Sold it! My screenplay--finalized deal this week!

Good luck with your treatment, sounds really interesting. Lets hope they think so too.
You're giving us a lot of great info, its much appreciated.
I'm pretty sure I'm classified as a Fetal Writer, so Typical sounds pretty damn good to me, congratz.
 
Kyle,

Congrats from a sceenwriting newbie. I just started to take screenwriting seriously about two weeks ago. Right now I'm trying to create good habits before I take up any bad ones. As always, the best way to do that is thru research. In that regard, your advice in this thread, and what I've read of your Story Elements pdf, has been very helpful. Two weeks ago I began with Syd Field and Robert McKee (Story is fantastic, with some much-appreciated openmindedness on plot structure among other things) and now I'll continue with your "book" and Dara Marks' "Story Inside."

Once I've consumed those, I plan on studying screenplays of movies that I love, thinking about how they express theme and work structurally. Then, since I'm an aspiring filmmaker/cinematographer, I'm going to go scene by scene, reading it, imagining how I might compose/light/direct it, and then watching the scene from the completed work. I think I'll try this first with the Hitchcock films I haven't seen so I can't "cheat" by remembering the scene. It seems like Hitch would be great for this purpose. And, of course, I'll be reading the other screenwriting books all the while (minus Blake Snyder--I tried reading the second Save the Cat book and I found him to be incredibly annoying. Am I alone here? Maybe I should try the first one...)

Sound like a good starting point? Any advice from Kyle or anyone else would be appreciated.
 
Sounds like you're on the right track.

A few additional suggestions off the top of my head...

Read lots and lots of screenplays. Particularly those that were Oscar worthy (won or received a nod) and any from the AFI Top 100 Movies list (that you find palatable). Just a place to start.

You can also use the Top Box Office of All-Time list, if you'd like, depending on your goals.

And don't forget the WGA's list of 101 Greatest Screenplays (w/links)... here.

http://www.simplyscripts.com/wga_top_101_scripts.html

You can find free copies of screenplays all over the internet. Whatever you do, don't buy them unless you can't find the one you want or question an online script's authenticity/accuracy (because of draft #).

After years of reading several hundred screenplays, I developed a style very similar to Akiva Goldman's. An observation of little significance, by itself, but still it gave me a needed boost of confidence.

Next...

Study the screenwriting gurus (classes/courses, books, DVDs, etc.) that we all know so well. Eventually you'll develop a hybrid approach to screenwriting, taking bits and pieces from each to come up with your own unique style.

Nothing ground-breaking here, I know.

Prepare. Prepare. Prepare. Write. Write. Write. Get your vomit draft done. Now you're ready to get down to the real work.

Maybe join a screenwriting group to get feedback on your work. Never underestimate the importance of feedback. It could save you from wasting weeks or months on a project.

Train your analytical eye on people and all their psychology.

And most importantly, if you remember nothing else, remember this: Overnight success usually takes 15 years. Screenwriters making it today have been, on average, working it to the bone for more than a decade. Long ago I read somewhere that most of the successful screenwriters in Hollywood had to write 9 features before they sold the one that launched their career.

Persistence pays--and it pays BIG.

I'm sure I forgot a whole bunch of important stuff but I'm still at work and anxious to get out of here!
 
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Congrats! I'm sure this is just the start of great things to come.
Thanks so much for sharing the PDF, it will be a big help to me.

Cheers to you!
 
This is extremely exciting, well done man! That's the dream, selling the screenplay and cashing a large check. That's a pretty sweet check, LOL.

As far as money buying / not buying happiness, I'm siding with the editor. Money DOES buy happiness, at least if you're already a fairly happy person. I'm a very happy person in general, I don't get lonely when I'm alone, I revel in my own affairs and have fun living my life. But without the money I have, I wouldn't be pursuing my goal of filmmaking. I'd be in a more "realistic" job. It's because I have a nice financial safety net that I can take risks and put myself in a position to get somewhere. I wouldn't have been able to spend good money on my reel if I didn't have it, either, and that money frees me to show my creativity and ability through real work rather than trying to tinker around with amateur home videos and hope someone "discovers" me through unprofessional work.

You can't seriously argue that if someone gave you $200 million that wouldn't make you pretty freakin' happy! If someone gave me $100,000 even, I'd be really stoked. It wouldn't change my life at all, but it might give me a bit of peace of mind. If I got $10 million, though, I'd immediately be a force in the film industry. I could buy a $3 million studio space outright, build it up with grip and lighting equipment, create 3-5 editing suites inside of it, etc. and name it JLB Studios or whatever, and any time I wanted to film a music video or commercial or whatever I'd have my own studio. And I wouldn't have to care whether it made a bunch of money or not because I'd have plenty left anyway.

When people say money is evil, I really assume those people are fools. I majored in philosophy in college, too, I'm a philosopher at heart, and I still don't understand that logic. Money buys you freedom! The freedom to do what you want to do, travel where you want, pursue whatever goals amuse you, take care of friends in need, and live a lifestyle that is satisfying.

I think it goes without saying that if you're a miserable, depressed person money won't make you happy because you're just not a happy person. But I can guarantee if you handed me $200 million tomorrow I would be a very, very happy person for a long time. The only thing more important than money might be your health, because you can't very well enjoy money without health. Besides that, fame and power are as important as money, but money can buy both so that's not really a problem.
 
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kyle wrote:

Study the screenwriting gurus (classes/courses, books, DVDs, etc.) that we all know so well. Eventually you'll develop a hybrid approach to screenwriting, taking bits and pieces from each to come up with your own unique style.
Click to expand...

