Stop Screwing Around and Write a Screenplay That SELLS


Book Description

All you need to know about writing a screenplay that sells. The author Robert L. McCullough has nearly 300 produced script credits and is a founder of The Los Angeles International Screenplay Awards. With a Master's Degree in Screenwriting and a long professional career turning fledgling writers into prominent Hollywood producers and showrunners at every major studio, he now reveals the principles of writing like a pro in this fast-reading no-nonsense book. 12 short chapters tell you all you need to know about writing a screenplay that stands above the competition and has the greatest chance of selling. Read this book and keep it by your side as you write your next screenplay. You'll avoid the pitfalls and problems that mark you as an amateur. Follow these simple guidelines and you'll write a screenplay that can be your ticket into the world of highly-paid Hollywood professionals. If you're serious about your screenwriting, then you're serious about seeing your scripts produced. This book delivers the point-by-point essentials behind every successful screenplay and shows you how to demonstrate the professional expertise that will get your scripts noticed. It's a quick, concise read that gets to the bottom line with an irreverent no-nonsense approach to putting your writing on a level with Hollywood's working professional screenwriters.Making movies is a complex matter that is so difficult that very few people do it.And it all starts with writing the script, an equally challenging and complex task.Buy this book and you'll have the tools you need to write a screenplay that SELLS.




Screenplay Format Made (Stupidly) Easy


Book Description

Discover How to Master Screenplay Format!Want to learn screenplay format? (Without spending years reading horrible zombie scripts?)Want to ensure your screenplays don't look amateurish and terribly out-of-date?Do phone calls, montages and flashbacks leave you pulling your hair out? Fear not, screenwriter! Because in "Screenplay Format Made Stupidly Easy," former screenplay reader and optioned screenwriter, Michael Rogan, shows you: ¿How to Master Location Headings (Like a Pro)¿How to Never Screw Up Secondary Shot Headings (Ever Again!)¿Dialogue Formatting Tricks Nobody Wants You to Know About¿The Ins and Outs of Screenplay Transitions¿The Secrets to Phone Calls, Montages and Flashbacks!¿and so much more!And each chapter includes easy-to-follow action steps to help you boost your screenwriting IQ - without taking a single $2,000 seminar. You CAN master screenplay format! (Even if you know nothing about screenplay format!)So, why not begin your quest to world-class screenwriting awesomeness...today!




How to Write a Selling Screenplay


Book Description

Christopher Keane has spent 20 years in the business, learning the truths--and the tricks--of writing a selling screenplay. In How to Write a Selling Screenplay, he takes writers through the entire process, from developing a story to finding the best agent. Using an annotated version of an often-optioned screenplay of his own, and citing examples from movies ranging from Casablanca and Lethal Weapon to Sling Blade and The English Patient, he discusses how to create three-dimensional characters, find a compelling story, build an airtight plot structure, fine-tune dialogue, and much more. Keane's tips on the difference between writing for film and television, as well as his advice on dealing with Hollywood movers and shakers, make this an essential companion for people writing their first--or their fortieth--screenplay. From the Trade Paperback edition.




Downton Abbey Script Book Season 1


Book Description

Full shooting scripts with commentary from creator Julian Fellowes highlighting key historical and dramatic details. Includes previously unseen material. The most successful British television drama of our time, the multi-award-winning Downton Abbey has become a national phenomenon in the U.S. as well. Created by Julian Fellowes—who received an Academy Award for his screenplay for the acclaimed Robert Altman motion picture, Gosford Park—Downton Abbey features stellar performances, ravishing sets and costumes, and, most importantly, absolutely riveting plots. Now the scripts for the entire first season have been collected in one volume, along with never before seen material, incisive commentary, and color photos that will completely immerse fans in the world of Downton Abbey. Praise for Downton Abbey “A deft balance of emotion, suspense and comedy.” —Daily Telegraph “The sets and costumes are ravishing, the attention to detail painstaking and the performances are brilliant. But above all, it’s a cracking story.” —The Times (London)\ “There is no mystery about the potency of this series, slathered in wit, powered by storytelling of a high order.” —The Wall Street Journal “A sumptuous, accomplished piece of television.” —The Guardian (UK)




How to Write what You Want and Sell what You Write


Book Description

Not loaded with theory, Skip's invaluable book contains concise, easily understood and applied advice for both writing and marketing any kind of book, article, story, play, screen-play, report, proposal or anything else you can think of.How to Write What You Want and Sell What You Write is for every writer or wannabe who needs to sort out his or her desires, capabilities and strengths and, even more importantly, learn the particular formats for the kind of writing in which he or she is interested.




