Craft of Writing – Jeffrey Alan Schechter

Down To The Wire

The final two days of shooting for season 2 of OVERRULED are upon us! If all goes according to plan, Thursday, April 23 wraps production of these 13 episodes. After that, it’s back to the normal grind of juggling many balls. It’s been a great shoot so far, made even more exciting by having caught… Continue reading Down To The Wire

LOVE IN THE TIME OF CHOLERA: A Cautionary Screenwriting Tale

I’m not going to do a full breakdown of this movie, but just a quick mention. I saw it last night on cable. Lush, beautiful, and a total CAUTIONARY TALE ABOUT THE DANGERS OF A WEAK MAIN CHARACTER!!! The two lovers Fermina and Florentino meet in their youth and he takes a vow to love… Continue reading LOVE IN THE TIME OF CHOLERA: A Cautionary Screenwriting Tale

Who’s the Main Character in TITANIC?

Blog reader “Twilight” asked the following question: “I must ask something here about who is the main character in Titanic. All the time I though it was Rose, because she is the character who drives the story, or? I also think I have read from others like Michael Haug that Rose is the Main Character.… Continue reading Who’s the Main Character in TITANIC?

AGENDA - DAY ONE
Session One:

The critical four questions about your main character

Ensure your main character fulfills his or her story destiny by transitioning through each of the four archetypes

Construct a compelling ‘QuickPitch’ (aka, the ‘elevator pitch’) that lays out your entire story from start to finish

[hr] LUNCH BREAK
[hr] Session Two:

Determine the thematic question, thematic argument, and thematic synthesis of your story

Incorporate thematic opposites into your story through characters, props, and architecture.

Use the Unity of Opposites to align both the positive and negative characters with theme.

Create your cast of as many as 14 characters, both positive and negative, that inform and amplify your hero and villain

[hr] [hr] AGENDA - DAY TWO
Session One:

Work through the 12 foundation plot points of act one.

Craft a Central Question that charts your hero’s physical, emotional, and spiritual journey.

[hr]
POOLSIDE WORKING LUNCH (brown bag it, we've got work to do!)

Chart a story course with approximate page counts for the 12 major landmarks of your story

[hr] Session Two:

Use the Central Question to craft the plot points of act two so that they build upon each other in an organic, can't-stop-reading fashion

Build act three using the four essential plot points

Tearful farewell, with optimistic looks to the future