Script-a-week & treatment workshop

Since putting a chart on my door where I can tick off each hour I write, I've decided to jump head-first into my writing. Being able to cross off a little square after every hour of uninterrupted* work is a great way to motivate yourself. How many hours have you spent writing this week? If you don't know, consider using a chart. It also helps you write at least one hour every day, because looking at a blank column is horrifying! Just shade off days you know you can't write and focus on the others.

They say the best thing we can do as writers is read scripts. Most people will know about this, but there's a blog where you can download at least one script a week - Script Collector. Entirely made up of PDF scripts, he has a wide variety, including 'Pulp Fiction', 'Saving Private Ryan', 'Changeling', 'Donnie Darko', 'Star Trek' (2009), 'Die Hard' 'Fight Club' 'Inglourious Basterds' and much much more. So now there's absolutely no excuse for not being able to find scripts.

Yesterday, I set myself up with a script a week until Christmas. Ask me what I'll be doing week beginning 16th November and I'll say I'm reading Ed Norton's 'The Incredible Hulk' screenplay. Again, putting this up on the door is a great way to keep you focused on the week's goals. I'm also adding something similar to my blog so I can never forget.

In other news, I'm travelling to London on Saturday 12th September to attend Charles Harris' treatment workshop. At £85, it may seem expensive, but if you take a look round, you'll see it's really not!

As you all know, treatments are one of the first ways of getting your script made. Without a decent treatment, it doesn't matter how good your script is.

The workshop starts at 10:30 and finishes at 5:30. During the day we'll learn about:

• The requirements of a successful treatment
• Choice of vocabulary, language patters and structures
• The traps that treatment writers must avoid
• Nine vital steps towards writing an exciting treatment
• Using story sentence, inner story, character constellation
• The step outline
• The masterpiece treatment

We'll also receive a pack containing top treatments and synopses.

The course looks really interesting and valuable. It'll be a long, hard day, getting up at 6am to get to London then not getting home till late, then working the following......snore.........

*wakes up*

There aren't many places left, so scoot over here pronto to book your place.

Over on ScriptXray, there's a list of 100 screenwriting tips. Goes without saying - a valuable resource!

Finally, for instant writing inspiration, fly on over to Marvin Acuna's site and watch this quick video which tells you what never to say to someone.....

There's a line in Metallica's 'Don't Tread On Me' that goes:

To secure peace is to prepare for war!

I have my own version:

To become a successful writer, write your fucking arse off!

Granted it's not quite as poetic, but you get the point!

Happy writing fellow scribes :)

PS: Is anyone else already booked on/planning on going? Let me know!

* Uninterrupted means not checking facebook,
myspace, the blog, e-mails, or twitter!!!