THURSDAY'S SCRIPT TIP:

HOW TO OUTLINE


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You've got a great idea for a screenplay... how do you get started? Though everyone has their own way of going from brain to page (I use that direct plug system - hook it up to my brain and the pages just start shooting out of the printer) - here is a basic method for organizing your thoughts into a simple step outline. The best thing to do is to find the method that works best for you.

1) What's your story? You need to have a character in conflict. The character should have an emotional conflict to overcome (character arc) and a physical conflict (something we can see - it's a movie) to deal with (plot) and it's best if those two conflicts are connected.

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"My story is about a person (__________) who is forced to deal with their emotional problem (_______) in order to deal with a physical problem (________). If they fail to deal with the physical problem, (_______) will happen - destroying their life forever! (The stakes)"

That works for almost any story, whether it's an asteroid hurtling toward Earth or a shy girl pursuing her one true love.

2) What's the big idea? Your story idea should be something interesting enough that millions of people worldwide will want to spend $10.50 to see it. You need to start with a great idea. Many writers finish a screenplay with a dull idea, then wonder why nobody wants to read it after they tell a producer what it's about. It's better to come up with 100 ideas and select the *best* idea, than to write the first idea you come up with. Even if you are writing for a niche market or the indie/art house world, you need to have some sort of story hook that makes your script idea *unique*. If there is another film with the same idea, you need a new idea!

3) Figure out the antagonist's plan or the main conflict of your script. Story is conflict - and the antagonist is the character who brings the conflict. That means the antagonist is usually the most important character in your screenplay. Who are they? What do they want? How does this impact your protagonist? Make sure you understand the conflict and how it works in your story - the conflict is the engine that runs your story.

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4) Next thing I'd do is write a 75 word logline (synopsis) of my script. Put the idea into words. This will help you focus on what you want your script to be. If you can't condense your story down to about 75 words, you don't know what your story *is*. Every single movie will be distilled down to even fewer words in that description in TV Guide Magazine - even indie films and dramas. If some employee at TV Guide can distill *your* story to a couple of sentences, you'd better be able to. This logline will be what you use to pitch your script to producers in a query letter... but it will also be a guide when you are writing your script. I always tape my loglines to my computer monitor so that I can stay on track while writing the script. Anything that isn't covered by that 75 word description isn't part of my story - and belongs on the cutting room floor.

5) Now brainstorm a bunch of scenes that illustrate your conflicts. Just come up with as many scene ideas as you can... including bad ones. Later you'll select the best for your outline. Sometimes you have to dig through bad ideas to find good ones.

Let's say your script is about a ladies man who is framed for murdering a woman... by someone with intimate knowledge of his bedroom practices. Now he has to track down all of these women he's screwed and dumped because one of them may be the killer. Outer Conflict: the police are chasing him (think FUGITIVE). Emotional Conflict: he has to deal with all of these women he has hurt... and realizes he's not a very nice guy.

So you'll need scenes that deal with the police chase and scenes that deal with the ex-girlfriends. You'll need other scenes, too. Write down every scene that pops into your mind.

A) Make a list of conflict scenes between hero & villain. You're probably going to need 3-5 scenes or more... but brainstorm up as many as you can. You want to make sure this aspect of your story is covered - and there aren't any missing steps.

B) Make a list of scenes that show the lead dealing with his emotional conflict. Again, at least 3-5 scenes will probably be required to show the problem, the character struggling with the problem, and then the character taking the steps to solve the problem, then the problem being solved. Again, you want to come up with as many scenes as you can so that you can select the *best* scenes.

C) Make a list of all of the ways the hero tries to solve the problem while avoiding their emotional conflict. These are Act 2 scenes - and part of B. But if you brainstorm them separately, you'll make sure you have enough scenes... and you can come up with some different and inventive scenes. We always want to make sure our scripts are filled with scenes we haven't seen before - so sometimes you have to work through a bunch of bad scene ideas to find the good ones.

