Screenwriting Tricks of the Trade

Rating:
Summary: William Froug: Refreshing Words for a New Writer
Review: As a new Screenplay writer, his book was a joyous relief that dispels some of the "old school" methodology and theory. You will learn to harness what you know already, as well as, apply new and refreshing techniques that will help you develop a top-notch story.

This book is a perfect compliment to the "Screenwriter's Bible", by David Trottier. Both of these books are a must have.

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Summary: Straight Talk - Pragmatic Advice
Review: I've read about a dozen scriptwriting books and this was in many ways the best of the bunch.

Froug has taught several of today's top-paid screenwriters. His methods are time-tested and proven effective. Many myths were dispelled in this book, and I found that it contained a great deal of very practical tips that other books simply didn't deal with. For example, how do you know if your script is boring? Will it get ripped-off? How do I keep from losing the "fire" for writing my script? These questions and many others are answered in the book.

One of the best things about "Tricks of the Trade" is the way in which it strikes a balance between structure and "feel" in your writing. Froug isn't shy about questioning the rigid formulaic methods which Syd Field teaches. While acknowledging that a reasonable structure *is* important, he states that it is far more important to write from the heart. This is one of the first screenwriting books I've seen do this - to actually tell you that Act I doesn't have to end on page 25, that there musn't be a certain event on page 45, etc. While agreeing that certain elements need to be present to create a good, solid story, Froug boldly teaches us to write from out heart first.

I would recommend reading "How to Write a Movie in 21 Days" as a companion to this. It is sort of an opposite approach, being very formulaic, but once you have that perspective then you can read Froug's book and learn about the importance of the "feel" in your writing.

Lastly, what you'll find inside the covers...

- the process of writing, from conception to final draft - creating a solid story - writing powerful dialog - finding ideas - finding an agent/producer - creating a strong protagonist - much, much more

Enjoy, and happy writing!

Rating:
Summary: A necessary addition to your screenwriting resources
Review: I've read other screenwriting books, but keep picking this up to keep me motivated and on track. This book does not have the nuts and bolts of the beginning "how to's". It's not meant to. It's the book you pick up after the others to change your attitude.
I recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: A necessary addition to your screenwriting resources
Review: I've read other screenwriting books, but keep picking this up to keep me motivated and on track. This book does not have the nuts and bolts of the beginning "how to's". It's not meant to. It's the book you pick up after the others to change your attitude.
I recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: Good - but others are better
Review: Summary: Buy one of the other "how to screenwrite" books first, and come back to this to round out the holes.

UCLA entertainment professor Froug has taught many of the top screenwriter's in Hollywood and has gotten some of his own work on to the big screen, so he's definitely worth listening to.

One of his main points is that you've got to have a structure for what you're writing about, but not too much structure because that kills the innovation and passion in it. Unfortunately, his book follows that advice and itself has some structure but not enough to make it both comprehensive and informative.

He calls it "tricks of the trade" and there's a good reason: it's not laid out to systematically teach you how to write a screenplay. It really is more ad hoc advice on writing screenplays. But I will say it's really good ad hoc advice. If you can get past Froug's slightly arrogant, pompous tone.

As someone who is a novice at screenwriting, I found a Charles Deemer's "Screenwrite" to be better at laying out a good structure for how to think about the main elements that go into writing a good screenplay. Christopher Keane's "How to write a selling screenplay' was also better, but stuck more closely to the formulaic 3-act structure and Hero's journey paradigm.

But all three books basically convey the same core message, just with a bit of a different spin. I've read reviews of lots of the screenwriting books now, and it seems like they all say kinda the same thing.

Rating:
Summary: Screenwriting Tricks of the Trade - Thumbs Up
Review: The book was given to me as a gift 4 years ago. Since that time, I have written numerous screenplays and have found some success with it. This book is a book that I continue to use as a reference on almost every script I write. This book doesn't break down the basics for the novice screenwriter, but gives an overview of the writing process -- things that you might have forgotten as you are engrossed in a rewrite. I have found Mr. Froug's book to have been extremely helpful and his attitude on screenwriting and life refreshing.