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TWC - Free Previews We provide the free previews for you to get a feel for the kind of content that makes The Writers Channel such a great community, and show you why you should join now. Mentors answer your questions, give tips on everything from format to pitching your story Scott Alexander ----------------------------------------------- Dramedy?  I wouldn't try to categorize anything you write. Though drama with some
comedy is probably the most reliable Hollywood genre of all time (Citizen Kane... Jim Brooks movies... Lethal Weapon... if you see what I mean), the word "Dramedy" is pretty scary and frightens people away.
Larry and I are always amused that we consider our SCRIPTS to be enormously funny... yet by the time the film hits video, it gets filed under the Drama section. And then I get indignant, saying it's a funny movie, and Larry responds "What are you talking about? Nobody laughed at anything."
If it's a balls-out comedy, call it such. But otherwise, especially if you've got some big ideas, themes, or ambition... says it's a "character drama with some laughs." Easier to get actors that way.
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Ed Solomon
------------------------------------------------ To the memebers of TWC:  Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your circle. I'm going to stick
around for a bit, so I'm happy to continue on if people want to talk more. Till then, a writer friend sent me this in an email yesterday. It's from Aruthur Miller, in a letter to someone, I think. I thought it was interesting."...you keep scampering from story-point to story-point; you got too much story; slow it down, examine your consequences more. We are in the theater to hear our hearts beat with a brand-new knowledge, not to get surprised by some stupid door slowly opening. With words be more parsimonious; on the stage wordsıre either nine months in the belly or theyıre sterile. A pause is a swelling, and thereıs something enjoyable even in a swelling that hurts; every great scene leads to a pause, two or three good earned pauses can stab to the heart and make you a hit. Any schmuck can make a story, but look at Chekhov, he doesnıt even have one. And look at Hamlet, one of the most predictable stories ever told. But these authors were masters of reflection; when you close in on the mystery it flips the mind into reflection, not the anxiety of melodrama. Words on the stage are expensive; think of it like every word you write you gotta put a quarter in a jar. In fact, note the absence of story originality in the great ages of playwrighting. Shakespeare robbed everything from history books and other guys' plays back to Terence; Aeschylus, Euripides, Sophocles name an original story from any of them, your mind goes blank. Variations on a well-known theme is the name of the game. No wasting time makinı up stories. They went for the jugular, the mystery of the human being. Go downtown to a courthouse sometime. Crooks and lawyers, not particularly talented people, are makinı up stories from nine to five every day of the week, but light up the mystery and youıre in a whole other line of work."
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Allison Burnett
--------------------------------------------- Breaking In  ML: There is no more FAQ than yours and it is a bitch to answer, because
there is no sure way to get started. I had a writing partner when I broke in (at 31). We found a low-low-level manager. Then we signed with an attorney whom we met at a party. He introduced us to a better manager, who soon became an agent and found us a very good manager, who got us our first job.
But during this period, which was about a year and a half, we wrote ten scripts! We never stopped working. There is no substitute for doing good work and a lot of it. Each good script you write is a sort of lottery ticket. When you are done with them, get them out there to anyone and
everyone who is willing to read them. I like to say that success is like the fertilization of an egg. It only takes one sperm to do it, but you need millions to create the pressure on the wall of the egg that allows that one to enter. So create as much pressure as you can, with as many scripts as
possible, and, sooner or later, if they're any good, you will gain entry. At which time you will be paid a great deal of money in return for your integrity, vision, and peace of mind.
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Rick Dahl
--------------------------------------------- Music  Hey Pat,
Anything goes. Sounds like you've got a specific thing in mind using the National Anthem so go for it. In general, as far as referencing music in scripts I think it's a matter of taste. I think an occasional mention of a specific cue can help get a point across--might inform on a character. Say you have a serial killer who plays Sinatra's "Fly Me to the Moon" whenever he's hacking up somebody, hey that could leave an impression on the reader. But if you reference pieces that aren't part of the public conscious, then it can get be confusing. As I always say, the point is to get your point across with as few words as possible.
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