30 Day Writing Challenge - January
- Screenwriting -
Learning how to write for the visual medium.
Let me start by saying, I have written a total of three screenplays in my life. Prolific, no. Skilled, not at all.
During my time in my minor, I chose creative nonfiction and fiction over screenwriting. This was mostly due to the limited number of electives we were afforded during the program.
But the way I see it, screenwriting is a world writers can benefit from. Let’s break down the benefits:
- You’re limited to two senses – sound and visuals
- You have 90 to 120 pages to tell your story (1 page = 1 minute of screentime) meaning you have to learn to write on a budget
- If you’re thinking real world, you’ll need to write with a budget in mind (there are more limitations in a film than in novel writing)
My Screenwriting Curriculum
You can follow along with my journey to better understanding scriptwriting through the following resources I used this month.
What I Listened to:
Raise your hand all you lovely little auditory learners. This is what I’ve got in store for you this month.
You’ll definitely want to check out (and probably subscribe to) Film Courage and Tyler Mowery who seem to be significant voices in this area of the creative world. Some other YouTube videos to go to for inspiration as a newbie screenwriter are:- Screenwriting Tips from Hollywood Professionals – Variety
- Screenplays: Crash Course FIlm Production #1
Resources I Discovered:
What I Read:
- Writing Television Sitcoms by Evan S. Smith
- Now Write! Screenwriting by Sherry Ellis and Laurie Lamson
Programs I Used:
Celtx
Celtx is a free, professional-grade software built for screenwriting and film production from idea conception to production. Or as they say, ‘from script to shoot’. It’s a cloud-based software. This means you can take it on the go using your iOS or Android device.
Note: The free version of Celtx is a limited plan. To access the full extent of features you’ll need to pay a monthly subscription fee.
Screenwriting Prompts for You
- A murderous salon owner
- A window-cleaner in a major city (I’ll leave the city up to your creative genius)
- A religious leader who has lost his faith
- They falling in love
- They are going on a physical adventure
- They have just committed a crime
- 1 to 3 – A snippet of dialogue or a simple exchange
- 4 to 6 – A single scene
- 7 to 9 – Short film
- 10 – Full feature
What I Created This Month
Alright, this is where I admit to my first failure of the year. It’s not great to start off round one with a 0/10 but here we are. January was a hectic time where I spent the first two weeks sick and the second to weeks scrambling to get caught up. I tabled my own work on this month’s challenge and hope to return to it in a future month or in January 2021. Keep an eye on the 2020 Challenge page for a forecast of all the writing types I’ll be delving into this year organized by month.
What writing projects did you work on this month? Share in the comments below or reach out to me through my contact form, I’d love to chat writing!