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Javier Grillo-Marxuach: ‘Lost Was NOT Purgatory’ (And Other Tales)

About Javier Grillo-Marxuach Javier Grillo-Marxuach is a screenwriter and producer. He has the kind of resumé most Bang2writers would kill for, including iconic shows like Charmed and Lost. He’s continued with fantastic modern TV such as The Witcher, The 100 and The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance as well. Wow! I was delighted to Zoom with Javier recently. I love high concept, dystopian and post-apocalyptic story worlds. He’s literally worked on some of my favourite shows that have influenced my own writing! Javier also wrote the AMAZING 11 Laws of show running, an online essay/memo which really requires its own post.… Read More »Javier Grillo-Marxuach: ‘Lost Was NOT Purgatory’ (And Other Tales)

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Top 5 Storyworld Mistakes Writers Make

What Is Storyworld? If you type the word ‘storyworld’ into Google, the results are not great. But it’s a word I like to use with writers, because the notion can prove very illuminating in discussing how stories hang together. So, let’s agree the definition of ‘storyworld’ as … ‘The space in which the story operates, which impacts directly on how it is told.’ With this in mind, let’s consider the top mistakes writers make with their storyworlds and how to approach it instead. Ready? Let’s go … 1) Thinking storyworld is only a sci fi / fantasy thing Lots of writers believe… Read More »Top 5 Storyworld Mistakes Writers Make

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7 Casting Debates That Need To Die The Death

Casting Trouble Casting controversy … It seems hardly a month goes by without some! The same-old arguments and responses get wheeled out every time. Sometimes, writers may have trouble separating their own feelings about various casting troubles from the realities of the industry … Plus other times, the realities of industry actively entrench those same-old problems. Now what?? Well, here’s a round-up of the consistent casting mistakes, misgivings and confusions writers have when diverse characters and the actors who play them intersect. Enjoy! 1) “It should be the ‘best actor for the job’ You’re right, it absolutely should – so… Read More »7 Casting Debates That Need To Die The Death

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FOCUS ON FORMAT – When To Use Captions

What is a caption? On a screenplay, ‘captions’ are those bits of text you may see flash up on screen – i.e.: 24 HOURS EARLIER NEW YORK DAY 32 COLONY 1, THE MOON BAGHDAD, IRAQ INSIDE DEREK’S LOWER INTESTINE You know the ones. You will have seen them countless times whilst watching movies, TV dramas, sitcoms, documentaries and even short films, web series, sketches, YouTube reviews etc. Lots of Bang2writers ask me how to format these. Well, it’s pretty simple. You just need to write: SUPER: [Caption you want to put in] Apparently, ‘Super’ is short for ‘Super impose’. This… Read More »FOCUS ON FORMAT – When To Use Captions

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10 Rocky Quotes To Inspire You As A Writer

The Patron Saint Of Writers That’s right, Rocky Balboa is the patron saint of writers … and I’m gonna illustrate why. But first, here’s a little story for you. Once there was a scrappy little girl, who was all knees and elbows, who wanted to be a writer. The first time she realised this, she was about 6 years old. Her mother had a big bookcase on the landing, filled with grown up books. The little girl’s Mum had weird reading taste, so some of the covers were mad-scary, but that didn’t stop the girl from dreaming about one day… Read More »10 Rocky Quotes To Inspire You As A Writer

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10 (More) Commandments For Successful Writers

Following the previous post in this vein, 10 Commandments For Successful Writers by the lovely Emma Pullar, Derin Attwood decided to throw her hat in the ring and lay down the law for Write Club, too! I totally agree with numbers 2, 7 and the last one … Well, all of them to be honest. Over to you, Derin — And enjoy, everyone! 1) Write! Otherwise you are not part of the Write Club. You can join the thinkers’, or dreamers’ or wannabes’ clubs, but the writers’ club is exclusive. 2) Set goals Write regularly and set goals. Keep to… Read More »10 (More) Commandments For Successful Writers

