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The Creative Screenwriter: 12 Rules to Follow—and Break—to Unlock Your Screenwriting Potential
Master the craft of screenwriting—12 steps to bring your creative vision to the screen
It can be difficult to find a modern resource that teaches you the nuts and bolts of screenwriting while also allowing you the freedom to creatively thrive. This guide distills the craft of screenwriting into 12 key elements, from developing your story to revising and rewriting, plus plenty of inspiration to create your own screenplay with confidence.
Discover what to expect within the film industry and how it has evolved. Look behind the scenes at iconic films using a classic structure of screenwriting, along with experimental films from innovative writers that have transcended the rules and paved their own way to the silver screen. Then, get to the exciting part—writing—using a dozen tried-and-true rules of the trade. Each chapter is accompanied with an In the Writer’s Room creative exercise, such as formatting your script, mapping sequences, and creating rich dialogue and characters, to deepen your understanding of what brings a screenplay to life.
This screenwriting guide
Filmmaker’s dozen—From loglines to creating a compelling character to root for, you’ll find 12 fundamental but flexible steps to help you craft a powerful, creative screenplay.Topline terminology—Navigate the film biz like a pro with need-to-know Hollywood jargon, plus troubleshooting tips for any screenwriting hiccups along the way. Film archive—From William Goldman’s The Princess Bride to Taika Waititi’s Jojo Rabbit, discover emerging and timeless screenwriting techniques used in Hollywood blockbusters, micro-budget films, and more.
Take your story from creative conception to complete script with this modern, 12-step approach to screenwriting.
It can be difficult to find a modern resource that teaches you the nuts and bolts of screenwriting while also allowing you the freedom to creatively thrive. This guide distills the craft of screenwriting into 12 key elements, from developing your story to revising and rewriting, plus plenty of inspiration to create your own screenplay with confidence.
Discover what to expect within the film industry and how it has evolved. Look behind the scenes at iconic films using a classic structure of screenwriting, along with experimental films from innovative writers that have transcended the rules and paved their own way to the silver screen. Then, get to the exciting part—writing—using a dozen tried-and-true rules of the trade. Each chapter is accompanied with an In the Writer’s Room creative exercise, such as formatting your script, mapping sequences, and creating rich dialogue and characters, to deepen your understanding of what brings a screenplay to life.
This screenwriting guide
Filmmaker’s dozen—From loglines to creating a compelling character to root for, you’ll find 12 fundamental but flexible steps to help you craft a powerful, creative screenplay.Topline terminology—Navigate the film biz like a pro with need-to-know Hollywood jargon, plus troubleshooting tips for any screenwriting hiccups along the way. Film archive—From William Goldman’s The Princess Bride to Taika Waititi’s Jojo Rabbit, discover emerging and timeless screenwriting techniques used in Hollywood blockbusters, micro-budget films, and more.
Take your story from creative conception to complete script with this modern, 12-step approach to screenwriting.
173 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 4, 2020
27 people are currently reading
50 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 5, 2020
Disclaimer: I received an electronic advanced reading copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. This review is cross-posted on NetGalley, GoodReads, and Amazon.
The Creative Screenwriter is a perfect introductory book for complete novices and a must-have for any rusty indie screenwriter wishing to stretch their creative muscles and catch up on the new developments in the film industry. The book itself is short - a paperback under 200 pages (anyone who had to carry McKee’s Story around knows what I’m talking about), as well written in an accessible language, peppered with jokes and fun examples, and easy to navigate.
My personal favorite part about the book was the inclusivity of the examples: it is, perhaps, a minor thing for some, but I greatly appreciated the normalization of LGBT love stories, for example, and the acknowledgment of importance to resist stereotypes and cliches. I have read plenty of writing advice books, and this is the first time I felt genuinely included and represented as the kind of writer I am: a queer, immigrant woman writing queer, diverse screenplays.
