Screenwriting : Written Letters? by Donell Jones

You can put it in, generally in the format of an Insert.

Thank you very much Pierre.

I second Pierre advice. INSERT.

You're right, Patricia, there are many different ways to convey the content of something that is written and it's really only limited by your imagination and this industry does like it if you can come up with something unique.

I agree with Patricia. I would use the voice of the person that left the letter... at least that is how I normally do it.

I did something similar in a high drama I wrote. A teenage mother died before he gets home from school and I wrote it as if the teen was envisioning his mother speaking to him in life. Some great points from everyone here.

You have a few different choices. Just off the top of my head. (1) You can withhold the information from the audience; let us see his expression; and then later relay the information to another character. Keep us guessing a bit, if that's possible within the context of your story. (2) You can just let him read the letter to himself, and then he can maybe call a friend and say "parents are gone for the weekend - party time!", for example. (3) He can read the letter, and we can hear his mother or father's voice saying what he's reading, or both of them saying it in an alternating fashion. (4) Showing the letter on screen? It better be a short letter in big, big letters. That would be hard to read on a smart phone, you know. (5) He can convey the meaning of the letter in a dialogue that responds to the letter, like "you're leaving me alone for the weekend? It's party time!", for example. The best choice probably is based on the intent of the letter. If his parents are abandoing him forever, hearing their voices is probably the best way to go. If they're just taking off for the weekend, I'd go with #5 and follow it up with #2, probably. If they're saying "as parents, we quit!", I'd go with #4. Good luck!

David Trottier, in his book, The Screenwriter's Bible, gives this example: "Use the INSERT only when it is important to draw special attention to the item you want to highlight. In the case of a letter or a document with a lot of text, you may wish to use the INSERT as follows. INT. LIMO - NIGHT As Sylvester steps into the limo, the chauffeur hands him a letter and bats his eyes like an ostrich. CHAUFFEUR Your wife, sir. Sylvester tears the letter open as the door SLAMS shut. INSERT - THE LETTER, which reads: “Dearest Darling Sylvester, I am leaving for Loon City to start a turkey ranch. Don’t try to follow, my peacock, or I’ll have your cockatoo strangled. There’s plenty of chicken in the refrigerator. I love you, you goosey duck. Your ex-chick, Birdie” BACK IN THE LIMO Sylvester smiles like the cat that ate the canary. Trottier, David (2014-02-25). The Screenwriter's Bible, 6th Edition: A Complete Guide to Writing, Formatting, and Selling Your Script (Expanded & Updated) (Kindle Locations 3649-3655). Silman-James Press. Kindle Edition.

You can see more from Trottier on his facebook page. I signed up for a monthly newsletter that I love (via moviemagic).

Thanks all you guys, their all good helpful advice that can now keep my story going

You got this, Donell, my friend, you got this!

I have a play LETTER OF A SOLDIER that I have written based on a Fictional Letter that I published on memorial day, and the letter and the poem is integrated through out the play. The ideas and thoughts corresponding to the events of the play. You could do the same thing, except back flashing to the writing of the letter or segments of the letter leading into the story telling of the events. I hope this helps Gavion E. Chandler~ 'Man is his own devil.'

I have found "The Screenwriter's Bible" by David Trottier a great reference for these types of formatting questions.

There is a famous play - Love Letters by A.R. Gurney, that is only letters. I think you're good to go!