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The Screenwriter's Workbook
by Syd Field
List Price: 16.00
Price: 10.88

Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours

Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Delta; Rev Upd (October 31 2006)
Costumer Rating: Costumer rating

Read an Excerpt

Chapter 1: The Blank Page
The hardest thing about writing is knowing what to write. A short time ago, I was having dinner with a group of friends, and as is so often the case, the subject turned to movies. We talked about films we had seen, films we liked, films we didn't like

Chapter 1: The Blank Page : Part 2
During her preparation period we had several discussions, talked about the possibilities of opening it up, using the visual components found in the hospital: tests like EEGs, CAT scans, PET scans, and X-rays, and having the action broken up by the arrival

Chapter 1: The Blank Page : Part 3
My student came to me, angry and confused. She didn't know what to do. She kept talking about needing a more active, cinematic opening and I kept telling her that wasn't the problem; she had to know, creatively, which story she was writing.



Book Description

At last! The classic screenwriting workbook - now completely revised and updated - from the celebrated lecturer, teacher, and bestselling author, Syd Field: "the most sought-after screenwriting teacher in the world"

No one knows more about screenwriting than Syd Field - and now the ultimate Hollywood insider shares his secrets and expertise, completely updating his bestselling workbook for a new generation of screenwriters. Filled with new material - including fresh insights and anecdotes from the author and analyses of films from Pulp Fiction to Brokeback Mountain - The Screenwriter's Workbook is your very own hands-on workshop, the book that allows you to participate in the processes that have made Syd Field's workshops invaluable to beginners and working professionals alike. Follow this workbook through to the finish, and you'll end up with a complete and salable script!

Learn how to:

  • Define the idea on which your script will be built
  • Create the model - the paradigm - that professionals use
  • Bring your characters to life
  • Write dialogue like a pro
  • Structure your screenplay for success from the crucial first pages to the final act

Here are systematic instructions, easy-to-follow exercises, a clear explanation of screenwriting basics, and expert advice at every turn - all the moment-to-moment, line-by-line help you need to transform your initial idea into a professional screenplay that's earmarked for success.

About the Author

Syd FieldSyd Field

Syd Field is a screenwriter, producer, teacher, international lecturer, and author of the bestselling books Screenplay, The Screenwriter's Workbook, Selling a Screenplay, and Four Screenplays. Published in 1982, Screenplay has been translated into sixteen languages, and is used in more than 250 colleges and universities across the country. At present he is creative consultant to the governments of Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Austria, and South Africa, and has been a script consultant for Roland Jaffe's film production company, for Alfonso Arau and Laura Esquivel on Like Water for Chocolate, and for Tri-Star Pictures.

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