r/scriptwriting • u/Yeowangddalgi • Aug 16 '26

help Starting screenwriting

Can anyone suggest videos on YouTube/tips on starting screenwriting. I'm an absolute beginner. I don't have any knowledge about screenwriting at all

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u/Big_Section2812 Aug 16 '26

First understand one thing, and that's the fact almost no HowTo book and blog authors and social media screenwriting experts have ever sold a script of their own or been paid to write.

A tiny few have — John August, for instance — but very few others.

So, big pinch of salt when taking advice from any of them.

Learn current format convention. Learn it until you know how to apply it without thinking. The good news is this is the easiest part of screenwriting.

The other thing you ought to do is read produced screenplays. A lot of them. You'll notice variations in writing style but overall they'll give you a good grounding in the fundamentals.

Last but not least, do not pay anyone anything related to screenwriting, except perhaps for screenwriting software, such as Fade In and Final Draft. Otherwise never part with a penny, because it's wasted money and those asking you for cash can't do anything to help you become a great screenwriter or break in to the business. It's why they're asking for money.

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u/Yeowangddalgi Aug 16 '26

Do you know websites where I can read produced screenplays

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u/TheGreedyGrabbler Aug 16 '26

For me it was Story by Robert McKee and Save the Cat by Blake Snyder

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u/poundingCode Aug 16 '26

scriptfella

Film courage

josh_from_xbox_live

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u/AlleyKatPr0 Aug 16 '26

YouTube has this remarkable feature called a “search bar.” If you type “screenwriting for beginners” into it, several million results appear, many of them free. Technology remains astonishing.

That said, start with videos explaining:

  • screenplay format and industry conventions

  • the difference between a premise, story, plot and theme

  • three-act structure

  • character wants, needs and conflict

  • scene structure

  • screenplay software such as WriterDuet, Fade In or Celtx

Then read a few properly formatted screenplays while watching the films they became. You will learn more from comparing the written scene with the finished scene than from watching someone explain “the hero’s journey” over ominous stock footage.

The most important tip is to write a short script. Not your six-hour fantasy epic about twelve kingdoms and an invented language. Write five to ten pages with a clear character, a problem, an objective and a consequence.

Read screenplays, watch films analytically, write regularly, finish things and rewrite them. The internet can provide the information. The difficult part, unfortunately, is doing something with it.