Screenwriting : Adapting/Novelizing your own work by Stephen Inniss

I've done this and am in process of doing it again. The trick is to realize the differences in the genres. For example, the first one I did I published as a novel. (If you want to see an excerpt, go to http://debbi.weitzell.com and click "Books") That one is historical fiction, based on a real person's life, so it had to develop chronologically. The screenplay is very different. It's basically a long action sequence with flashbacks as to how the character got to the point of the action. Something much more visually compelling than the book. The second came to me as a screenplay and I'm now writing the novel version. To do this, I have to get further into the character's head. I also have to do a lot more description of the scene settings, flesh out minor characters more, etc. In the process, I'm finding that the story is changing a little. Where their might have been a gaggle of "townspeople" in a background shot in the screenplay, I now have to hone in on a few, explain why they are there, and engage them in the story. Different animals, different writing styles, different outcomes.

I am currently writing a novel about an idea that was originally going to be a screenplay - which it will still be one day. The great thing about prose is that it gives you the opportunity to really develop your characters and know them inside out which is crucial if you want to write an outstanding screenplay...

Thanks for your insights. In this case I have a screenplay draft to work from so the broad strokes of the story are set up, though there will be lots of changes as the lore underpinning it wasn't clear in my mind when I first wrote it. The approach I've been developing has me basically writing two outlines simultaneously - one for the novel and one for the screenplay. I use color-coded index cards to see what's unique to each version. I'm excited by the opportunity that prose offers to explore both characters and the little nooks of the plot that inevitably get left behind in a screenplay.

I never limit my stories and characters to one genre... they often step onto different 'stages'. Sounds like you know what you're doing... best of luck with it all.

I´writing my first novel and my idea is to adapt it to a TV serie but at the same time I have an screenplay that was born as a short story and now, after the screenplay I´m thinking to write the novel... It´s crazy!

Eleonora, that sounds like the evolution of a lot of my projects these days.

What´s going on?

I always thought that screenplays make the best outlines for novels. I have done that to two of my screenplays. One of my novels "The Weeping Woman" was published as a novel by Sunbury Press. Another novel from one of my screenplays is being shopped around to agents. and I'm finishing up another novel based on one of my screenplays. Another screenplay I turned into a graphic novel that an artist is working on. Good luck.

I edited a book years ago for which the author let me have the rights to develop into a screen version. So as I was editing his work, I actually made most of my notes and almost wrote the script as I was editing. Very useful. Must go back and finish that script, even though the author has now met his maker... and I can't make contact with his family, it was a wonderful story about Africa. Don't know how I would ever get it sold or made, but for my own satisfaction, I need to finish the script.

I am currently writing a fantasy drama as both a television format and novel format :) Each is getting a different treatment, but it is highly engaging and fun. :)

I've been doing the same. Novels and screenplays each have their pros and cons. With a novel you can get deep into the central character, and all five senses are at your disposal. A screenplay is more of a detached observer of all the characters, and portrays only what those characters can see and hear. It's certainly challenging to translate one form into the other! That said, writing is a lifelong learning experience, so I like to think that working in multiple forms promotes growth as a writer. I think I'm seeing that result in my own work, anyway. :-)

When I adapted my screenplay into a novel, going deeper into character for the novel helped me go back and improve my screenplay. I love working in both formats. And if you really want to challenge yourself try a graphic novel. I completed one and an artist is working on it. So fun but damn hard

I've been doing that. My historical novel is now also in screenplay form. It got to the semifinals in a competition, so I have hope for it. I write for screen, and stage, novels and more. It also crosses boundaries in my head. It sounds like you think the same way.

I wrote a short story and short film version of the same story a few weeks ago, just for the experience. I did the screenplay first because I thought that it would be organized better that way--I'd have all the scenes, all the visuals, sound, etc. And that turned out to be the case. It didn't exactly come as a shock that I could (and needed to) get into the head of at least the main character in the short story, which really made both pieces feel very much like two different art forms. I highly recommend the experience, even for people who really only write screenplays. You already have the screenplay, so get started on the book. Worst case scenario is you finish the book and put it on Kindle--if the book goes anywhere it couldn't hurt your chances of selling the screenplay at all, and, of course, your story would be out there.

I have an screenplay that was born on a short story. It was written by me and I´ve made my own translation. The screenplay is different but based on the short story. (Please sorry my english. I´m learning and I am in level 5. Thank you)

I've turned two screenplays into novels. One already is published and the other is coming out in the spring. Screenplays are excellent outlines for novels. Then when I write the novel I may rewrite the screenplays because of themes or characters I added in the novel. They improve each other.