INTRODUCING YOUR HEROES: Julie & Julia
Arguably the most important portion of your story is the opening. This is where you must seduce your readers and audiences as you draw them…
Q&A: Naming Your Characters
Q: When I first introduce a character into a story, must I always give his or her last name? Is the first name enough? Must I name the character at all?
CREDIBILITY Part 2: Making Your Story Believable
Now I want to reveal how you can ensure that your own stories – no matter how imaginative or fantastical – remain believable to your readers, your audiences and your customers.
CREDIBILITY: Story Reality vs Real Reality
I once consulted with a screenwriter who complained when I told him his screenplay lacked credibility. “Movies aren’t ever real,” he argued.
MISDEMEANOR: Introducing Characters All At Once
Have you ever been the last to arrive at a party and the host introduces you, one at a time, to everyone there? So how many of those names are you able to remember?
THE KEY TO CHARACTER DESCRIPTION: VIVID, REVEALING DETAILS
Your job as a storyteller is to create IMAGES. This is true not just for screenwriters, but for anyone presenting a story to a reader or an audience.
DIALOGUE vs. ACTION: Tell Don’t Show
Writing and storytelling are filled with rules and maxims that are presented as unbreakable commandments – but which should occasionally be challenged.
Clothes Make the Girl: WORKING GIRL
Brief, vivid descriptions of the characters and settings in your screenplay, novel or presentation create a vivid movie in the mind of your reader or audience.