A blog about screenwriting and things that are useful for screenwriters.
Inneresting
We're looking at examples of stories about characters who need money now! What makes a good story about a fundraiser?
We look at the overlap between the archetypes driving heroes and villains and announce the beginning of the Character Creator Kit Kickstarter!
Inneresting
What do we mean when we say characters fit an archetype? Is it something to avoid, or can writers leverage the stories that came before to create something new?
We answer the question about what's different between an Archetype and a Trope with help from Teenage Sex & Death at Camp Miasma.
Inneresting
What should writers know about depicting surveillance today—or in the future?
Aaron Sorkin is prolific. Even my friends who “don’t really know film” know Aaron Sorkin. That’s why it was so exciting to finally welcome him as a guest on this episode of Scriptnotes, with the debut of his new film, The Social Reckoning, right around the corner. The
Inneresting
Should we pooh-pooh the idea of Spooky Season? Is it better to have a big tent for stories about death, grief, and fear? And yes, Pumpkin Spice plays a role, too.
We take a deep dive into the character motivations of Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves to look at what happens when a protagonist keeps chasing the same MacGuffin, but changes why they pursue it.
Inneresting
You don't need a serial killer or a nuclear crisis to force characters to spend time stuck in a room. We're setting the table for dinner party storytelling in this week's Inneresting.
Useful Things for Writers
A writer can't insert a bully getting their comeuppance into a story and expect the audience to immediately cheer for the underdog. When does fighting back help satisfy a larger character goal, and when does it cause more complications to overcome?
What makes a bully believable to an audience? What responsibility do writers have to their audience when telling a story about bullying? We have an Inneresting think about this, and more, this week!
What inspires me most about Ryan Condal’s path to showrunning? Well, he really put in the work. And now, he’s at the helm of one of the most successful franchises ever: the Game of Thrones prequel, House of the Dragon. While Ryan was trying to break into the
What happens to the brain of someone who becomes famous, and how can writers use that to create more believable fictional famous characters?
Is there a wrong way to eat an Oreo cookie? Is there a specific order of operations for cleaning your bathroom? Why do some characters demand others agree with their opinions as if they were objective facts?
Crushes, obsessions, insecurities: Inneresting looks at things that pretend to be love in stories.
Courtney Kemp has the life, man. She created Power, one of TV's biggest franchises that solidified her as one of the industry's premiere showrunners. She co-created and ran Nemesis as part of her overall deal with Netflix, and now has a newer, shinier overall deal
Sometimes writers struggle to name their characters. This week's Inneresting collects some ideas that might make the job easier (from a certain point of view).
Looking for an example of characters surviving horrific monsters through making good choices? Attack the Block offers up an example.
Your audience deserves a better class of horror victim. How do we write smarter characters that can still find themselves on the business end of a machete?
David E. Kelley likes a courtroom. Who can blame him? He went to law school, his first writing job was on LA Law, and he created (among twenty other legendary TV series) The Practice, Boston Legal, Harry's Law, Presumed Innocent, The Lincoln Lawyer, and Ally McBeal. Even when
At what point does a monster become frightening for what they do instead of what they represent? Can writers find sympathy in a slasher?
