How to Write a Screenplay: Script Writing Example & Screenwriting Tips
It's easy to feel intimidated by the thought of writing a screenplay. The rules! The formatting! The binding! Don't let the seemingly endless parade of screenwriting elements scare you away from writing your first script. Since a familiarity with ...
Read more... | Published: 03/09/10 | by Mario O. Moreno and Kay Tuxford
Tales From the Script: 5 Things I Learned Interviewing Screenwriters
Sitting down for intimate conversations with dozens of Hollywood's best writers was a transformative experience. Although I've been a professional screenwriter for many years, most of my work has been in the independent realm, so collecting materi...
Read more... | Published: 03/01/10 | by Peter Hanson
Character Emotion Makes the Plot
Some writers excel at pithy banter. Others create dramatic action. The writers I most admire are the ones who in their own natural style convey a character's emotional personality in scene through active, non-verbal communication with just the rig...
Read more... | Published: 02/01/10 | by Martha Alderson, M.A.
The Top 10 Reasons to Write a Spec Pilot
Whether you're an established film/ TV writer or an aspiring one, you've heard it - everybody in town has said it - you should write a spec pilot. Didn't used to be that way. Up until about five years ago, it was considered crazy or just plain clu...
Read more... | Published: 01/04/10 | by Ellen Sandler
How to Sell a Screenplay with These 10, Must-Use Story Techniques
The key question that all screenwriters should ask themselves is: how do I write a script that Hollywood wants to buy? Most writers mistakenly think that success is all about connections and star power. Not so. The real trick to writing a script t...
Read more... | Published: 10/28/09 | by John Truby
How to Write a Query Letter the Right Way
A great query letter is your key to unlocking an executive's door. Take your time and be as thoughtful about your query as you were when writing your screenplay. Industry professionals view query letters as a reflection of the writer's screenplay ...
Read more... | Published: 08/04/08 | by Susan Kouguell