Q: Can you describe some of the things writers need to think about in writing a salable story?
A: Since my entire career has been built on answering this question for writers and filmmakers, it’s pretty hard to reduce it to a single answer. But the best advice that comes to mind to cover all situations is to suggest that writers ask themselves three questions about every screenplay they write:
1. What is each character desperate to achieve?
2. What makes that goal seem impossible?
3. What terrifies each character?
Writers willing to dig deep enough to answer these questions are well on their way to a commercial screenplay. For much, much more, refer to my book Writing Screenplays That Sell or my CDs and DVDs Screenwriting for Hollywood or The Hero’s 2 Journeys.
Love this article it really help.
I’m going to use this for every one of the characters I write about. Thank you.
Wow! This was just amazing ❤️ Thank you
This is supposed to be a lesson for class, but this article along with the six stage plot structure has gotten me entangled with painful emotions tied to my story. Thank you for sharing your knowledge; I look forward to learning more from your videos and posts.