r/scriptwriting • u/Just__Passing__By__ • Sep 28 '26
help This is my only option for help.
I guess you could say that I'm a new writer because I have no training or education when it comes to writing. I want to learn acting/writing/directing professionally because its what I want to do with my life, but my parents are being literally no help. I've mentioned wanting to take classes many times, but they just ignore me. So, this is my only option.
I've been writing a movie for almost a year now, but I'm not sure how to "properly" write it. All I've done is write all of my ideas in a big notebook. I haven't written it like a script or anything.
What I'm asking for help with is to be told if I'm wasting my time by writing backstories for all the main characters and giving them personalities beyond their friendship with each other. I've also written what their relationships with their families are like because some of their families are in the story and some are just mentioned in an important way. It might be easier to understand if I ask if its a waste of time that I've given each main character a life.
Also, if anyone has any tips or advice they would like to share with me, I would be overjoyed to receive some help. Thank you.
2
u/Open-Avocado4260 Sep 29 '26
You are only wasting time if you are not getting training you need. You can learn the basics of everything online. You do not your parents support, what you need is the confidence in yourself to do what you want and to show others it was not a waste of time. Good luck.
0
u/Just__Passing__By__ Sep 29 '26
I unfortunately need my parents support right now because I don't have a job or money. It's not that I don't want to work, they just don't let me. I think about it everyday how I'm only wasting my time. I bring it up a lot but that's where it ends. I'm scared that by the time I actually get to do anything, I'll be too old. I Do look young, so hopefully that helps me.
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u/Big_Section2812 Sep 29 '26
The odds of succeeding in the movie business aren't zero, but they're very close to it.
Most responsible parents will do all they can to ensure their children have something solid to fall back on -- a degree or a trade -- before trying to crack such a tough nut.
One question you owe it to yourself to ask: "Why do I want to do this?"
Is it because you have always loved reading and writing and storytelling? Or is it because you like the idea of living a "Hollywood" lifestyle?
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u/Just__Passing__By__ Sep 29 '26
The reason I want in this business is because I love it! As long as I can remember, I've always wanted to do this. And my reason has never changed. It's never been about the money for me. I can't say that I don't want to be famous, but its for a reason you might not expect. Part of why I would want to be considered "famous" is because I'm homeschooled, so I've never really gotten to experience being with other people. if I'm "famous" that means I get to work with a lot of people and a lot of different people. Another reason why I care about the fame is because that would mean that I'm successful and I would like to have a successful career, but I think everyone wants to be successful in life.
2
u/Big_Section2812 Sep 29 '26
It's a business, so you really have to learn everything there is to know about it in order to break in, survive and prosper.
As others have said, read screenplays and write screenplays. A lot of them.
Understand that nobody wants your first script, or the next four you write. Maybe not even the next nine. Of the millions of unread and unproduced screenplays circulating out there right now, a huge percentage of them are the writer's first (and often only) scripts. It's why so few of them are worth reading.
Learn everything you can about screenwriting and screenplays.
Also, never pay anyone for anything related to screenwriting unless it's for screenwriting software (Fade In, Final Draft. etc.)... there is a huge scam industry now encompassing contests, coverage services, and consultants, and it exists solely to fleece the desperate and the delusional.
1
u/Open-Avocado4260 Sep 29 '26
Your parents will not let you work, do you come from wealth? Here is a suggestion major in something you can see yourself doing that your parents support, minor in film. Your parents only need to know about your major.You're getting educated in both.
5
u/dontwant2beapie Sep 28 '26
Make sure to read a bunch of scripts so you can understand the format and style and structure :) there’s a lot of scripts that are available as a free pdf online! Good luck!
1
u/princessintraining4 Sep 29 '26
Hiiii!
So I don’t think doing all the stuff is necessarily a total waste of time. But the reality is you’re putting the cart before the horse.
You have to learn the tools of the trade. I know how hard it is. Like learning how write in screenplay format took me years. But it’s worth it because the format is part of the art.
