by Onicia Muller (@OniciaMuller) This summer, movie lovers are looking forward to a comedy directed by Lucia Aniello. In Rough Night, a group of friends are horrified when the male stripper they hire for a wild bachelorette party in Miami winds up dead. The film is described as The Hangover meets Weekend at Bernie’s with stellar... Continue Reading →
Ken’s Top 10: Things I Love to See in a ScriptÂ
by Ken Aguado (@kaguado) Admittedly, my last article -- Ken’s Top 10: Annoying Things I See in Scripts -- was kind of cranky. That’s not who I am, and really, isn’t there enough complaining on the internet? As my penance, here is the flip side -- a list of things that I love to see when I... Continue Reading →
The 5 Most Overrated Shows You Are Watching
by Emily J I can already feel your annoyance with the below list. These are not BAD shows. They are simply getting a lot of hype, and while it is sometimes warranted, there is something lacking in the writing that needs to be discussed. 1. HOUSE OF CARDS The first season was fantastic. When it... Continue Reading →
13 Screenwriters to Watch This Year
IndieWire's blog The Playlist recently put together a list of 13 screenwriters to watch in 2014. This list is both inspiring and depressing. It's an essential read for people who are writing their first script so that they can start to understand just how much work you have to do before you can be considered... Continue Reading →
5 Ways to Defend Your Writing Time
Defending writing time is a challenge that every writer faces. Family, friends, work responsibilities, and miscellaneous crap all seem to take over every spare second that you have. How can you possibly make enough time to write the next great American film? The first trick is figuring out when you write best. Do you like... Continue Reading →
Twelve Reasons to Write Today
Because you have a new idea and it's worth exploring. Because if you don't, you'll never escape the boring 9-5 job you hate. Because you know you have what it takes to get produced/published, but you'll never fully develop your talent without practice. Because you need a bigger portfolio, damn it. Because even if your... Continue Reading →
Great Movie Titles That Almost Weren’t
Blake Snyder places a lot of emphasis on the title of your script, and I think he's on to something. If you have a fully developed log line and a well-thought out outline, but still haven't thought of a good title, it may be because your story isn't very compelling. This isn't always the case,... Continue Reading →
How Not to Embarrass Yourself During a Pitch
Tim John of Think Hollywood recently shared ten tips that he's learned over his years of pitching to Hollywood execs. His list begins: 1. BE CONFIDENT BUT NEVER COCKY. Never be “Too smart for the room”. But don’t be self-effacing either. Many “El Laysians” just don’t get irony. I once went to a meeting at... Continue Reading →
Jack Kerouac’s 30 Points to Write and Live By
Maria Popova of my favorite site, Brain Pickings, has shared a list that Jack Kerouac once wrote entitled Belief and technique for Modern Prose. Here is the full list (the emphasis is my own): Scribbled secret notebooks, and wild typewritten pages, for yr own joy Submissive to everything, open, listening Try never get drunk outside... Continue Reading →
35 Reasons to Write (or, Why We Do What We Do)
No one gets into this gig because they think it will be an easy way to turn a quick buck (or if they do, they are quickly corrected.) So why do we write?