D) Makes a list of all of the stuff that could go wrong in your story. These are physical conflict things that will probably go in Act 2. The physical struggle your protagonist deals with in your story. Sort of part of A - you want to figure out the absolute worst things that can happen to your hero in your story. Let your imagination run wild. New writers often try to protect their heroes, and that's *wrong*. You want to have the absolute worst things you can come up with happen to your hero - because that's conflict and that's interesting. It's obvious that you want things to go wrong in a drama or thriller or action flick or horror movie - those are the exciting scenes! But even if you are writing a comedy, the worst thing that can happen to your hero is fuel for humor. Think of all of the things that go wrong to our heroes in SUPERBAD... and all of those things are what is funny.

E) Make a list of all of the scenes you need to tell your plot. Though most of these scenes are probably covered in your other lists, sometimes your hero will need to gather information or do some other connect-the-dots stuff that may not be on your other lists. You want this list to give you the step-by-step for your plot - so that you can make sure one step leads logically to the next and you haven't left anything out.

Now you have a bunch of "menus" to work from. Just order off the menu. Come up with an outline using these scenes, where the conflict escalates. Combine scenes (one scene might be both a hero/villain conflict scene and a plot scene, plus have the hero try to solve the problem while avoiding their inner conflict). The key to screenwriting is combining different things into one scene that does the work of several scenes.

6) A step outline is easy - it's just putting the scenes in order. I take a lined sheet of paper or two and pick the really great scenes, then put them in story order. Hey, you're going to have a lot of arrows and cross-outs and stuff. That's okay. You're figuring out how the story works, organizing your thoughts. One thing leads to the next and that leads to the next.

7) Now I keep playing around with my outline until I've got the story right. You can write dozens of drafts of your screenplay trying to get the story right, or a dozen drafts of your outline. The outline takes less time. Here's where you want to make sure that one things leads logically to the next. You want to look for plot holes and characters who do things without motivation - and *fix them*. You also want to twist your plot at this stage - if you've seen a story work this way in some other movie, twist it! Find the unique road to your destination. The "playing around stage" is also where I try to find the best version of the scenes I've come up with - sometimes I can come up with a more unique and exciting scene once I know how the story comes together... and the details of the scene I always save for the first draft. Though I'm flexible when I'm writing the first draft, I want to have my *story* figured out, so that I can use my creative energy for all of the details. Solve your problems while you are still in outline - that is the *purpose* of an outline. Solving problems here saves a bunch of rewriting later. You don't want to waste time on rewrites for basic story issues, you want to spend rewrite time improving your script. Eventually you do a "final" version of your step outline that is the very best way the story can be told with all of the story, character motivation and logic problems solved.

8) I also try to figure out pacing in my outlines - get rid of slow spots and keep the story flying along. You want to make sure you have an exciting genre scene about every 10 pages - basically *within* those 10 pages. Make sure there are no slow spots in the story. There's a script tip here about your screenplay's heartbeat - you want your script to have a regular heartbeat with an exciting scene every 10 pages. If you are writing an action script, that will be an action scene every 10 pages. If you are writing a rom-com, you want a scene where your couple almost hooks up... then something goes wrong (that is funny) every 10 pages. If you are writing a horror movie, you want a scray scene every 10 pages. If you are writing a drama, you want a good meaty dramatic scene every 10 pages. You want your script to have that regular heartbeat - not die for 30 pages where nothing interesting or exciting happens. This is basic pacing - you want it built in, so that it is *organic to your screenplay* rather than have some scene forced into a slow spot later. Built in is alway better than tacked on.

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9) Around the same time as the outline, I do some other basic pre-writing... Sometimes I try to figure out what my acts MEAN. Each act tells its own little story, so I try to figure out what that story is, and how it ends. This will be tied into those two conflicts, with Act 2 being the character avoiding his emotional conflict and trying to find band-aid solutions to the outer conflict...and it only gets worse!

10) I often will do a little character bio. Not how they look, but WHO THEY ARE. You want to know their attitude, their personality, how they see the world and how the world sees them. The more I know about my characters before I write, the better my screenplay. I believe that stories are *about* characters, and the events (plot stuff) is there to bring their character to the surface. One of the biggest problems I see in scripts by new writers is that they didn't really know their characters. I usually hear the character's voices in my head before I write the script... but sometimes I will put pet words & phrases, unique sentence structures for this character, and other elements of speech in the character bio. You want every character to sound different, and that begins with knowing what makes every character in your script different.

