Screenwriting : Levelling up! by Stephanie Munch

I am going o sound like a (insert bad word). But I have more stories than I do anything else. My growth is in better ways to craft those stories. The language and mastery of that is my challenge. Story is part of my DNA now.

I learnt to overcome my need for perfection when I realised I couldn't move forward with anything as I needed to plan more than it took to finish the job. This was in a different industry, but I'm also applying it to screenwriting. I recommend Save the Cat by Blake Snyder, for me it gave me a structure to re-write all the areas that didn't meet his 'template'. His book is very much geared towards what Hollywood is looking for in the beat of a story. It's all there if you want to take from it and structure a story that the big studios will look at. I would rather follow a 'system' that worked for someone that has successfully sold screenplays and made a living from it than to be almost there and never having had any screenplay made. Every story should be told well and if it means telling it like in a way that studios would like to see it told, then I'm in. Give me a success under my belt and then I can dictate how I'd like to tell my story (ultimately, I still like the way Blake Snyder structures it!)

Same theory as 10,000 hours of any one skill to be average, make income as an occupation.

There's a best-selling self-help book, "Tipping Point..." goes into numbers, interviews ppl in different occupations and their common rise/fails.

You're welcome Xenia!

Craig, I love this idea that story becomes a part of you. I've been writing since a very young age but I had that to (un)learn a lot of things when I started screenwriting and sometimes I'd like to become better faster ;)

Greg: Save the cat is def. a must read for people like

me who need a structure and I totally agree, I've been reading a lot of screenplays from successful writers to understand how it works and I'm integrating the techniques little by little.

Dan: I didn't know this book and I just checked - thank you for mentioning it!

Tipping Point is a great read.

A great share Stephanie! I know many others that feel this same way. Keep at it!

Thank you Sam, I never surrender! :)

Stephanie Munch I like that idea of “our progress becomes evident project by project, gradually, and in contrast.”

When I look back at my early screenplays, there’s a sparsity in my language, I think because of two things:

1. Confidence (can I do this?)

2. Unfamiliarity with the form. (How can I do this?)

I started with the microscopic world of the victim, to a macroscopic worldview writer of multiple characters, worlds and plot-lines.

This isn’t from an outside influence or influencer, but it was apparent when I was at University studying Art History in Bristol (1987-90), where the ‘what’ wasn’t half as interesting as the ‘why’ or ‘how’ questions. Through the years of writing practice (“project by project”) I began to see a pattern - that this is who I am, it’s a character trait! Don’t fight it, embrace it. Use it.

Thank you Stephanie for posting this, it made so much sense, I've never realized it until I read it, Matt Gemmel, respect.

Great share, thank you!

You're welcome, it's comforting to know many writers experienced this frustration!

I wrote three of the worst screenplays ever. Then gave up for a few years or so. I was so frustrated how I just couldn't master it. Then I started back again after studying, breaking down scripts, etc. I wish I had not quit those years because I would've been so much further along. I'm now bac to writing again.

I'm glad you're back at writing Christopher! Sometimes yes it's frustrating but one thing is true, the ones who make it are the ones who didn't give up.

Thank you ,Stephanie. It is and takes a while to master it. Never give up or in.