Crafty Screenwriting: Writing Movies That Get Made
Crafty Screenwriting: Writing Movies That Get Made
- ISBN13: 9780805069921
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
Product Description
Crafty Screenwriting is the first book not only to offer a successful screenwriters tricks of the trade but to explain what development executives really mean when they complain that the dialogue is flat or the hero isnt likable. Smart, provocative, and funny, Hollywood insider Alex Epstein diagnoses problems that other screenwriting books barely address and answers questions that they rarely ask, like Why is it sometimes dangerous to know your characters too well before you start writing, or Why does your script have to be so much better than the awful pictures that get made every day? And as both a development executive who has accepted and rejected countless screenplays and a produced screenwriter, Epstein can take you into the heart of the most important question of all: Is this a movie? Crafty Screenwriting is a crucial book for anyone who has ever wondered what it takes to get their movie made.
This is good. Before you even write your first word, buy this and then read it.
I’ve been a professional writer (in advertising mind you) for ten years and have dabbled in screenplays many times – and I’m really over those `anyone can do this’ kind of books (everyone can’t).
This one tells it how it really is. What that means for you is that if you’re SERIOUS about writing a screenplay that deserves to be made and use even some of the advice in the book – it’ll be a better screenplay. (Might not get made, mind you, but it’ll definitely increase your chances.)
Best advice in the book? Don’t write a word until you’ve got a hook – and even then don’t write a word until you’ve talked your story through again and again. Brilliant stuff. And funny too.
Rating: 5 / 5
Crafty Screenwriting: Writing Movies That Get Made
I’ve been writing screenplays for three years now and do I wish I had this book when I started! I’ve read Trottier, Field and Walter-all of whom are very informative. This book goes farther than any of them. Epstein delivers more current and common sense application of the art form than I was able to see from the afore-mentioned authors. The emphasis on “The Hook” is worth the price of the book alone. Epstein has the ability to force you to really focus on the most important aspect of writing a story that SELLS. As he says, “what good is a screenplay unless it gets produced?” From writing the very difficult query letter to formatting your story, this book covers too many things to list here. Check it out! I encourage all aspiring screenwriters to find this gem and absorb the information. You’ll be glad you did.
Rating: 5 / 5
Crafty Screenwriting: Writing Movies That Get Made
Alex Epstein has written a book from the standpoint of a man who has been at both sides of the table – a scriptwriter and a development executive who spends time reading scripts. Using the experiences, he builds a solid, yet a very pleasant to read composition of succinct pieces of advice on how to write a screenplay that will get made.
Many people in the screenwriting biz seem to be in love with phrases. From writing gurus (“A good screenplay is a screenplay that doesn’t waste our time”, “Tell the story that has to be told”) to folks who read and evaluate screenplays (“It’s episodic”, “We don’t know enough about your hero”). The catch with all phrases is – they’re not useful to a writer. This book goes beyond those common idioms, avoids clichés, and tells you EXACTLY what you need to know.
E.g. “Hook (a.k.a. High Concept)” – all around the Internet you can find a definition: “A premise that can be depicted in a sentence or two”. But even such a structurally complex movie as “Magnolia” can be caught in one sentence; so again, the popular phrase is not telling us much. Going deeper from the evident confusion, Epstein successfully analyzes the entire “High Concept” problem by telling us what a good hook really is, why it is the most important part of the script, how to come up with a valid one, and finally – how to check out the quality of a chosen concept before you waste 6 months writing the script that won’t get read, let alone get made.
Combining humor with practical examples, the author finds the best path to the essence of all critical screenplay elements (structure, point of view, pacing, dialogues…) and makes them clear and easily comprehensible.
Along with the abovementioned, the book shows an equally significant blueprint of the working principles of Hollywood selling&buying script system.
Rating: 5 / 5
Crafty Screenwriting: Writing Movies That Get Made
I stumbled upon a website article by Alex Epstein where he was about to reveal what was needed to create a winning script, and was intrigued. I bought his book to find his answer – hook. I eagerly read on…
Only to find the same old information given in other screenwriting books, and often uninspired information (if you need this book to tell you how/where to find subject matter to write about, then give up the screenwriting game now). Overall, if I didn’t have a clue where to begin as a screenwriter, this book might be useful. But be forewarned, Epstein does a lot of telling you what you should do, and very little of how to do it.
To his credit, Epstein’s cynical voice makes for an entertaining read. Also, his section regarding the decoding of development execs notes was interesting.
If you have experience writing screenplays on any level higher than 101 and are looking for the smallest edge to help your work get noticed in a crowded marketplace, then you might not get a lot out of this book. If you are looking for some basic ideas on how to shore up your new found passion of screenwriting and make it more presentable, then this book might be for you.
Rating: 3 / 5
Crafty Screenwriting: Writing Movies That Get Made
It’s show business, folks. And in Alex Epstein’s book, “Crafty Screenwriting” the emphasis is on the word business. As someone who has been a development executive, Epstein reminds writers of the bigger picture: a screenplay is just one element in a deal. The screenplay doesn’t get made until a lot of other elements come together in a package that includes a producer, a director and the star and serious money. He urges the aspiring screenwriter to write his story with the goal of making it an effective selling tool, a catalyst to getting a deal done. Otherwise the chances of the script actually seeing the projector light in the darkness of a movie theater are slim to none.
And how to make the script an effective sales tool? First, says Epstein, it needs a great hook. A hook is the concept of the story in a nutshell that grabs attention and makes people want to know how it turns out. The marketing people come up with hooks called taglines to grab your attention when a movie is released. You need to come up with a hook to grab the attention of a Hollywood player to get the movie made.
Quite bluntly, Epstein says, “If your story does not have a hook, you are probably wasting your time writing the screenplay.”
So, how to come up with a hook? Epstein offers some suggestions, but like everything else in the creative process, there is no sure-fire formula. After the hook he discusses the title – “Your title is the most important phrase in your entire script”, the pitch, the query letter. At the end of the book is a chapter on getting an agent, getting copyright protetion for your work plus two appendices, one a sample option deal, the other a sample of screenplay pages properly formatted.
The bulk of the book is devoted to discussing the nuts and bolts of writing: plot, characters, action, dialogue, etc. Along the way he tilts at a few windmills; one section is titled “The Myth of the Three-Act Structure.”
Does Epstein have any new gems of insight about them that haven’t been revealed in a dozen other books? Not really, but if I had to recommend books on the particular topics of character, action and dialogue, this book would make my short list. Because he discusses the tried and true clearly and succintly with occasional twists of thought and turns of phrase that cast the tried and true in a new light in this reader’s mind. And throughout his discussion, he never loses sight of the goal: punching up the script to make it a more marketable property. As the subtitle of the book says: “Writing Movies That Get Made” — not just written.
If you’re interested in writing scripts as vessels in which to pour your heart, your soul, your unappreciated genius, the ultimate truth of being that only you comprehend — this book isn’t for you. But if you subscribe to the notion that screenwriting is a business as well as a craft, then this is a book you will profit from.
Rating: 5 / 5
Crafty Screenwriting: Writing Movies That Get Made