The End of Magic


Book Description

Two powerful mages. One steeped in privilege, the other bound by a moral code. Their world is thrown into chaos by the end of magic. Rosheen Katell is a wandering mage and, with Anzu her griffin, she’s worked hard to build a reputation as a trustworthy truth seer. She never lies, never kills. Sander Bree is a royal mage. He lives an easy life advising the king on matters of court and politics, but dreams of an apocalypse are giving him massive anxiety attacks. Very soon, their magic will be gone. A cataclysmic event will change their lives and world forever. Sander must keep a promise to save the life of a young girl that would have been difficult enough with magic, but is a suicide mission without it. Rosheen is forced to side with a murderous warlord, and her once-solid principles are tested and found wanting. Both will be set against one another in a war unlike anything the world has seen before, in this sweeping fantasy of magic’s ending. A stand alone fantasy novel for readers of Joe Abercrombie and Scott Lynch ** "The sort of book you give to people who say “prove to me why I should read fantasy”... A simply terrific read." – James Barclay, author of the Legends of the Raven series "Mark Stay paints his world and characters with deft, confident and dark strokes." – RJ Barker, author of the Wounded Kingdom Trilogy "The sort of book you give to people who say “prove to me why I should read fantasy”... A simply terrific read." – James Barclay, author of the Legends of the Raven series "Takes the tropes of high fantasy and uses them to wield an original, compelling and intricately plotted story... exactly the kind of fantasy that we need more of." – Gavin G. Smith, author of the Veteran series "Stay does for George RR Martin what Pratchett did for Tolkien." - Julian Barr, author of The Way Home "The End of Magic has one of the most compelling narratives as well as a strong authorial voice." ★★★★★ Amazon UK Reviewer "Like Game of Thrones without the boobs!" ★★★★★ - Amazon UK Reviewer "This was a blast, hints of Joe Abercrombie’s books and his dark humour, but presented in a world in chaos." ★★★★★ - Amazon UK Reviewer "The most fun I've had reading a fantasy novel since Red Country by Joe Abercrombie." ★★★★★ - Amazon UK Reviewer "This book grabbed me in the first couple of pages... Couldn’t stop. Really want more!" ★★★★★ - Amazon UK Reviewer "I may never forgive the author for that (spoiler) death scene... *When you read it you’ll understand* Rarely have I shed tears so early on in a book." ★★★★★ - Amazon UK Reviewer "A fun and intense read." ★★★★★ - Amazon UK Reviewer "A fresh take on the perennial story of the golden catastrophe/age. The author has created a completely authentic fantasy world." ★★★★★ - Amazon UK Reviewer "Normal fantasy conventions are distorted, magic is not dependable and there are evil, bloodthirsty villains at work." ★★★★★ - Amazon UK Reviewer "The humour in the writing offset the blood and gore that featured throughout." ★★★★★ - Amazon UK Reviewer "The author effortlessly creates a world that is both wonderfully fantastical and at the same time strangely real." ★★★★★ - Amazon UK Reviewer "Gripping and entertaining." ★★★★★ - Amazon UK Reviewer




Make Your Story a Movie


Book Description

$50 Billion of Advice in One Book* Have you ever wondered why some books and stories are adapted into movies, and others aren't? Or wished you could sit down and pick the brains of the people whose stories have been adapted--or the screenwriters, producers, and directors who adapted them? Author John Robert Marlow has done it for you. He spoke to book authors, playwrights, comic book creators and publishers, as well as Hollywood screenwriters, producers and directors responsible for adapting fictional and true stories into Emmy-winning TV shows, Oscar-winning films, billion-dollar megahits and smaller independents. Then he talked to the entertainment attorneys who made the deals. He came away with a unique understanding of adaptations--an understanding he shares in this book: which stories make good source material (and why); what Hollywood wants (and doesn't); what you can (and can't) get in a movie deal; how to write and pitch your story to maximize the chances of a Hollywood adaptation--and how much (and when) you can expect to be paid. *This book contains the distilled experience of creators, storytellers and others whose works have earned over $50 billion worldwide. Whether you're looking to sell film rights, adapt your own story (alone or with help), or option and adapt someone else's property--this book is for you.




Riding the Alligator


Book Description

If you're thinking about writing a screenplay, do yourself a favor and hop on Pen Densham's Alligator. The ride's enlightening."---Jeff Bridges, Academy Award "-winning actor --




The Nutshell Technique


Book Description

Veteran script consultant Jill Chamberlain discovered in her work that an astounding 99 percent of first-time screenwriters don’t know how to tell a story. These writers may know how to format a script, write snappy dialogue, and set a scene. They may have interesting characters and perhaps some clever plot devices. But, invariably, while they may have the kernel of a good idea for a screenplay, they fail to tell a story. What the 99 percent do instead is present a situation. In order to explain the difference, Chamberlain created the Nutshell Technique, a method whereby writers identify eight dynamic, interconnected elements that are required to successfully tell a story. Now, for the first time, Chamberlain presents her unique method in book form with The Nutshell Technique: Crack the Secret of Successful Screenwriting. Using easy-to-follow diagrams (“nutshells”), she thoroughly explains how the Nutshell Technique can make or break a film script. Chamberlain takes readers step-by-step through thirty classic and contemporary movies, showing how such dissimilar screenplays as Casablanca, Chinatown, Pulp Fiction, The Usual Suspects, Little Miss Sunshine, Juno, Silver Linings Playbook, and Argo all have the same system working behind the scenes, and she teaches readers exactly how to apply these principles to their own screenwriting. Learn the Nutshell Technique, and you’ll discover how to turn a mere situation into a truly compelling screenplay story.




Writing Movies for Fun and Profit


Book Description

"A hilarious and helpful insider's guide to launching a successful writing career in Hollywood. . . . The only compass readers will ever need to navigate the treacherous waters of filmmaking"--("Kirkus Reviews," starred review).