Syd Field's book Screenplay

Matthew R. Rodwell

Matthew R. Rodwell

Well-known member
So I finally decided to pick up Syd Field's Screenplay after seeing the title pop up in many threads on this forum and I must say that it was money well spent. I read the 309 pages in a single sitting and I will be reading it again very soon. This book has really motivated me to start writing again. I have had so many ideas cramed in my brain, its time to start putting them down on paper.

I know this has been said many times in the forum but if you are looking for a book on screenwriting pick this one up.
 
Syd Field's book is a classic. I've read way too many screenwriting books but the one I recommend the most these days is Blake Snyder's "Save the Cat." He avoids the technical/acedemic lingo of so many books and his beat sheet is really golden. It really buids on Field's book. In fact, I think the two of them have done or will be doing a seminar together. The key thing for all of us is to sit in a chair everyday and write our screenplay. If you write three pages a day you'll have a feature done in a little over a month.

Last month I started a blog on screenwriting called Screenwriting from Iowa that is geared for writers in that great land between New York and LA know simply as fly-over country. The blog I posted yesterday is called "Everthing I learned in film school..." that I hope some of you find helpful.
 
Last edited:
I will have to pick up that Blake Snyder book. I grabbed a copy of The Screenwriter's Bible to help me with formatting but I haven't had a chance to read that one yet.

I work a security job where I get paid to entertain myself on the computer for 8 hours a day so writing really helps pass that time. I was even able to install Celtx on my work computer :D
 
The interesting thing about screenplays is that it's not that hard to tell people how to write one, but actually doing it is another thing.
 
"Story" by Robert McKee. A lot more detail than Sid and Blake, a bit more on psychology and its impact on story type...

Bob
 
"Story" by McKee is more detailed than Sid and Blake and that's why new writers should avoid it. He is one of the most intelligent people to talk about how and why story works. But he tends overwhelm (even intimidate) new writers. He's that PhD type who impresses you with his knowledge and leaves you understanding that you have a long way to go. Blake is more the cheerleader/ friend who is saying take your ideas and go write...and here are few things that will help you a long the way.
I've learned more from McKee than anyone, I just think his book and seminar are better after you've written two or three scripts. (But don't ask Joe Eszterhas what he thinks of McKee.)

The key thing about all of these guys is to look beyond them and focus on your writing and your screenplays.
 
I'd say the two best books on screenwriting and story structure are The Writer's Journey, by Christopher Volger and Save The Cat, by Blake Snyder. Screenplay, by Syd Field comes in third for me.
Best
Victor
 
Yeah Voglers book is great see if you can pick up the second edition though the third/new one is a little indulgent.

We had to buy a writing adaptations book, I don't have the title on hand but will try find it. That one is staying on my shelf as well.
 
I've read Field, McKee- which I loved and have re-read several times. But my favorite is Linda Seger's Making a Good Script Great.
 
I've read all of Seger's books and really like her book "Making a Good Script Great." Whoever said on this site that writing a good script is the hard part is 100% correct. But get the foundations down and keep working on it. It's not uncommon for screenwriters to write 6 to 10 before one gets produced. It's a process.
 
I think Blake and Syd will get you to the Hollywood Cliché level while Robert McKee will give you insight to get you into real creative storycrafting.

Blake's book is tops for basic structure, and his 110 page format should be followed as closely as possible. But when it comes to the actual creative process it's a bit thin. This is where I think McKee excels.

Like most here I've seen many movies, and I hate nothing more than to see a string of scenes from other movies cobbled together to make a 'new' movie. The sentiment that "There is nothing new under the sun" is false, but I see a lot of rehash by writers whose whole lives probably revolve around movies and therefore they are not living lives at all.

Reading books and watching movies is all well and good, but you must also live a life. You should start by writing what you know. When you can create within the confines of what you know then you might be able to expand into pulling a story out of the ether.

Bob
 
Bob Gruen said:
Reading books and watching movies is all well and good, but you must also live a life.

Bob
Click to expand...

I'm with you there Bob.

One of the reason's that I think "Juno" was so well received was because it is a story set outside LA. It had a very Midwest feel. That alone makes it fresh. Of course, Cody's writing is solid. The basic story of an unplanned pregnancy isn't the most original story (or even the first unwanted pregnancy movie out last year), but what she did with it made it special.

It's great that it made over $100 million and won her an Oscar. I find it interesting that both Cody and the Coen Brothers who won best adapted screenplay this year both have Minneapolis roots.
 
I recently ordered "Story" and "Save the cat", and are waiting for them to land in my postbox. I have only written shorts before, but I have been planning a feature script for a long time now and I want to get it put down on paper. I had some screenwriting classes in school, but I basicly know very little about writing a feature length script. So my question is, should I start with "story" or "save the cat"?
Thanks!
 
You're from Norway so I'd start with the playwright Ibsen. (A Doll's House, Enemy of the People.)

As far as the books you've ordered I'd go with "Save the Cat" first because you can read it in a couple nights and it will help you understand what kind of film you want to write. It's the kind of book that makes you want to write.

"Story" is more acedemic. You'll go deep but you may be still be flipping through it ten years from now trying to understand all he's teaching there. Those books are a good one-two combo.
 
No offense to anyone regarding the books mentioned but I really don't think they can be referenced in a serious discussion of the craft. It's like trying to learn to shoot by reading photo mag's. You may be able to pick up a few tips here and there but you'll never get the nutrition of a weighty text or workshop.

I can only express my opinion: Look for books written by working writer's throughout history. They can be more enlightening and practical on the art and craft of screenwriting. You may discover these authors raise more questions than answers.

I think your best best is to go back before books on screenwriting became a niche market. Look at something edited by Brander Matthews for example, or Jung, or Freud who may not address screenwriting directly but train your mind to think creatively and look at the world around you in unique and interesting ways.

Hey, it worked for Fellini. (Jung was a technical advisor throughout "8 1/2").
 
bill totolo said:
I think your best best is to go back before books on screenwriting became a niche market. Look at something edited by Brander Matthews for example, or Jung, or Freud who may not address screenwriting directly but train your mind to think creatively and look at the world around you in unique and interesting ways.

.
Click to expand...


If you want to train your mind to think creatively, the best thing is to think creatively.
 
I've read most of the books mentioned, Syd Fields, Blake's and Volger haven't read the "SW Bible".

First, the classic, Syd Fields, is a must read imo as well. It's not meant to be a text to make you think creatively and he says that, it's great to learn the process and structure of a screenplay; how to begin and organize and all of that.

Blake Snyder's Save the Cat was a very good read albeit the author very pretentious and condescending at times, imo anyways at least on the first go, the 2nd time I understood his style. Very great stuff I learned a lot, but still just a book to get more insight and expand on.

A Writer's Journey well, great!

Just good books to make your own, not follow like a bible, but all 3 will make you a better screenwriter and writer in general.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top