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The Witcher: 7 Important Lessons In Adaptation

The Witcher On Netflix  The Witcher is an epic fantasy adventure filled with magic, monsters, and romance. It is based on books written by the Polish author Andrzej Sapkowskiare, as well as a video game series. It’s an excellent example of how to adapt an original source. Here are 7 adaptation lessons from The Witcher … Enjoy! (SPOILER ALERT – If you have not watched or read the books, be aware there may be some in this post). LESSON #1: Add more PoVs to Make It More Interesting Geralt of Rivia is the main character of The Witcher, both in… Read More »The Witcher: 7 Important Lessons In Adaptation

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A Feminist Ranking of 10 Rom Com Heroines

Feminist Problems I sometimes feel like I’m betraying myself as a feminist with my rom com obsession. I live for the meet-cutes, Cinderella moments, and happily ever afters … All the unfiltered romance tropes that both make the genre so great and get it (unfairly) dismissed as superficial pap. But rom coms can and do offer a space in which feminist ideas can flourish. To prove it, I’m ranking some of my favourite leading ladies (not very feminist, but fun!) from least to most feminist. 10) Kathleen Kelly, You’ve Got Mail I enjoy a Nora Ephron rom-com as much as… Read More »A Feminist Ranking of 10 Rom Com Heroines

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Why GRACE Took 19 Years To Make It To Screen

The Grace TV Series Have you read the Roy Grace novels? Then you know the TV adaptation starts Sunday, March 14th on ITV. I can’t wait, plus I am a huge Peter Janes fan, so I am delighted to welcome him back to B2W. Over to you, Peter! On Adaptation One of the first question authors get asked when they meet someone for the first time … ‘Have you had anything on television I might have seen?’ ‘Yes,’ I told a builder at a party in Brighton, back in 1999, ‘in fact I had a miniseries of my novel, Host,… Read More »Why GRACE Took 19 Years To Make It To Screen

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What Are YOUR Writing Influences? Here’s 14 Of Mine

All About Influences We are not creating stories in a vacuum, so we all have writing influences. I also often say writers need to research ‘what’s gone before’ when it comes to … concept genre conventions character tropes plotting archetypes tones styles storyworlds Since B2W needs to practice what it preaches, I sit down at the beginning of EVERY project and do this too. The Coven Is Out Now Since The Coven is released NOW, I thought I would share 14 books, TV shows and movies that influenced me as I was writing. Some of these influences may be a… Read More »What Are YOUR Writing Influences? Here’s 14 Of Mine

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7 Writing Lessons From Bingeing OUTLANDER

Outlander – Books vs. TV series Outlander is a typical TV series meant to get us hooked and binging. Binging on TV series in 2020 became an acceptable habit, though not one I was proud of. However I spent 10 days bingeing the TV series and reading its four books. Here are the benefits I found for bingeing and adaptation. Ready? Let’s go! Lessons Learned WARNING: if you have not watched or read the books, there be SPOILERS in this post! The story begins after World War 2. Combat nurse Claire Beauchamp Randall is vacationing with her husband, Frank, in the… Read More »7 Writing Lessons From Bingeing OUTLANDER

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Playing The Long Game: 12 Movies Writers Can Learn From

Playing The Long Game No doubt you’ve been advised to ‘play the long game’ when it comes to  making movies, but what does this mean? Well, it’s gone down in screenwriting folklore that it took writer-producer Allan Scott 30 years to get his Netflix smash hit The Queen’s Gambit made. Walter Tevis’s chess novel was published in 1983 – and Scott optioned it immediately, buying the exclusive film rights in 1993. Over the ensuing years he concentrated on trying to get a movie version made (“I won’t embarrass all the directors with whom we didn’t make the movie but I… Read More »Playing The Long Game: 12 Movies Writers Can Learn From

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KILLING EVE’s Luke Jennings: ‘You Adore Villanelle, Or You’re Appalled.’