11) One of the things I think about in the outline stage is how the audience is supposed to react to each scene - what they are supposed to be feeling. We are in the *emotion* picture business - you don't want the audience to just sit there, you want them to feel something. I often write notes on my outline that deal with the emotions & reactions I'm looking for - this helps to remind me when I write the scene. This isn't what your characters are feeling (though that is also important) but what you want the audience to be feeling.

12) Sometimes I do a 10 page treatment (story version). I find this helps me find hidden flaws in my outline, and really think about the characters. You might try this step or ignore it - whatever works best for you.

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13) Then I do that writing part - turning the outline into a screenplay. Though I try to solve all of the story problems in the outline, the outline is just a guide. If I come up with something better (that still fits the story I set out to tell) or find a more unique way to do a scene - I'm free to do that. The outline is flexible. What you don't want to do is go to all of the trouble to figure out how your story works with an outline, then throw it away and write something that doesn't work. There is a reason why every pro screenwriter I know outlines - it's a great way to solve problems and organize thoughts before you write 110 pages that don't work. As Terry Rossio (PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN) once noted over on Wordplay, some people's first drafts are part of their outline process. They write draft after draft until they find their story, then they write a few drafts to focus the script on that story. If that's the method that works best for you - go for it. But remember, once you figure out the story, you need to rewrite your script until it conforms to that story.

On a really good day of writing, the characters talk to me and I just take dictation...

14) On a really bad day, I may outline every page before I write it. Many years ago I wrote an article fro Script Magazine called THE JOB OF WRITING which explains my methods for fighting through bad days and still getting pages written. As a professional, usually with a deadline that can not be broken, I must write a certain number of pages every day, whether I feel like it or not. I suggest you try to write regularly so that you get in the habit of writing. As I've mentioned in other tips - if you write ONE PAGE every fay, you will have THREE first drafts by the end of a single year. When I had my day job at the warehouse, I averaged 3 scripts a year.

15) The more stuff I have figured out ahead of time, the more effort I can spend on making sure the dialogue and actions and characters are exciting and entertaining. I want to have plot problems solved before I start typing!

Good luck!

For even more on outlining your story or screenplay, including examples of how professional screenwriters outline, check out the OUTLINES & THEMATIC BLUE BOOK (below)!


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ACT TWO SOLUTIONS!

*** ACT TWO SECRETS *** - For Kindle!


Expanded version with more techniques to help you through the desert of Act Two! Subjects Include: What Is Act Two? Inside Moves, The 2 Ps: Purpose & Pacing, The 4Ds: Dilemma, Denial, Drama and Decision, Momentum, the Two Act Twos, Subplot Prisms, Deadlines, Drive, Levels Of Conflict, Escalation, When Act Two Begins and When Act Two Ends, Scene Order, Bite Sized Pieces, Common Act Two Issues, Plot Devices For Act Two, and dozens of others. Over 67,000 words (that’s well over 200 pages) of tools and techniques to get you through the desert of Act Two alive! Print version was 48 pages, Kindle version is well over 200 pages!

ONLY $4.99 - and no postage!


All About Endings!

bluebook

GRAND FINALES Blue Book!

The Perfect Ending For Your Story!

The First Ten Pages Of Your Screenplay Are Critical,
But What About The Last 10 Pages?

Creating the perfect ending to your story! This 100,000 word book shows you how to end your story with a bang, rather than a whimper. Everything from Resolution Order to Act Three Tools to Happy or Sad Endings? to How The Beginning Of Your Story Has Clues To The Ending (in case you were having trouble figuring out how the story should end) to Falling Action to How To Avoid Bad Endings to Writing The Perfect Twist Ending to Setting Up Sequels & Series to Emotional Resolutions to How To Write Post Credit Sequences to Avoiding Deus Ex Machinas, to 20 Different Types Of Ends (and how to write them) and much more! Everything about endings for your screenplay or novel!

Only: $4.99


NO KINDLE REQUIRED! Get the *free* app (any device, except your Mr. Coffee) on the order page on Amazon!


All About LOGLINES, TREATMENTS, and PITCHING!

bluebook

LOGLINES, TREATMENTS, and PITCHING! Blue Book!

Distilling Your Screenplay!

