Jessica Lindly

Ive been writing poetry forever but now I have started on a script for a movie that is based on my life's experiences-anyways, I am having a hard time trying to reduce the number of characters and keep the plot from being so "busy". I have just never written a play or a script and I haven't even read one that wasn't old (like shakespeare-in school). Anyone got any advice? [color=darkblue]

lisajane

Hi Jessica.

One - how many characters have you got at the moment?

Two - what's the plot?

If you go looking for books on scriptwriting in libraries, you'll find scripts of more recent movies (last twenty or so years) that can give you an idea of how to go about it. You can also try http://www.dailyscript.com for online scripts. They've also got some great links to other script, screen and movie sites that might help you.

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Novicewriter

I do have a question regarding screenplays. I've looked at a few of the scripts online and have noticed there is more description than others. Is it totally necessary to describe what a room looks like or can you just give a general overview? Just wondering is all.

NW

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mammamaia

jessica...
if you haven't ever read a script, how on earth do you think you can write one?... you need to get a good how-to or two, and to download several scripts by the best screenwriters... screenwriting is the most specialized aspect of the writer's art and takes years to get good enough at to turn out a marketable script... first, you need to be a good writer... then, you need to learn the basics of the craft...

your question about setting description is too broad for a one-size-fits-all answer... email me with an example you need help with and i'll be happy to deal with it properly...

you can also email me for a 'tools of the trade' list and help/info/advice on any/all aspects of writing for the stage or screenwriting, since a large percentage of those i mentor are aspiring screenwriters...

love and hugs, maia
maia3maia@hotmail.com

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lisajane

I think that depends on whether the contents of the room is important to the plot and scene. Is the description of the room important to the bigger picture? If not, I think just a general overview would be sufficent.

__________________
'Beauty stands and waits with gravity to start her death-defying leap. And he, a little charleychaplin man, who may or may not catch her fair eternal form spreadeagled in the empty air of existence.' - Laurence Felinghetti, 'The Acrobat'

mammamaia

you do need to give some description of the setting under each slug line... and, as lisajane notes, how much and how detailed depends on how important it is to the plot...

but, a setting description can also tell us what we need to know about a character, so it's important for that reason, too...

if a guy's bedroom is tiny, cramped, messy, what does that tell us about him?... or, if it's huge, sparsley furnished and immaculate, with the few furnishings bare of all personal touches, what will think of him then?

if a house is a mansion, it can either be in perfect shape, showing us the people who live there are wealthy, or it can be rundown, with most of the rooms closed off, telling us the residents are down on their luck, or just squatters...

see what i mean?

__________________
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"You must BE the change you wish to see in the world." Gandhi

Quantum Loser

I don't use much description at all. There simply is no plot.

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