About Luke Jennings Luke Jennings is an author and journalist. Bang2writers will know him best as the writer of the Killing Eve novels, the basis for the hit TV series. In case you’ve been hiding under a rock though, the novels follow the obsessive duel between Villanelle, an elite assassin and Eve Polastri, the MI6 agent tasked with hunting her down. What you may not know is Luke had established himself before Killing Eve, writing a number of novels including the Booker prize-nominated Atlantic. He’s also written for The Observer, Vanity Fair and The New Yorker. In addition, he’s also… Read More »KILLING EVE’s Luke Jennings: ‘You Adore Villanelle, Or You’re Appalled.’

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Eric Heisserer: ‘Beware The Paper Tiger That Prevents You Writing’

All About Eric Eric Heisserer has a screenwriting resumé most Bang2writers would kill for. From franchises through to adaptations and indie dramas, Eric has been at every level of the movie coal-face it seems. Eric’s also really approachable and offers great insights on the craft. I interviewed him for my non-fiction Drama Screenplays book because he wrote and directed one of my favourite dramas Hours, starring the late Paul Walker. He’s also shared some excellent pointers on female characters in the past for B2W, too. So I thought I’d check back in with Eric in 2019 and see what other juicy… Read More »Eric Heisserer: ‘Beware The Paper Tiger That Prevents You Writing’

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6 Things Writers Can Learn From The Handmaid’s Tale

The Handmaid’s Tale, Adapted The Handmaid’s Tale is that rare beast, both critically acclaimed and commercially successful. Just two series in and it’s obvious it will go down in television history. More importantly, countless Bang2writers tell me they want to write something ‘just like it’, that ‘says something’ … But how? At London Screenwriters’ Festival last weekend, I lead a talk titled What Writers Can Learn From The Handmaid’s Tale. It was a brilliant session, with some great questions and observations from the switched-on delegates. Obviously I can’t cover all everything we talked about in one blog post, sadly. But here’s… Read More »6 Things Writers Can Learn From The Handmaid’s Tale

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INFOGRAPHIC: Everything You Need To Know About The Screenplay

So, we have a new infographic on B2W today that will hopefully kickstart your new screenplay and/or keep it going, so you can get it written and revised and sent out. Let’s check it out … What Should You Write About? There’s some great tips here on adaptation. Though most screenwriters aren’t going to have the money for options on adapting bestselling books, they can still collaborate with authors (especially self published ones, though literary agents may pair scriptwriters with authors too – always worth asking! ). Beyond adaptation, it’s always worth doing lots of work on your central concept… Read More »INFOGRAPHIC: Everything You Need To Know About The Screenplay

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10 Things I Learned From Awesome Adaptations

When a book is turned into a successful movie, it becomes a cultural phenomenon. Fifty Shades of Grey. Game of Thrones. Harry Potter. Twilight. We all know these stories and characters, whether or not we’ve read or watched them. As B2W often advocates, knowing what an audience wants and why is why the half the battle. Each movie has its own appeal that makes it a pleasure to watch. If we dig a little deeper we can identify those points of attraction. There are specific factors that can turn books into successful movies. Let’s reveal the secrets. 10 Unpredictable Ingredients… Read More »10 Things I Learned From Awesome Adaptations

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5 Things I Learned Converting My Screenplay Into A Novel

About Converting Screenplays Thinking about converting your screenplay into a novel? Bang2writer Brian did this and learned some interesting & useful lessons. Check out what he has to say below and make converting your own screenplay MUCH smoother! Thanks Brian and over to you … 1) Hollywood is not in the risk business What was I thinking?  I wrote an epic scale, special effects-laden science fiction action blockbuster.  And nobody in Hollywood knew who the hell I was.  How was I going to sell this screenplay? MECHCRAFT (the screenplay) began life some four years ago, and when it was ready,… Read More »5 Things I Learned Converting My Screenplay Into A Novel

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