The Truby Rules

“Most screenplays fail at the concept level.” This is something I’ve been seriously thinking about lately. There’s almost a mathematical precision to writing movies,…

Self Editing

Editing. The ugly word. We’d all like to think that our first draft is perfect, and that the publisher is going to instantly write…

Essential Keys to the Writer’s Notebook

It doesn’t matter what kind of notebook you get. I like a small one (9.5X6) because that way I can carry it around with…

The Next Steps in the Novel Challenge

Okay, in the last few days, we got the mechanical stuff set up for the novel. We’re about to really start our planning soon,…

Getting your novel off to a right start

I’m of course always reading, studying, trying to improve. Experts tell us this is the character trait of a successful novelist and screenplay writer….

Starting your novel project in Scrivener

The first thing you’re going to do is get Scrivener, and then get the template. I’m probably going to try a mystery, because I’ve…

Six Important Keys to Scene Introductions

Years ago, when I was a kid, I remember my dad going off on intro lines to books. He made a big deal about…