Rating: 
Summary: Aspiring Screenwriter's Bible
Review: Skip Press does an excellant job in not only educating you on the process of writing, but in inspiring you to look beyond conventions. I found it easy to follow and entertaining (a first!) and refer to it often. I recommend this book to anyone seriously considering a career in screenwriting!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent source for a beginning screenwritier
Review: Skip Press's book on screenwriting had been the most redable book I have has, particularly compared with other books. As a result, there has been much more improvement in my writing since getting this book than there was from all the other books I have read combined. This book has been the one I constantly refer to when I want to double-check something as I am writing. I strongly recommend it to anyone with an interest in screenwriting. This should be the first book purchased for any beginning screenwriter, and it can also help those who have been writing for a while.
Rating:
Summary: The Complete Idiot's Guide To Screenwriting
Review: Skip's book is a winner. It's full of tips and tidbits; a wonderful compendium of information. Skip provides all the details to get a screenwriter moving, and then he gives sage advice on the dos and don'ts in Hollywood that'll help you get off on the right foot. A great read full of practical advice, and when you've finished it, consider getting his 2003-2003 Writer's Guide to Hollywood Producers, Directors and Screenwriter's Agents to scope out the market and start finding a home for that screenplay.
Rating: 
Summary: Good Hollywood Lousy History
Review: There is a LOT of good advice and Hollywood insider info that is invaluable but when it comes to the history part Mr Press leaves much to be desired unless you are big on Left Wing revisionism and are a New Ager. He dismisses the very real threat posed by the Communist activities in Hollywood and the very real contributions to the Golden Age of the movies by the various Chrsitian and Jewish decency groups. He also pushes Joseph Cambells confused nonsense and the idea of you are God (he's big on that) which some people of faith might find offensvie. He has to pander to the Hollywood Left fat cats I guess. Read this volume for the very real advice and links it offers -- but skip the chapters on History of the movies unless I repeat you like revisionsim.
Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Reference Book for any Screenwriter
Review: there is information in it which is undispensible like many websites listed offering newsletters and stuff like that. Not only for the beginner it's helpful but also for an advanced screenwriter. Of course, one should read other books about creative- and screenwriting - as many as possible, in order to help structure ones phantasy. But this still is the one I always come back to when in need of substantial information. It offers for example a simple structere to put a screenplay in the right format, although I would recommend one of the software programs with additional advantages - but - it is not necessary for a beginner. The advice regarding this item (of many others) in Skip Press's book is sufficient for the time when one starts - and this is much more than many other books offer.
Rating:
Summary: A Good Read!
Review: This book is filled with many helpful hints and thought provoking questions in terms of not only on how to write the script you want but how to present it for a possible sale to the buyer. It does an excellent job of giving the reader an overview of the content needed for a script vs. say a play or book. Rewriting and polish are two areas beginning and intermediate writers often have problems with, and chapters 17 and 18 offer valid points that every writer should keep in mind when reaching this stage. Lastly, non-traditional avenues such as internet sites for resources are listed in both the body of the book and in a handy pull out reference card in the front. Very worthwhile!
Rating: 
Summary: Really Bad
Review: This is possibly the worst book on screenwriting I've ever read. After reading such "inside advice" in the text as , "The most popular subject of movies is the vampire", I began to wonder if I should ask the book store for my money back. Don't waste your time on this below average book.
Rating:
Summary: Very General Introduction For The Young
Review: What I want to know is, who is the complete idiot of the title? The author or me? After reading THE COMPLETE IDIOT'S GUIDE TO SCREENWRITING, I'm not sure. It is not a complete guide, that's for sure. The author introduces a variety of components and considerations but explores none in depth. The strengths of the book: before he gets to what and how goes on paper, Press insists that the reader go back to storytelling boot camp and read Aristotle's POETICS and Joseph Campbell's HERO WITH A THOUSAND FACES. He also recommends a number of other resources, including books, websites, organizations and software that can prove helpful. The weaknesses: the reader whose mission is to learn correct formatting will be frustrated to find that such nuts and bolts information does not really get underway until half way into the book, and should be warned that it is merely an introduction, not exhaustive. While suggesting that there are many ways to offend Hollywood with how a script is formatted or bound, Press waffles on exact rules. Most of his reasoning and support evidence come from half invoked anecdotes that are vague enough to keep him out of the YOU'RE NEVER GOING TO EAT LUNCH IN THIS TOWN AGAIN fire. When he does name names, the stories are very old news, even to those who do not watch "Entertainment Tonight!" In the format of the Complete Idiot's series, the pages are littered with sidebars that distract from the text without providing much more than the author's usual "I know a guy" stories. Typos are a presence. So, this is what I know as a result of reading this book: my idea is right on, but I am too old, live too far from Hollywood, and don't know anyone there to make it count. I still have no specifics on what Press has scripted that has made it to the big screen. I do know he has written other books on the topic because he promotes them shamelessly.
Rating:
Summary: Very General Introduction For The Young
Review: What I want to know is, who is the complete idiot of the title? The author or me? After reading THE COMPLETE IDIOT'S GUIDE TO SCREENWRITING, I'm not sure. It is not a complete guide, that's for sure. The author introduces a variety of components and considerations but explores none in depth. The strengths of the book: before he gets to what and how goes on paper, Press insists that the reader go back to storytelling boot camp and read Aristotle's POETICS and Joseph Campbell's HERO WITH A THOUSAND FACES. He also recommends a number of other resources, including books, websites, organizations and software that can prove helpful. The weaknesses: the reader whose mission is to learn correct formatting will be frustrated to find that such nuts and bolts information does not really get underway until half way into the book, and should be warned that it is merely an introduction, not exhaustive. While suggesting that there are many ways to offend Hollywood with how a script is formatted or bound, Press waffles on exact rules. Most of his reasoning and support evidence come from half invoked anecdotes that are vague enough to keep him out of the YOU'RE NEVER GOING TO EAT LUNCH IN THIS TOWN AGAIN fire. When he does name names, the stories are very old news, even to those who do not watch "Entertainment Tonight!" In the format of the Complete Idiot's series, the pages are littered with sidebars that distract from the text without providing much more than the author's usual "I know a guy" stories. Typos are a presence. So, this is what I know as a result of reading this book: my idea is right on, but I am too old, live too far from Hollywood, and don't know anyone there to make it count. I still have no specifics on what Press has scripted that has made it to the big screen. I do know he has written other books on the topic because he promotes them shamelessly.
Rating:
Summary: All you need to know
Review: With this book, I have successfully written a script that is being optioned by the first producer who read it. Every question I had was answered in the book, every scenario explained to my understanding, and I keep Mr. Press's book beside my computer for easy reference. I am so pleased with this book and I highly recommend it to other new screenwriters. I have read many, many screenwriting books and this is only one I refer to. I wish I had found it years ago.
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