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How WONDER WOMAN Proves The Power Of Untold Stories

No Real Spoilers So the news and reviews and first weekend figures are in: Wonder Woman is an epic box office SMASH! This is great news not only for female lead characters, but female directors as well. Patty Jenkins has done a HUGE turn to female filmmakers everywhere. Whilst it’s obviously completely and utterly wrong that ONE film had so much to prove like this, that’s a conversation for another time. For now, I for one am delighted that Jenkins et al has pulled this off, against the odds. BRAVO! So now I’m going to take a look at the… Read More »How WONDER WOMAN Proves The Power Of Untold Stories

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Top 10 Scary Movie Lines And Why They Work

We all love Horror here on B2W, plus everyone loves quotable dialogue, so a post on top scary movie lines is a no-brainer! Many thanks to author Douglas Keesey for this post today. He provides some excellent pointers on why certain lines work in the genre and reminds us screenwriters – again! – that context is everything. Remember, great dialogue does not work in isolation. Enjoy! 1) Invasion of The Body Snatchers (1956) “They’re here already. You’re next!  You’re next! You’re next!” At the film’s conclusion, its lead character sounds crazy when he walks out onto the highway, warning passing… Read More »Top 10 Scary Movie Lines And Why They Work

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Top 7 Things Screenwriters Can Do To Improve Diversity And Inclusion

I LOVE this from Kirk and Deron at the Hollywood Inclusive podcast … These guys really know what they’re talking about! Unlike many sites (coughTWITTERcough) which have become an extended whinefest every time the word ‘diversity’ comes up, Kirk and Deron offer REALISTIC and yet powerful solutions to this issue that we writers can put into practice at page level. So, make sure you give it a read and pass this on to your writery friends – but also accept there’s a limit to what writers can do, too. We have to tell the best stories we can with what’s available and as… Read More »Top 7 Things Screenwriters Can Do To Improve Diversity And Inclusion

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A Look In The Spec Pile: @Create50, THE IMPACT

Following on from Wednesday’s brilliant post by @ShoreScripts on spec screenwriting clichés, here’s a look inside in the Create50 “lock-in” for LondonSWF’s second crowd-sourced feature film, THE IMPACT. Basically, Team LSF – and some very knowledgeable guests – locked themselves inside Ealing Studios during bank holiday weekend. Over the course of the two days, we re-read and deliberated over the finalists in extreme detail. From there, we created The Impact’s storyworld and built a preliminary story arc of 50 final screenplays, so filmmakers can make their choices in phase 2 of the project. An announcement re: the final 50 will… Read More »A Look In The Spec Pile: @Create50, THE IMPACT

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5 Reasons To Write **Where** You Know

Everyone’s familiar with the writing adage “Write WHAT You Know”, but not everyone thinks about how WHERE they know can help their writing, too. So when Richard suggested looking at storyworld in this way, I jumped at the chance for a guest post … Over to you, Richard! Reason Number 1: The setting is your story’s principal supporting character Traditional writing wisdom says writers should write **what** they know. ‘What’ you know informs the storyline of what you write. But that maxim overlooks the fact that the action (and the inaction) of any story occurs in a setting. That setting often… Read More »5 Reasons To Write **Where** You Know

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Writing Adages Explained: ‘Show, Don’t Tell’

“Show, Don’t Tell” gets a bad rap as far as writing advice goes because it’s become a “catch all” for just about anything a feedback-giver feels is “bad” prose or scene description. As a result, this note can end up being frustrating, rather than illuminating. However, at its heart, it IS good stuff. It basically describes the sensation in the reader of feeling “placed away” from the events in the story. This is not dramatic, because the writer is not INVOLVING us *in* the story. Instead, it ends up feeling a bit, “And then … And then … And then… Read More »Writing Adages Explained: ‘Show, Don’t Tell’

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