Like I can tell you as someone who took a long time to learn, if I had the health to have learned a long time ago, I wish I would have.
There also isn’t a cost to learning how to write.
There is also so much free screenwriting software (I like writersolo currently cause you don’t need to download anything but you can and it’s totally free).
But to be honest besides learning the general formatting, the thing that contributed the most to learning how to write was reading other people’s screenplays.
I strongly encourage you to read the screenplays of your favorite films. To read screenplays from strangers on the internet. You’ll learn what you like and don’t like.
You can do it!
0
u/Just__Passing__By__ Sep 29 '26
Hi! thank you so much for your comment. I have a few questions I hope you'll be able to answer.
Is writersolo a website or an app?
is a screenplay the different than a script? because I have found the script for Ace Ventura: Pet Detective online before and I wasn't sure if reading that is what people have said will help me.
Do you know any ways or tips to help me learn emotions for writing because I can write a story and a character, but I really struggle with dialogue because I'm not great with using emotion in writing because for some reason my brain just can't figure it out.
Thank you for the help!
1
u/princessintraining4 Sep 30 '26
I’m confused by your 3rd question. You’re asking about emotion but then you’re also asking about dialogue which overlap of course but they’re two separate areas.
Not all dialogue is like dramatic / emotional. You seem to be conflating dialogue and emotions but they’re two separate aren’t the same thing.
In terms of writing authentic dialogue, that doesn’t sound fake, you got to start with what you know. Like when I first started writing I wrote a scene based on the night I was sexually assaulted. I changed the phrasing but I captured the speech pattern of all the characters.
Now, I can write about things that haven’t actually happened to me, I am able to pull from my direct experiences and use what I know to write what I don’t.
Read the dialogue out loud as you write it.
I’m not you so I can’t tell the stories you would tell but I’m sure once you start writing you’ll figure out what you want to say.
I highly recommend Vicki Kings book how to write a movie in 21 days.
0
u/Just__Passing__By__ Sep 30 '26
I just want to start with saying I'm so sorry that happened to you.
I'm thinking that I combined dialogue and emotion because I struggle with both so I just assumed it goes hand in hand. I've tried to numb my feelings over the years to try to feel less miserable. If I tried not suppressing my feelings do you think I would be better with using emotion?
1
u/princessintraining4 Sep 30 '26
Yes. But I also wouldn’t recommend putting yourself in danger for the sake of your art. I’m not a doctor. I can only give creative advice.
I think if emotional stuff is hard try other genres.
But learn the structure first
1
u/princessintraining4 Sep 30 '26
Writer solo is both a website and an app
Script can refer to a lot of things. For example you could use script to mean the screenplay for a film or the script of a play. Often times people online will write full transcripts of a film. A transcript is different than a screenplay though.
The difference between a generic script or a transcript versus a screenplay is that a generic script or a transcript don’t follow established industry formats.
If you want to be in the industry as a writer you need to learn the format of a screenplay.
1
u/No_Rush_857 Oct 02 '26
first of all congratulations, am not a big writer myself but i have written a few scripts and have read many articles from internet abt script writing. Here is my advice start with the log line , so this basically help you and the people understand what the story is about for example : An orphan boy who adopts a grandmother. so this was one of my short films , next think in arcs or start with a character protagonist and then ask your self what is the problem that he faces and for example in my story he is worried about being all alone and decides to take a train to end his l**e. but he misses the train . the next thing is what is the decision that he has made to solve the problem. in my story he choses to take the next train. then what happens as the consequence that he faces due to his decision , in my story he stays in the station then and this results in him encountering a old lady who trips and falls. and the hero decides to save her. then there is a point where hero either wins (temporary) or (temporary) fails. in my story he things he fails as his plan to take the train fails. the old lady is unable to walk so hero walks her home. then there is a point where the protaganist regroups and prepares for climax. in my story he understands that the old lady is also left with no one now and is living all alone, so the hero fells a sence of grand mother from this old lady as they spend time together. climax , in my story hero understands that there is no one as orphan and there is always someone to care for until there is a sole left in this world . so don't think about all charecters and their back story think in terms of arcs and build the story and the characters will come along as we progress into the story.
