MY MOST COMMON SCRIPT NOTES
MOST COMMON NOTES FROM SCRIPT FEEDBACK Through my script consultancy, over 18 years, I have now fed back on over 2300 different projects (screenplays, radio plays, stage plays, outlines, treatments, etc). I often find myself giving the same notes. And I thought it might be helpful to share with you some of the notes I […]
IN PRAISE OF TV DRAMA SERIES – Blue Lights & The Pitt
Hi There, In praise of TV drama series – The Pitt & Blue Lights. In the last decade or more, traditional long-running precinct-based, procedural TV drama series have not been fashionable but, to my mind, when done well, there is no more enjoyable and creatively (and commercially!) fulfilling screenwriting form. These long-running series enable you […]
PLOT AND STORY
PLOT AND STORY Distinguishing between story and plot is tricky. ‘Plot’ is the events that enable and dramatize your story. The story is the show. This is what we’re watching for. The conjunction of character and plot – what the characters do, what impact and consequences the events of the plot have on them. Plot […]
4SCREENWRITING READER FEEDBACK PART 3
Hi There, This fortnight, more reader feedback from the 2026 Channel 4 screenwriting course – huge thanks to the excellent JOSEPHINE FRANKEL for this generous and insightful contribution. Write What You Know (Sort Of) Every year, we readers begin the illusive task of identifying – you’ve guessed it – fresh new voices! Now if, like […]
LITHUANIA
Hi There, LITHUANIA I have had a packed and very enjoyable / lucky March. Earlier in the month in Belfast for a three-day Screenskills script editing course, a new granddaughter born and then a week in Vilnius, Lithuania at the end of the month as one of two mentors for a TV drama series forum […]
RANDOM STORY THOUGHTS
RANDOM STORY THOUGHTS I apologise for the random / scattergun nature of this week’s newsletter but time has been in short supply. I taught a 3 day Screenskills script editing course in Belfast last week and turned my phone back on after my one-hour flight to Stansted on Friday evening to discover that my daughter […]
CREATIVITY FOR SCRIPTWRITERS
CREATIVITY FOR SCRIPT WRITERS https://script-consultant.co.uk/creativity-for-scriptwriters/ Of all the courses I run, this is probably the one I find most exciting. Absolutely no preparation or homework is involved – but every time, the ideas and stories that come out of this course blow me away. I talk about a lot of the exercises that we do […]
THEATRE WRITING OPPORTUNITIES
Hi There, This fortnight I am hugely indebted to playwright and screenwriter ROBIN CANTWELL, who was on one of my recent two-day screenwriting courses and subsequently very kindly went to the trouble of compiling this invaluable list of current writing opportunities in UK theatre. About Robin: Robin Cantwell is an award-winning playwright based in London. […]
APPLES AND ORANGES – 4SCREENWRITING READER FEEDBACK
C4 SCREENWRITING COURSE – NOTES ON READING Hi There, After Karen Featherstone’s excellent feedback last fortnight, here are some of the notes I made while reading the scripts for the 2026 Channel 4 screenwriting course – APPLES AND ORANGES By which I mean – comparing the two is absurd – but it’s the same with […]
4SCREENWRITING READER FEEDBACK – KAREN FEATHERSTONE
ONE DAY INTRODUCTION TO SCREENWRITING – London Saturday February 14th 2026 Guest speakers – KATE LEYS (one of the UK’s foremost story editors with a glittering CV) and screenwriter NATHANIEL PRICE (credits include Mr Loverman, Noughts & Crosses, The Outlaws, Tin Star). Both a celebration of and an introduction to the craft of screenwriting. https://script-consultant.co.uk/one-day-introduction-to-screenwriting/ […]