The book is broken into 12 chapters, each of which is a lesson, and you can skip to whatever part you find most useful (though I recommend reading the entire book). Each chapter ends with a creative exercise aimed to help the reader develop their screenwriting and story-structuring skills. In his discussion of screenwriting, Hoxter does not forget about formatting, which, while being the main gatekeeper when it comes to having your script produced, is often neglected in introductory screenwriting classes. And, at the end of the book, he addresses what to do once your first draft is done - how to edit, pitch, submit to festivals, etc. It is truly a book that will guide you from a blank page to selling your screenplay and seeing it produced!
Himself a screenwriting professor at San Francisco State University School of Cinema, as well as a story consultant and re-writing specialist highly knowledgable and up-to-date with what’s going on in the film industry and academia, Hoxter gives candid advice on writing groups and degrees in film: leave if it’s not for you! You do not need to spend your money and time on something that isn’t helping you grow! He also addresses the tentpole structure dictating Hollywood’s script acquisition processes and explains what to expect when you try to sell your spec script to Hollywood. However, the book is not [only] aimed at future blockbuster writers: if you want to write independent, non-linear, or character-driven films, Hoxter spends as much time and attention on teaching how to break the rules and helping you figure out what approach is best for you.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to try their hand at feature film screenwriting, whether or not you wish to pursue it as a career. No prior experience needed!
The Creative Screenwriter is a perfect introductory book for complete novices and a must-have for any rusty indie screenwriter wishing to stretch their creative muscles and catch up on the new developments in the film industry. The book itself is short - a paperback under 200 pages (anyone who had to carry McKee’s Story around knows what I’m talking about), as well written in an accessible language, peppered with jokes and fun examples, and easy to navigate.
My personal favorite part about the book was the inclusivity of the examples: it is, perhaps, a minor thing for some, but I greatly appreciated the normalization of LGBT love stories, for example, and the acknowledgment of importance to resist stereotypes and cliches. I have read plenty of writing advice books, and this is the first time I felt genuinely included and represented as the kind of writer I am: a queer, immigrant woman writing queer, diverse screenplays.
The book is broken into 12 chapters, each of which is a lesson, and you can skip to whatever part you find most useful (though I recommend reading the entire book). Each chapter ends with a creative exercise aimed to help the reader develop their screenwriting and story-structuring skills. In his discussion of screenwriting, Hoxter does not forget about formatting, which, while being the main gatekeeper when it comes to having your script produced, is often neglected in introductory screenwriting classes. And, at the end of the book, he addresses what to do once your first draft is done - how to edit, pitch, submit to festivals, etc. It is truly a book that will guide you from a blank page to selling your screenplay and seeing it produced!
Himself a screenwriting professor at San Francisco State University School of Cinema, as well as a story consultant and re-writing specialist highly knowledgable and up-to-date with what’s going on in the film industry and academia, Hoxter gives candid advice on writing groups and degrees in film: leave if it’s not for you! You do not need to spend your money and time on something that isn’t helping you grow! He also addresses the tentpole structure dictating Hollywood’s script acquisition processes and explains what to expect when you try to sell your spec script to Hollywood. However, the book is not [only] aimed at future blockbuster writers: if you want to write independent, non-linear, or character-driven films, Hoxter spends as much time and attention on teaching how to break the rules and helping you figure out what approach is best for you.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to try their hand at feature film screenwriting, whether or not you wish to pursue it as a career. No prior experience needed!
September 3, 2020
I received a copy of this book through the Amazon Vine program in exchange for an honest review.
This is a surprisingly thorough book!
Full of information from outlining a screenplay to marketing there's lots of information and steps in this book. There's advice, words from professionals, and practice assignments throughout the book.
There's a lot of great questions to flesh out your characters and checklists to go through the writing process. This book has a surprising amount of advice broken down into digestible chapters. It's a good start to finish guide to screenwriting!
Great find that's easy to read and understand!
This is a surprisingly thorough book!
Full of information from outlining a screenplay to marketing there's lots of information and steps in this book. There's advice, words from professionals, and practice assignments throughout the book.
