Be sure to start with the correct screenwriting formatting....

Whether you use Microsoft Word and simply set tabs for your formatting or use screenwriting software like CELTX, composing in a screenplay format can be weird at first. I always think of screenwriting as a lot like writing structured poetry such as sonnets. It takes a while to get used to the pattern; to get comfortable with it to the point where you no longer see it as limiting. Remember, it’s just the shape of the vessel into which you pour your thoughts. If it helps, write your initial entries as prose – margin to margin, BUT REFORMAT before you go onto the next page.

Access to industry movie scripts is simple these days. Have a look at the scripts for ‘The Arrival’ or Shakespeare In Love.  Find Monsters, Inc. That screenplay went through a zillion drafts to arrive at its final, wonderful version. Choose scripts for films that are easily available so you can READ the scripts and then WATCH the films. Compare the written  version with the cinematic representation.  

When you read the scripts, really examine the structure of the page – the balance of descriptive text to dialogue. Never forget that this is the finished product you’re looking at. It took many, many drafts to come to this perfection. The published script is for reference only at this point in time. Don’t compare it to your own work, yet!

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