Screenwriting : Turning a book into a feature length screenplay by Leon Kelly, Jr.

When I first started writing seriously, I dove right in and spent four years writing three novels. Never got them published, but I learned a lot from the experience. When I got into screenwriting, I figured, why reinvent the wheel by coming up with new stories when I had three developed stories sitting there on my hard drive? Naively, I thought, hey, no problem, I'll just copy and paste the dialogue into the script, write some action descriptions and badda boom, bada bing, instant screenplay. Oh, brother was I in for a rude awakening. The first draft came in at about 320 pages. After months of painful cutting, I got it down to 180 and couldn't see where else to cut. I was stuck for weeks until I bit the bullet, cut out scenes and characters I didn't think I could live without and finally arrived at 120 pages. Still a bit long, but on the ragged edge of viability. I spent a few more months rewriting until I had something I liked. I sent it off to the Zoetrope Screenplay Contest, and was happily surprised when it came in as a quarterfinalist. This being the first screenplay I'd ever written, I was pretty happy and used that encouragement to fuel my writing for the next couple of years. P.S.- A year or so after I'd written that script, I went back and looked at it again and was shocked to see how overwritten the dialogue and action was. I did another draft and tightened it up considerably.

Working on something similar right now. It work fine as long as you're willing to change things around a bit. In a movie, you're not the star. And never let the truth get in the way of a good story.

I actually just launched a new novel/adaptation notes service at No BullScript so I do have some tips... First, think of the screenplay as being inspired by the book - not a straight adaptation. Keep the concept and the world but find the Cinematic hook - which may be different than your literary hook - and make sure your structure & scenes are exploiting that hook. Look at the story from a POV other than your own. it may help you gain perspective on the conflict driving your story. And lastly, with memoirs...there is a HIGH bar set in turning those into films. What works in a memoir often doesn't make for an exciting film bc its not about telling a story everyone feels they understand. Its about writing story that no one else has experienced. Autobiopics are extremely rare. You have to know what makes your story a MOVIE. if you do want some help & guidance, let me know! good luck!

Wow!!! Thanks, Phil, Stuart, and Danny! You guys have provided some great advice. Now, it is up to me to do something with it. I can definitely add on the drama. LOL. Danny, I may be calling on you soon! Thanks, again, guys!

Hi Leon, you should also consider your market. Will you be aiming for the studio marketplace, or will you self-finance the project as an indie film? Almost every biopic is centered around a character who has been involved in a major newsworthy event. For example, even though very few people had ever heard of Erin Brockovich, she was involved in a newsworthy, cinematic event, i.e. the largest settlement ever paid in a direct-action lawsuit in US history. If you haven't been the key player in a major newsworthy event, it is very important to consider how you will get the movie financed. Heck, even people who are globally well-known may not have an easy time getting a movie made about them. Maybe a fictional approach is more market-friendly.

Regina, I have been away from Stage 32 for quite some time. So, I’m just seeing your comments. It is sound advice. For now, I have decided against doing the memoir-to-screenplay project and have instead completed another book, which I also self-published. However, I plan to finish a few screenplays I started quite some time ago. Thank you so much for the advice! Happy New Year!