Titel should read "How To Sell a Written Screenplay."

books:


	• How to Write a Selling Screenplay Christopher Keane Broadway, 1998 - 320 pages average customer review:based on 37 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Excellent guide for screenplay writing

So far the best and complete guide for screenplay that I've read. Very useful for those who wants to start writing a screenplay. I recommend it.

The Brokeback Passion of Harry Potter Kong

As Chance the Gardener says in BEING THERE, "I like to watch." As one who also likes to watch, this 'blockbuster release' time of year always makes me wonder....Could I do 'that'? Just how hard is it to do 'that.? 'That' being writing a screenplay and whatever comes after. A mystery to most of us watchers. This time I decided to seek answers to these questions. I naturally sought a book, which, for this quest, is Christopher Keane's HOW TO WRITE A SELLING SCREENPLAY.
CASABLANCA screenwriter Julius Epstein's foreword to this book closes with, 'Good luck and welcome to the terrible, wonderful world of screenwriting.' Why terrible/wonderful? By the time I finished this book, that was crystal clear. I learned that this pursuit isn't for the faint of heart or the thin-skinned. Screenwriting is demanding. It's daunting. It requires utter focus. It's frustrating. It's exciting. It's lonely. It's rewarding. There are lots of rules....There are no rules...
In this informative, engaging primer one can learn these rules and gain valuable insights into the wild and crazy film business itself. You might learn from this book that your idea is better suited for a play. Or a novel. Or a TV series. It's just as important to know what isn't a good screenplay idea as what is. Saves time! Throughout, I found that this book teaches about writing in the larger sense as well as screenwriting in particular. Chris Keane walks us through the many facets of this discipline that comprise the whole; the all-important story, character, plot, structure, dialogue, format, collaboration and re-write among them. He illuminates all of these aspects with references to specific films. And the book is peppered with personal anecdotes from the author's career. I found these to be invaluable insights. And one learns that once the screenplay is finished, the real work begins. This book will be helpful in the vital hunt for an agent, a key piece of the process puzzle.
I particularly like that this isn't an 'Ivory Tower Theory' book. Though Mr. Keane teaches this art, he also does it. And he has written novels and written for TV. As it's said today, he's been there-done that. I trust and respect this experience above all.
Whether you want to be a Chance the Gardener and 'just watch,' or you want to try actually writing a screenplay, I suggest you have Christopher Keane's book by your side. It's a helpful tool, seems to me. The more we know about the film process the better the 'watching' or 'doing' will be. This book will enhance the watching experience and make the 'doing' more manageable.
I've been trying to come up with a logline for this book....So far? 'The Hitchhikers Guide to the make believe.' Logline? Very important. See HOW TO WRITE A SELLING SCREENPLAY, Chapter 5.....

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Impeccable

Unless you enjoy battering your head against the wall, read Keane's book before embarking on your project. Soup to nuts and three desserts - he gives the reader everything.

Fantastic Book!

I highly recommend this book. It has helped write the Different Flags screenplay. Eugenia RenskoffDifferent Flags

Titel should read "How To Sell a Written Screenplay."

This books is very well written and has loads of information for the beginning screen writer such as myself. The author takes a chronological step by step approach as to how to get started and the proper format for a screenplay. The only thing I'm sort of ad odds with is that the author doesn't say much as to how in the world you get an agent to just read your script, let alone representing you. He sort of glosses over that problem and a real problem it is. I personally have been sending out query letters since February of this year and have received only "polite" rejection form letters or no responses at all. I've even sent out "follow up" queries and still no responses. I assume that agents need postage stamps, they've obviously kept the ones that I've included for return postage, or that in order to get ANYTHING read and actually produced, you have to know someone personally in the business. Don't quit your day jobs and think that you're going to sell a story. It's next impossible, as I've unfortunately realized. You would assume that it's not really that difficult given all the "schlock" that IS produced. Case in point: an independent film maker made a film this last year about zombies attacking a small town and it cost him about $30,000 to make. He released it and it made over $35,000,000 in one weekend! Out grossing the three main stream releases put together! Go figure. Never the less, this book is a good fundamental but just don't depend on it too much as gospel. Keep writing, keep looking for an agent but also keep/find a regular job in the meantime.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

Christopher Keane has spent 20 years in the business, learning the truths--and the tricks--of writing a selling screenplay. In How to Write a Selling Screenplay, he takes writers through the entire process, from developing a story to finding the best agent. Using an annotated version of an often-optioned screenplay of his own, and citing examples from movies ranging from Casablanca and Lethal Weapon to Sling Blade and The English Patient, he discusses how to create three-dimensional characters, find a compelling story, build an airtight plot structure, fine-tune dialogue, and much more. Keane's tips on the difference between writing for film and television, as well as his advice on dealing with Hollywood movers and shakers, make this an essential companion for people writing their first--or their fortieth--screenplay.

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