Exactly. You simply have to read and absorb what you take to and then make it your own. I use a mixture of SAVE THE CAT, HERO'S JOURNEY (and now SEQUENCE METHOD). Do find a link here where I mixed both CAT & HERO.

http://messageboard.donedealpro.com/boards/showthread.php?t=35307

EJ
 
JonathanLB said:
This is extremely exciting, well done man! That's the dream, selling the screenplay and cashing a large check. That's a pretty sweet check, LOL.

As far as money buying / not buying happiness, I'm siding with the editor. Money DOES buy happiness, at least if you're already a fairly happy person. I'm a very happy person in general, I don't get lonely when I'm alone, I revel in my own affairs and have fun living my life. But without the money I have, I wouldn't be pursuing my goal of filmmaking. I'd be in a more "realistic" job. It's because I have a nice financial safety net that I can take risks and put myself in a position to get somewhere. I wouldn't have been able to spend good money on my reel if I didn't have it, either, and that money frees me to show my creativity and ability through real work rather than trying to tinker around with amateur home videos and hope someone "discovers" me through unprofessional work.

You can't seriously argue that if someone gave you $200 million that wouldn't make you pretty freakin' happy! If someone gave me $100,000 even, I'd be really stoked. It wouldn't change my life at all, but it might give me a bit of peace of mind. If I got $10 million, though, I'd immediately be a force in the film industry. I could buy a $3 million studio space outright, build it up with grip and lighting equipment, create 3-5 editing suites inside of it, etc. and name it JLB Studios or whatever, and any time I wanted to film a music video or commercial or whatever I'd have my own studio. And I wouldn't have to care whether it made a bunch of money or not because I'd have plenty left anyway.

When people say money is evil, I really assume those people are fools. I majored in philosophy in college, too, I'm a philosopher at heart, and I still don't understand that logic. Money buys you freedom! The freedom to do what you want to do, travel where you want, pursue whatever goals amuse you, take care of friends in need, and live a lifestyle that is satisfying.

I think it goes without saying that if you're a miserable, depressed person money won't make you happy because you're just not a happy person. But I can guarantee if you handed me $200 million tomorrow I would be a very, very happy person for a long time. The only thing more important than money might be your health, because you can't very well enjoy money without health. Besides that, fame and power are as important as money, but money can buy both so that's not really a problem.
Click to expand...

Money buys you the chance to quit your job and focus on writing.

EJ
 
SHAWNEOUS wrote: Kyle, thanks for posting this. I don't even know you and yet you've inspired the hell out of me. I work a day job and I've been learning script writing for 5 years now. You've just done what I'd kill to do. So enjoy it :-). To help me I recently found a truly successful screenwriter (77 screenplays sold, 29 produced) to learn from (she reads my scripts and guides me). So I'll make it eventually, but stories like me remind me that people make it.


Beat sheets & treatments, IMO, are an absolute must. I didn't always think so, and my writing suffered. Why waste time on these things? Because they force you to know and develop the WHOLE story before you ever write FADE IN. Saves you a lot of headaches in the long run.

SHAWNEOUS, does your mentor use a different approach?

I guess what it comes down to is whatever works best for you. My brain has a very limited capacity; there's no way I could ever remember all the details of a story, especially early on, when a blank page is staring back at me. And given the density of obligatory material in ACT1, and all the requirements of the Set-Up, I would fail miserably every time.


BTW--here are several treatment samples for your viewing pleasure:
http://www.simplyscripts.com/treatments.html

... and attached is one we all know quite well.
 

Attachments

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kylekmd said:
[
I when a blank page is staring back at me. And given the density of obligatory material in ACT1, and all the requirements of the Set-Up, I would fail miserably every time.



http://www.simplyscripts.com/treatments.html
Click to expand...


I like that. Act I sometimes feels like paint by numbers, so formulaic and constraining.
Not always easy to make things feel fresh and new when you're setting up scaffolding for the rest of the story.
 
Kyle wrote: Read lots and lots of screenplays. Particularly those that were Oscar worthy (won or received a nod) and any from the AFI Top 100 Movies list (that you find palatable). Just a place to start.

OK EVERYONE--

Here's a zip file containing 157 AWARD-WINNING and OTHER NOTABLE screenplays (all pdf files) for your reading pleasure.

I promise... if you read these, you'll undoubtedly become a better screenwriter. Most would-be screenwriters fail to realize how important it is to read as many produced scripts as possible.

And, to make it interesting, let's pose a challenge to our screenwriting family here at DVXuser... let's see who can read all 157 screenplays (fully focused reads, not just quick scans--or else you won't benefit from the experience) within the next 4-6 months. Or maybe just read 100. Once you've successfully completed the task, post your accomplishment on this thread. You'll be part of an elite group (Century Club).

Why is this important? Because a few years ago I read somewhere (Fade In, maybe?) that most would-be screenwriters read no more than 12-15 scripts before they submit their first feature screenplay, which invariably ends up in the reject pile. They read dozens of How-To books and take all the requisite Guru courses, spending hundreds or thousands of dollars, but never study the finished product--THE SCREENPLAY. If this applies to you, you're setting yourself up to fail.

And, yes, I know, it would be nice if the file were an even 200 scripts, but we can work on that later, as a group.

Here it is... ENJOY!

http://files.filefront.com/SCRIPTSzipzip/;10063744;/fileinfo.html

104 MB
 
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Kyle - first off congrats on your success! I love reading these types of stories.

Secondly, thanks so much for taking the time to post all of this. I'm not a writer by any means but its always interested me and all of this info has been great. I'm downloading the scripts right now. Should be a good read!
 
Downloading now. I haven't really put pen to paper in a while so ready a few scripts will do me the world of good. Thanks a lot.
 
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