If you think you’ve got a great story to tell, here’s a quick way to find out. In his book “Secrets of Loglines, Treatments, and Pitches” by William C. Martell, the author explains a quick way he and his screenwriting group would analyze a story idea.
Every Friday night, the theaters would introduce a new batch of movies to watch. So William Martell and his friends would look at what was currently playing in the theaters and compare those offerings with different story ideas they might have created.
The idea was that if your story idea wasn’t as appealing as the current weekend movie choices, your story idea probably wasn’t strong enough to bother writing. Given a choice between watching a blockbuster movie like “Top Gun: Maverick” or “Wicked”, how many people would choose your story idea on a Friday night?
Far too many novices fall in love with the first idea they come up with and then relentlessly try to write a screenplay based on that story idea. Unfortunately if your story idea is dull, then no amount of screenwriting formatting is going to make it any better.
Would you rather watch a movie about an amusement park full of dinosaurs that run amok (“Jurassic Park”), or would you rather watch a movie about a woman who fights with her mother until she decides to move out on her own?
When you start comparing your story ideas to the number one movie at the box office, you can quickly judge whether your idea is strong enough or not. Rather than come up with one idea and try to turn it into a screenplay, it’s far better to come up with dozens (or even hundreds) of different story ideas until you find that one idea that nearly everyone agrees they would rather see on a Friday night than the current number one blockbuster.
The better your story idea can compete against the best that Hollywood can put out there, the better your chances of getting your screenplay sold, optioned, and produced.
Telling a story well is never enough. Telling a great story well is the real goal. That means you must first come up with a killer idea that everyone wishes they had thought of first. Once you’ve nailed down that one killer idea for a story, the second step is to tell that great story well.
Without a great idea for a story, all your writing skill will go to waste. Without great storytelling skills, a great idea will be nothing but potential.
So take the time now to find that one killer story idea that makes your idea stand out from the crowd. The sooner you can come up with a great idea for a story, the greater the chances you’ll find success in writing and selling a screenplay.
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Hey
Wallace. Received a mail about your health update. If you are reading this… I don’t know what to say… but…
get well soon.