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That's quite a minimalist approach. I know you do prefer to be terse in your scripts -- (less is more) -- that's something I agree with more or less however I just picked up a book from Jim Mercurio who has a somewhat different take on this. (Haven't read it yet so I cannot comment) -- But your...

Using people we know personally is preferable, but how many do we really know capable of the sorts of acts described in our fantastic stories? Be they acts of horror or heroism -- This is why interviews such as those by Berkowitz are truly fascinating and useful to me. You see him today and you...

When I start writing a screenplay or story in general, I usually jump right in by outlining the story plot without much thought around character development; I usually add that in later. I am fast realizing this is like putting the proverbial cart before the horse. Seems to me I should first...

Im not too worried about the views... it is more of a fun hobby than anything else

Also, electrified perimeter fence or dead animal carcass to keep the animals away. Perhaps even trained attack dogs might also be an option if the wild animals are smart enough to identify the scarecrow tactics. That said, it would be interesting to know if your suggestions would actually work...

Sometimes, a gun cock and a shot in the knee work well together :) For a comedy skit I did awhile back

Shooting a round into the ceiling, that's a good start. Shooting the guy in the foot , now that's better :) I think Tommy would agree ... Spyder? Not so much hahah

This is definitely a spec script. Nice dialogue flow. Secondary headings actually make sense here as there's a lot going on in the house (bedroom, hall, kitchen, basement) in this scene. I have to watch the orphaned scene locations. Nice catch. Thanks!

Ahh.. I have stopped using CONT'D from advice given in another thread :) I actually don't like CONT'D and this is why I left it out, but maybe this is the best way...

Hi again, I have a question about breaking dialogue between two scene locations. Do we do it like this with ellipsis, or describe it all in the action lines without interrupting the dialogue? Also, is ellipses to be used here instead of double hyphens? I use -- for interruptions but this...

Good point about writing for themselves. That does affect the material I'm sure. Maybe the extra time spent on polishing up the screenplay is traded for the filmmaking aspects of the project. And even then, preparation can be quite varied between filmmakers since not all directors prepare the...

Hi, I have a question about the use of semi colons, commas, newlines and double dashes to separate text within action lines. What are some general guidelines used by writers with respect to these? Take this snippet from No Country For Old Men ... The placement of -- when introducing Anton...

*Sigh* The poll was my attempt at sarcasm. In fact if you people looked close enough at that poll I pasted, you would have realized it was based on 12 entrants LOL. Of course polls are ridiculous. I consider myself a contrarian so accepting anything on the basis of consensus is not how I...

Yes ... :)

Yeah well .... https://www.debate.org/opinions/is-a-screenplay-harder-to-write-than-a-novel Anyone can right a novel. Not anyone can write a screenplay. Check out "The Martian" by Andy Weir. It's literally verbal diarhea for 300, He just started writing and made it up as he went along...

If this were put to a poll, I wonder if you would be the exception :)

Most choose screenplays over books because they love film over books. I am sure newbies think there isn't much to it at first, but given the constraints imposed on writing good screenplays, they soon figure out just how tough it is. I agree with this, but not for the reasons you state; it is...

Yeah, too many ORANGES, not enough APPLES ...

Selling rights, YES, but having clout as a bargaining chip (which I think your premise is) is what I am saying "perhaps" to... Both Stallone (with his Rocky script) and Palminteri (with his Bronx Tale script) were virtual unknowns in the industry and yet had some power in negotiating the terms...

Perhaps this is true. Another thing I have noticed is the divergence in terms of "publishable" works between screenwriters and book authors. A successful book author (and there are many) will have produced an impressive collection of books over their career, while the same cannot be said for...