Screenwriter Blog Posts

The Screenwriter’s Best Resource For Authentic Creativity

The most effective, powerful, and interesting characters you can create for a screenplay are often based on real people. If you look back over your ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

Mastering the Art of Subtext: The Ultimate Skill for Brilliant Dialogue

Let’s chat about subtext in screenwriting, shall we? I hope you said “By all means, yes!” because it is truly a game-changer for your screenplay ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

How To Write a Good Screenplay: 3 Key Objectives For Every Scene

https://youtu.be/5rR_kFsjeR4 When writing a screenplay, many screenwriters want to hurry and get their first draft on the page without doing a lot of planning because just ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

Great Sources of Good Story Ideas

Where do good story ideas for a screenplay come from? It could be anywhere! As a screenwriter, it’s a good idea to always be tuned ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

The Seeds For Screenwriter’s Success

One of the challenges is that you will mostly get negative feedback when you have your script reviewed or even considered for production. And yes, ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

How To Make An Audience Care About Your Characters

John Truby believes that focusing on details and character traits can lead to superficial characters. Melody Jackson, Ph.D. does, too. Go here to Learn what ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

How To Overcome Procrastination Now

WOW! Every once in a while, time goes by so fast that I’ll suddenly realize it’s been a long time since I sent out one ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

Screenwriting 101 — The Basics

by Brigette Schoenung At Smart Girls, screenwriters at every level of their craft contact us, from beginners to professional writers who have had their scripts ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

Script Sculpting Hacks: How To Shorten Your Script While Improving the Quality

The first thing a Hollywood exec/reader does when they get your screenplay is to look to the last page and see how many pages they ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

5 Tips on How to Make the Most of a Pitchfest Event

One of the most exciting and scary things a screenwriter has to do for their careers is pitch their screenplay live to a Hollywood VIP ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

5 Quick & Easy Ways To Establish Credibility In Your Query Letter

When you write a query letter, your first and foremost challenge is to summarize your 100+ page story to a paragraph-or-two-long pitch that gets people ...

Written by

Melody Jackson