News · 1 min
Do you have the tools?
One of Celtx's first three new "Learning Templates" is a tool pack for script development: "The Writer's Development Kit". I can highly recommend it, not only because of its ridiculously low price, but…
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 · 7 min
10 Reasons why movies aren’t novels
Next month, Michael Hauge and Steve Kaplan will be in Australia for two weekends of story classes. This month we run a special guest contribution by…
Book Reviews · 1 min
A Season of Writing Drama
We have raved before about Yves Lavandier's book Writing Drama. This time we have something very special to announce to you. Throughout June, July and August…
Story & Structure · 2 min
Exposition in Cameron’s The Abyss
Yesterday I had the enormous privilege and honor of watching James Cameron's The Abyss on the big screen, sitting next to the movie's concept designer Ron…
Script Check · 5 min
Action/Description: How detailed?
The first step is asking this very question: how detailed should it be? Next you decide what is important for the understanding of the scene and…
MM on Monday · 3 min
Elements of Suspense (2)
The Elements of Suspense also talked about editing in order to maximize tension, that when emotions are high, Hitchcock resorted to tight shots and close-ups, but…
Best of the Web · 1 min
Best o/t Web 23 May 10
:: Detox your writing superstitions. :: "Hurry up and wait." :: Summer time, bad time for specs? :: How to pitch a series. :: Adult comedies:…
Story & Structure · 3 min
An ending left up in the air
Last night I watched UP IN THE AIR. Finally. Before I went to see the film, I read a few pages from the script (including the…
Story & Structure · 3 min
Why movies aren’t novels (1)
Next month, Michael Hauge and Steve Kaplan will be in Australia for two weekends of story classes. This month we run a special guest contribution by…
Book Reviews · 2 min
Lew Hunter’s Screenwriting 434
While Jack Brislee is trying to con himself into believing there are actually things more important than screenwriting (let alone The Story Department), I stumbled upon…
Video · 1 min
James Gray is angry. (Audio)
Here is an exceptionally gifted filmmaker, profoundly unhappy with the state of the craft. At the time of writing, this excerpt of an old CS Magazine…
Script Check · 4 min
Activate your Dialogue
Give your characters something to do. Always. Long dialogue without action essentially means you are filming talking heads, which is profoundly anti-cinematic. It's a simple rule but…
MM on Monday · 6 min
Mystery Man on Melodrama
What is melodrama and how do we avoid it? I’ve noticed that people have differing interpretations of melodrama, ranging from “sad movie” to “soap operas” to “anything…
Best of the Web · 1 min
Best o/t Web 16 May
:: Robin Hood: Robbing From the Poor :: John August about Theme. :: Where do you find good ideas? :: Can a writer have more than one agent?…
Pitching & Selling · 1 min
Query massage!
Yesterday was about HOW TO. Today: How NOT TO. What follows might make you feel (a lot) better about your own query letters. If, however, either…