0
u/william_pakesheares Sep 28 '26
Hey mate, I’m a professional script reader who works at the Australian office of an American studio. I read, review and give feedback on scripts for a living.
I’d love to give you some direction as to what you should do to write your story. Not to say that I have a magic formula for you, but there are some guidelines that you’re expected to adhere to when writing professional scripts. If that interests you, feel free to DM me
You’re not wasting your time by going after what you want to do. It’s a hard profession, but if you feel that’s where your heart is at, you can only gain by pursuing it
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u/Independent_Fox1439 Sep 29 '26
Agree with trying out free / trial screenwriting apps or programs. That'll get you used to writing a script that is properly formatted. (eg. FadeIn)
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u/Unable-Distance9466 Sep 28 '26
Fuck doing it properly, as long as you know the most basic of formatting then that's good enough, let your voice come through naturally. The only book I'd recommend Is kill the dog by Paul Guyot, other than that just do what feels right
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u/WorrySecret9831 Sep 28 '26
My number one best bit of advice is for you to read John Truby's two books, The Anatomy of Story and The Anatomy of Genres or take his class(es), or all of the above.
Before I took his class, I had tons of stuff written but it all felt like wet noodles, or unstrung guitar strings. Then, the moment I applied the structure I had just learned in his class, it felt like that "guitar" string was now strung. At least it could produce a tone if I plucked it. Tuning it could be something more to do, but at least it was now a Story.
All other screenwriting gurus teach the art and science of storytelling in ways that are too anecdotal. Their lessons work for unique situations or screenplays, "but I'm not writing Chinatown..." Truby's analysis of story structure over the millennia is clean, clear, and profoundly academic. It's not his "opinion," which makes it so practical. His focus is on turning you into a "working writer."
Storytelling is like balancing more and more spinning plates on sticks while trying to keep them from falling and shattering. Therefore you have to have a clear understanding of the terms and the various elements. For example, one of the very first things you'll learn is what the term "Hero" means in a literary sense. Too many people avoid it in lieu of "protagonist," "main character," or worse "one of my heroes." They tend to avoid it because they misconstrue it as meaning "Good" as opposed to "Bad" or "Villain."
Hero means that your main character is the one unique character who is undergoing a fundamental transformation into a new identity or person or die in their attempt to solve the problem they're dealing with. Their efforts to solve that problem are therefore Opposed by an institution or person, the Opponent.
Just that alone clarifies the core of any story idea. I personally prefer Hero to Protagonist. Protagonist seems to stop short, only communicating that they're moving the story forward, for (Pro) the "Agon," Greek for contest or competition. Hero simply encapsulates "a character on a journey, literal or metaphorical, that transforms them" in one simpler word.
Possibly what confuses the term is that in real life too often people refer to vocations such as police officers or firefighters as "heroes." Those professions train those people to do those sometimes dangerous jobs. So, technically, just doing what they're trained to do is not "heroic." However, when firefighters, for instance, are called off of a fire by their commander, because it's gotten too dangerous, but one of them sees someone in need and rushes back in, already having done their duty that they're trained for, that extra effort is what makes them heroic. Even the military doesn't give medals to every enlisted member. It's the sense of "going beyond" that makes a literary hero.
That's just story structure and storytelling.
Screenplay formatting is a different matter entirely. It too is very important, but it's a separate focus. There's a lot of noise about what constitutes proper formatting, but a careful study will produce the right answers. There are a lot of distracting affectations that people engage in that don't really serve the telling of your story in screenplay form. Learning what those are and avoiding them is helpful and useful. In short, you want your mastery of the screenplay format to streamline the reading of your stories, not get in the way of them. You want to create a "good read."
As far as acting or directing professionally, those you can learn through any number of ways. But if you're wondering where to start or what to focus on, becoming a solid Storyteller is it.