Video · 1 min
[Video]: The State of Cinema 2014
'Given all the suffering in the world... what is art for? If the collected works of Shakespeare can't prevent genocide, shouldn't we be spending the time…
The Journal
Vol. 17 · 1,240 entries
26 August 2026
Quote of the day
Take what’s useful, argue with the rest.
Vol. 17
Story & Structure · 5 min
How the Antagonist Affects Character Arc
We often think of the antagonist as an external obstacle to our protagonist’s forward motion. by K.M. Weiland The antagonist is usually a physical entity, something…
Best of the Web · 1 min
Best of the Web 12 Oct
Story & Structure :: From Script To Screen: Ridley Scott's Prometheus :: Every Adaptation Should Be an Original! Script Perfection :: When The King speaks, I…
Video · 1 min
[Video]: David Cage’s Mind Games
'The purpose of storytelling was to avoid pain... to limit pain... and to give meaning.' As film studios increasingly live or die by whether or not…
Best of the Web · 1 min
Best of the Web 5 Oct
Story & Structure :: “Action Comes From Drama, and Drama is Conflict: What’s the Conflict?” :: Gordy Hoffman of BlueCat Talks What Makes a Story Great…
Movie Moments · 4 min
Miyazaki’s Porco Rosso: The Truth About A Conflicted Hero
Film buffs may claim the greatest Japanese director who ever lived was Kurosawa. In my books the greatest - and at the time of writing, still living -…
Video · 1 min
[Video]: Joss Whedon
'I had a need to see a girl fight monsters and not die.' Joss is the son of a TV writer, and the son of a…
Pitching & Selling · 8 min
Writing Yourself Out of a Hole
There’s an old story I’m tweaking slightly for our purposes that goes… by Danny Manus A screenwriter is walking down the street and falls into a…
Video · 1 min
[Video]: Drama Showrunners Roundtable
'I was talked out of a couple of deaths by the actors, believe it or not...' Another Hollywood Reporter's Drama Showrunner's Roundtable! Gorgeously shot, a half-dozen…
Best of the Web · 1 min
Best of the Web 21 Sep
Story & Structure :: Grant Morrison Exposes The Mechanisms of Hollywood Screenwriting Script Perfection :: 10 Screenwriting Tips From Billy Wilder :: Interview with Veteran Screenwriter…
Best of the Web · 1 min
Best of the Web 14 Sep
Story & Structure :: Unlikable Heroes and Genre Expectations :: Scriptnotes, Ep 160: A Screenwriter’s Guide to the End of the World Script Perfection :: Tips…
Video · 1 min
[Video]: Doing Exposition with Explosives
Have you found yourself faced with the dilemma of choosing between brutally dull exposition or confusing your audience by throwing them into the story in medias…
The Screenwriter's Life · 3 min
How to Handle Criticism of Your Writing
You will often spend a year or more writing and rewriting your scripts. You’ve edited your own work and have given it several polishes. You then…
Best of the Web · 1 min
Best of the Web 7 Sept
Story & Structure :: If I Stay, Review :: Carpenter, Cronenberg, and Landis on horror (1982) :: How To Write a Screenplay in Six Weeks Script…
Uncategorized · 1 min
[Video]: Script Cops – Ed Wood Gang
Younger viewers will have many questions for The Story Department this week. Who is Ed Wood? What is Plan 9 From Outer Space? How do I…