On Demand

How To Write a Killer Psychological Thriller Filled With Twists, Turns & Suspense

Taught by Steve Desmond

$49.00

Taught by

Steve Desmond

Screenwriter (KNOCK AT THE CABIN, TRANSFORMERS ONE), Filmmaker

Summary

Learn from the writer of M. Night Shyamalan KNOCK AT THE CABIN and TRANSFORMERS ONE!

With case studies of PSYCHO, THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS AND SE7EN!

If you're paying attention to the trades and seeing which screenplays and projects are being sold and produced, you know that psychological thrillers are highly in demand. With films like SALTBURN, MISSING, THE KILLER, JOHN WICK: CHAPTER 4 and many more, the industry sees the upside of keeping the audience on the edge of their seat. But the art of writing a psychological thriller is one of vulnerable characters, deep secondary characters, memorable set pieces, set ups, reversals, and earned twists and turns. There's a formula to it all, and those who master these skills win the day.

Writing a psychological thriller and creating and maintaining suspense and high stakes throughout takes an immense understanding of the history of the genre. It's a genre based in Hitchcockian roots. One that needs to have certain elements in order to be effective to keep the audience involved, engaged and on the edge of their seat. While most psychological thrillers start off with a well thought out premise, that's all they have. The action starts quickly and then falls flat. In many other cases, the premise is in place, but the writer or filmmaker doesn't know how to get past the jumping off point. You must get your hook in place quickly - within your first five pages - and that takes skill. You need to truly create compelling characters, especially protagonist and your villain, and make them layered in order to support your theme and plot and to assure the audience always knows and is invested in the stakes. To be truly successful at getting your reader's attention, keep those pages turning and set yourself up for an offer of representation, an option, a sale, or financing, you need to understand all of the nuances that make a great suspenseful story before you type (or read) FADE IN.

A longtime member of Stage 32, Steve co-wrote KNOCK AT THE CABIN, which was directed by M. Night Shyamalan and released theatrically by Universal Studios. It opened at # 1 at the box office, and subsequently #1 on VOD on Peacock. Steve is one of the writers on the Transformers franchise prequel, TRANSFORMERS ONE starring Scarlett Johansson and Chris Hemsworth, which will be released in theaters in by Paramount Pictures. His screenplays have been voted onto the prestigious industry Black List four times, including THE SATURDAY NIGHT GHOST CLUB which he is attached to direct with Brad Fuller (A QUIET PLACE) producing. He sold his sci-fi adventure screenplay, HARRY’S ALL-NIGHT HAMBURGERS, to Warner Bros in a bidding war, with Oscar nominated producer Andrew Lazar attached. His short film, MONSTERS, that he wrote and directed, has amassed over two million views online and screened in over 100 film festivals worldwide, winning 46 awards.

Needless to say, thrillers and suspense are in Steve's blood and the focus of all his writing. And now he's bringing all he's learned along the way to you.

Steve will help you build your suspense from the ground up. He'll teach you the ultimate tool you need - the Hitchcock Ticking Clock Method which will help you on your way to setting the vital groundwork for your story. You'll learn how to create a compelling protagonist and an enticing villain. Steve will give you exercises you can use to craft your own characters and give you 5 must have tips on backstory and character confessions to give depth. You'll learn how to hook your reader in the first 5 pages and what the 3 different teasers you can write for your opening. You'll explore the power of murder in your script and the art of a twist ending. He will show you how to craft your script with producers in mind to give yourself the best chance to have your material attractive to the widest audience possible.

Steve will go over how you can incorporate visuals into your story and break down case studies of:

PSYCHO
THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS
SE7EN

And, finally, Steve will share some advice on how to get your script on the screen by writing it in a producible budget. You will have a fully immersive experience from a suspense expert that will leave you excited, inspired and confident to tackle your next psychological project.

PRAISE FOR STEVE:

This webinar was AWESOME!!! I just finished a thriller and now as a result of listening to Steve Desmond, I am ready to do a re-write which I believe will be one of the best screenplays I have ever written. Let's see what happens!

- Michelle C.

What a thrilling and insightful webinar, excellent!!

- Kathleen W.

Super helpful information that you don't find in books!

- Pamela C.

Very useful information - well structured and clearly presented!

- Sara C.

What You'll Learn

The Differences Between a Thriller and a Mystery
- Do you want to create intellectual suspense or emotional suspense?
Breaking Down the Hitchcock Ticking Clock Method
- Surprise vs. Suspense
How to Create a Compelling Protagonist
- How to write to identify with your main character
- Writing laws to abide by
- Layered elements you need when writing your protagonist
How to Create an Enticing Villain
- Professional writing tools to better understand your villan
- Exercises to craft your villain
- Identifying and avoiding pitfalls
5 Tips to use Backstory and Character Confessions
How to Hook the Reader’s Attention Early
- What needs to be in our first 5 pages
- Overview of 3 types of teasers to write
The Power of Murder in Your Script
- Understanding what each death means
- Innovative ways to kill someone
The Art of the Twist Ending
- How to plant seeds
- How to relate the twist to plot, theme and character
Visuals Of Your Story
- Having your style match your substance
- How to incorporate tone
- How to incorporate directing
Case Studies: Breaking Down the Anatomy of a Suspense Scene
- The Silence of the Lambs
- Se7en
- Psycho
Getting Your Script on the Screen: How to Write Within a Producible Budget
- Professional tricks to make your script desirable to a producer
- Ideal script length
- Tricks to keep the story enticing, but costs down
Q&A with Steve

Who Should Attend

Screenwriters looking to perfect their psychological thriller script.
Screenwriters who want to branch into the thriller genre.
Authors who want to learn how to write a psychological thriller or adapt their current thriller into a screenplay.
Screenwriters looking to add some suspense to their scripts.
Writer/Directors who are looking to bring a psychological thriller to the screen
Directors who want a deeper understanding of the breakdown of a psychological thriller.
Producers interested in working on psychological thrillers.
Playwrights who want to move into the thriller space.

Executive

Steve Desmond

Screenwriter (KNOCK AT THE CABIN, TRANSFORMERS ONE), Filmmaker at

A longtime member of Stage 32, Steve co-wrote KNOCK AT THE CABIN, which was directed by M. Night Shyamalan and released theatrically by Universal Studios. It opened at # 1 at the box office, and subsequently #1 on VOD on Peacock. Steve is one of the writers on the Transformers franchise prequel, TRANSFORMERS ONE starring Scarlett Johansson and Chris Hemsworth, which will be released in theaters in fall 2024 by Paramount Pictures. His screenplays have been voted onto the prestigious industry Black List four times, including THE SATURDAY NIGHT GHOST CLUB which he is attached to direct with Brad Fuller (A QUIET PLACE) producing. He sold his sci-fi adventure screenplay, HARRY’S ALL-NIGHT HAMBURGERS, to Warner Bros in a bidding war, with Oscar nominated producer Andrew Lazar attached. His short film, MONSTERS, that he wrote and directed, has amassed over two million views online and screened in over 100 film festivals worldwide, winning 46 awards. Steve is represented by APA and Ziffren-Brittenham LLP.