There's a lot of great questions to flesh out your characters and checklists to go through the writing process. This book has a surprising amount of advice broken down into digestible chapters. It's a good start to finish guide to screenwriting!
Great find that's easy to read and understand!
December 6, 2020
“This book has a simple goal: to get you through your first (or next) screenplay. The book will walk you through the basic elements of screenwriting while giving you the permission and freedom to follow the rules when they suit you and abandon some of them when they don’t. The elements here apply to all films—across every genre and for every budget—because the emphasis here is on how to write the thing, not what you finally produce.”
THE CREATIVE SCREENWRITER is a comprehensive resource in the form of twelve “rules” for writers who want to give screenwriting a go. The book includes an introduction, conclusion, additional resources, index, and a chapter dedicated to each of the rules. The rules include: know the mechanics, understand story structure, develop your story, create someone to root for, investigate archetypes, write your logline, outline your screenplay, tell a visual story, map your sequence, be purposeful in your dialogue, just finish your first draft, and revise, revise, revise.
The book provides plenty of references to screenwriters, scripts, movies, and television. Some of the chapters include exercises which provide a hands on application of the rules. This book provides insider insight in an easily accessible manner, for example, explaining Hollywood jargon and providing instruction on script formatting and the reasoning behind the formatting rules.) Much of the information on storytelling is applicable to novels and short stories.
I really liked that the book includes non-traditional elements, for example, structural outliers, which addresses non-chronological plots, ensemble-led structures and more, and alternative protagonists. The authors genuinely want to support the creation of a screenplay that meets the writer’s vision.
My favorite sections are on horror archetypes for any genre and tips for getting the first draft done. This book is a keeper for my writing craft book shelf for sure. For me, this is a four and a half star read, rounded up to five.
THE CREATIVE SCREENWRITER is a comprehensive resource in the form of twelve “rules” for writers who want to give screenwriting a go. The book includes an introduction, conclusion, additional resources, index, and a chapter dedicated to each of the rules. The rules include: know the mechanics, understand story structure, develop your story, create someone to root for, investigate archetypes, write your logline, outline your screenplay, tell a visual story, map your sequence, be purposeful in your dialogue, just finish your first draft, and revise, revise, revise.
The book provides plenty of references to screenwriters, scripts, movies, and television. Some of the chapters include exercises which provide a hands on application of the rules. This book provides insider insight in an easily accessible manner, for example, explaining Hollywood jargon and providing instruction on script formatting and the reasoning behind the formatting rules.) Much of the information on storytelling is applicable to novels and short stories.
I really liked that the book includes non-traditional elements, for example, structural outliers, which addresses non-chronological plots, ensemble-led structures and more, and alternative protagonists. The authors genuinely want to support the creation of a screenplay that meets the writer’s vision.
My favorite sections are on horror archetypes for any genre and tips for getting the first draft done. This book is a keeper for my writing craft book shelf for sure. For me, this is a four and a half star read, rounded up to five.
October 29, 2020
This is a great book not only for screenwriters, but for any writer. It provides practical strategies to keep your audience engaged in the plot such as "causality with a conclusion." Causal logic is explained as it relates to different types of plots such as emotional connections or unsolved events. The more complicated the causal logic, the more engaged your reader will become as they try to keep a step ahead of the author and figure out what is going to happen next. This is the reason readers or audiences prefer mysteries and thrillers, they get to try to jump ahead and figure out what's happening next. I have also noticed that many readers are not comfortable with plots that have no resolutions. An example of a film plot of this nature is the independent film "Chan is Missing." The characters in the film look for their friend Chan and never find him. Independent films tend to veer off more into these type of plots as they are either more surreal or more realistic, depending upon your perspective as life events often have no closure. I would recommend this book it to any aspiring writer.
December 31, 2024
Hoxter one of my favorite professors I’ve ever had
September 23, 2025
Khá tóm gọn nội dung về các quy tắc và quy trình cần biết để xây dựng lên 2 kịch bản hoàn chỉnh
- đg đọc tới trang 50-170
- đg đọc tới trang 50-170
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews