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What Script Editors Do AKA 5 Tips To Edit Your Own Screenplay

So, I’m in/famous for insisting there’s too much dialogue in *most* spec screenplays AND that scene description AND format can be a major issue in a huge proportion of them, too — yet many of my Bang2writers confess they’re not really sure what to do about the first two issues in making their screenplays’ stories “flow” better for the reader. So major kudos to plucky Bang2writer Kym Wimbus who has very kindly stepped in and provided me with a scene from his Thriller screenplay, MAINTAIN THE RAGE which I will duly script edit for you*, right on this blog, so writers can… Read More »What Script Editors Do AKA 5 Tips To Edit Your Own Screenplay

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5 Reasons Why Theatre Is A Writer’s Best Friend

If you’re feeling frustrated about rejections or getting a “way in” to the industry, then today’s short but VERY sweet post from Carla offers some GREAT food for thought on getting a foot in the door via writing for theatre … Also, make sure you check out the new playwriting award from Theatre503. Enjoy! Theatre is a great way to get your work out there and there are some fantastic opportunities for emerging writers. Over the past two years I have been developing a play with Theatre503, a new writing theatre in south London and found the experience invaluable. Here… Read More »5 Reasons Why Theatre Is A Writer’s Best Friend

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6 Ways To Put The Spark Back In Your Writing Relationship

Writing and I have a volatile relationship. I think about breaking up with writing at least once a week but somehow I can’t let go. One day we’ll be curled up on the sofa making plans for our future together and the next, writing looks past me at the telly even though I’m dancing around in my knickers doing my best Beyoncé meets Brontë impression. Call me a fool but I just can’t leave, so here are six ways I put the spark back into my own writing relationship. They stop me weeping into my laptop keyboard whenever I think… Read More »6 Ways To Put The Spark Back In Your Writing Relationship

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5 Ways To Fall In Love With Your Character

Many thanks to novelist Mya Kay, who provides us with our second Bang On post on the theme of “Love”. Mya offers up some GREAT writing exercises for those of us who need to get to know our characters better and I ESPECIALLY like number 5, which I’d never heard of before. Thanks Mya! Enjoy, Bang2writers and make sure you check out Mya’s links at the end of this post … Often, writers find themselves caught between a love/hate relationship with their characters. A month later, they’re abandoning their story, without even realizing that it’s not their characters that may… Read More »5 Ways To Fall In Love With Your Character

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25 Screenwriting Tips From … David Bowie?

A brilliantly original and creative guest post today from Matt … Enjoy! David Bowie has graced our screens many times over the years in varying amounts of lyrca, but who ever knew that he wrote a screenwriting manual? In-depth analysis of the lyrics to Life on Mars? shows they are not surreal non-sequitirs at all but tips we could all learn from.So play this, sit back and read the commentary notes below.  1. It’s a god-awful small affair Everywomen and everymen in a humdrum situation are a great relatable starting point  2. To the girl with the mousy hair Keep character descriptions… Read More »25 Screenwriting Tips From … David Bowie?

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7 Reasons Why Studying Screenwriting Can Make You A Better Novelist

In this game, it’s a given the script development model is king. Start with a logline and a pitch then develop them into a short form outline with character biographies. Then, work up a longer scene-by-scene outline that you might want to call a treatment – or you might not depending on which screenwriting books you read – and then, hey presto, you “go to script” – and there it is, a first draft screenplay. It’s like growing a plant and once it’s grown, you water it with rewrites. Or maybe you prefer the architect’s plans metaphor? Regardless, the script… Read More »7 Reasons Why Studying Screenwriting Can Make You A Better Novelist

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7 Ways Of Developing Writing Ideas

All of us hit setbacks in our writing sometimes. When we do, it can be a good idea to try out techniques other creative people use to keep their work moving. Here are a few techniques I use when I’m stuck at the ideas-developing stage, not sure how to turn ideas into a story. 1. Use The 10-3-1 Method 10-3-1 is used by designers at Apple, and it goes like this. Instead of taking just one initial idea and developing it directly into a product, designers work on 10 different ideas, being as imaginative and impractical as they like. Later… Read More »7 Ways Of Developing Writing Ideas

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How To Write The Most Cliched Script Opener EVER

As regular Bang2writers know, I frequently talk on my Twitter feed as @Bang2write about the first ten pages and how cliches so often rear their ugly heads there. Genuinely, cliches in your opening pages are the fast track to losing a reader’s interest. I can’t  stress this enough. It’s not hard to see why If a reader is treated to the same *types* of events, characters, moments and dialogue over and over again (and they are), why would they recommend a screenplay??? It really is as simple as that. Human beings prize novelty and originality. That’s just the way it is. We… Read More »How To Write The Most Cliched Script Opener EVER

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5 Ways To Use Feedback Effectively

So, you’ve got some feedback on your screenplay, novel, treatment or pitch. Maybe it’s great … Yay! Or maybe it’s bad. Boo. Or maybe it’s both? OMFG. Whatever: you need to rewrite. You know this. But what next? This is often where writers come unstuck … ‘Cos they don’t know what to do even with GOOD notes. Sometimes it’s because there seems like too much choice; other times it’s because problems with a draft seem insurmountable, or life gets in the way. Sometimes all of the above – or something else. Ack. CUE WRITER EXPLOSION. So here’s 5 ways to use… Read More »5 Ways To Use Feedback Effectively

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5 Killer Errors That Will Sink Your Reputation … And Ways You Can Fix Them!

Killer Errors No one likes to think about spelling and punctuation errors in their writing. It’s the story that’s important. No-one’s gonna care about typos when it’s the content that counts. It’ll get corrected when it’s typeset. Yada yada yada. You can make excuses until you’re blue in the face, but the fact remains that literary professionals (including script readers) like to read well written English and if you’ve got pesky errors you will set off their grammar police sirens. Thing is, though, these mistakes are far easier to check for and to correct than you think. It just takes… Read More »5 Killer Errors That Will Sink Your Reputation … And Ways You Can Fix Them!

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Writing THE DECISION: LIZZIE’S STORY # 3 – Description & Characters

I run the Bang2write script consultancy, so read lots of spec novels every year as writers get them ready to either self publish, or show agents and publishers. The two elements that cause the most issues then in these novels are description and character. This is no surprise, since these are probably the most important elements of a novel, as readers perhaps notice them “most”. So here is a rundown of the issues I frequently see with description and character and how I tackled them myself in writing THE DECISION: LIZZIE’S STORY: DESCRIPTION 1) Grammar, punctuation, spelling. No one minds… Read More »Writing THE DECISION: LIZZIE’S STORY # 3 – Description & Characters

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5 Essential Apps For Writers

Whether you’re in academic, creative, or business writing, there are more tools than ever before to get inspired, organise your thoughts and get help with publication. Of course, most people don’t have time to wade through the swamp of redundant, buggy, spam-ridden apps, so we’ve done the hard work for you. The following 5 apps are among the highest-rated, most-popular on iTunes and Google Play. 1. Story Tracker Story Tracker is a great organisational tool for writers who are already getting content published. This app makes it easy to track where content has been submitted, what deadlines are looming and… Read More »5 Essential Apps For Writers

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