Category: Thoughts on Screenwriting

  Yes, it’s a cheery one. At the risk of being extremely depressing, I have been thinking, for various reasons, about death quite a lot

Hi There, It’s blindingly obvious that the most important thing for budding screenwriters is your writing – your ability to tell a story compellingly and

BIOPICS It seems to me that BIOPICS are one of the hardest genres to nail. There are just so many pitfalls to avoid with this

Hi There, Please bear with this – there is a story telling reason for it!… In August last year (2023) I went to watch my

  MONTAGE IN SCREENPLAYS I’ve been thinking about MONTAGE recently – when does it work? What makes a good montage? What makes a bad montage?

Hi There, This fortnight’s screenwriting newsletter is the penultimate reader feedback from the 2024 Channel 4 screenwriting course readers. (The final missive by the brilliant

THE MAGIC STORY TREE? What I’m trying to illustrate here is just how many amazing stories (and character ideas) there are out there in the

Hi There, This week, further script reader feedback from the 2024 Channel 4 screenwriting course. This fortnight, from the excellent Jon Champion. Jon did a

Hi There, I hope your writing is going very well. This fortnight, your responses to my last newsletter, ‘CREATIVE STEALING’. ‘Hi Philip, Inspiring newsletter, thank

Hi There, STORY PROMPTS / STEALING CREATIVELY One of the things I often find myself talking to writers about is the importance of having a