Loglines, Treatments, Pitching, Look Books, Pitch Decks, One Pagers, Rip-O-Matics?

You have written a brilliant 110 page screenplay, but how do you get anyone to read it? You need to distill it down into some form of verbal moonshine or story rocket fuel that will ignite that bored development executive or manager or agent and get them to request your screenplay. But how do you shrink those 110 pages into a 25 word logline or a 2 minute elevator pitch or a one page synopsis or a short paragraph? This 100,000 word book shows you how! Everything you need to know! From common logline mistakes (and how to solve them) to how your pitch can reveal story problems to the 4 types of pitches!

272 Pages - ONLY $4.99!


READY TO BREAK IN? bluebook

THE BUISINESS SIDE

*** BREAKING IN BLUE BOOK *** - For Kindle!


Should really be called the BUSINESS BLUE BOOK because it covers almost everything you will need to know for your screenwriting career: from thinking like a producer and learning to speak their language, to query letters and finding a manager or agent, to making connections (at home and in Hollywood) and networking, to the different kinds of meetings you are will have at Studios, to the difference between a producer and a studio, to landing an assignment at that meeting and what is required of you when you are working under contract, to contracts and options and lawyers and... when to run from a deal! Information you can use *now* to move your career forward! It's all here in the Biggest Blue Book yet!

Print version was 48 pages, Kindle version is over 400 pages!

$4.99 - and no postage!




hcd

FINAL DRAFT SOFTWARE

Use your creative energy to focus on the content; let Final Draft take care of the style. Final Draft is the number-one selling application specifically designed for writing movie scripts, television episodics and stage plays. Its ease-of-use and time-saving features have attracted writers for almost two decades positioning Final Draft as the Professional Screenwriters Choice. Final Draft power users include Academy, Emmy and BAFTA award winning writers like Oliver Stone, Tom Hanks, Alan Ball, J.J. Abrams, James Cameron and more. * * * Buy It!

copyright 2023 by William C. Martell


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SECRETS OF ACTION SCREENWRITING

bluebook IT'S BACK! SECRETS OF ACTION SCREENWRITING
Over 460 pages packed with tips and techniques. How to write a plot twist, the four kinds of suspense (and how to create it), reversals, ten ways to invent new action scenes, secrets and lies, creating the ultimate villain, five kinds of love interests, MORE! CLICK HERE!

CLASSES ON MP3

Class MP3s CLASSES ON MP3! Take a class on MP3! GUERRILLA MARKETING - NO AGENT? NO PROBLEM! and WRITING THRILLERS (2 MP3s). Full length classes on MP3. Now Available: IDEAS & CREATIVITY, WRITING HORROR, WRITING INDIE FILMS, more!
Take classes on MP3!

MY OTHER SITES

B MOVIE WORLD
Cult Films, Exploitation, Bikers & Women In Prison, Monster Movies.

FIRST STRIKE PRODUCTIONS
Producing my own scripts, investment possibilities, pipe dreams.

NAKED SCREENWRITING MP3s

Naked Class The NAKED SCREENWRITING CLASS ON MP3! The 2001 London Class on 8 MP3s! Recorded *live* the morning after the Raindance Film Festival wrapped. The two day class on 8CD worth, plus a workbook, plus a bonus CD.
The 2 Day Class on MP3!

ONLINE CLASSES
Furious Action Class
BILL'S CORNER

My nineteen produced films, interviews with me in magazines, several sample scripts, my available scripts list... And MORE!
...............................BILL'S CORNER


Available Scripts

E BOOKS PAGE

bluebook E BOOKS: New Blue Books and Novelettes!
I am expanding all of the Blue Books from around 44 pages of text to around 200 pages! Some are over 250 pages! See what is availabale and what is coming soon!Also, I've been writing Novelletes and there will soon be novels.
E BOOKS: BLUE BOOKS & NOVELLETES

BOOKLETS & PRODUCTS

bluebook FIRST STRIKE BLUE BOOKS
Each Blue Book is 48 pages and focuses on a different aspect of screenwriting. Dialogue. Visual Storytelling. Your First Ten Pages. Act 2 Booster. Protagonists. Great Endings.
Seventeen Blue Books now available!

THE SECRETS OF ACTION SCREENWRITING OUT OF PRINT!