- Conflict is the most important thing. Never have a scene with two characters who agree with each other. They might have the same end goal, but disagree about how to get there.
- Three acts. The situation. The complication. And the conclusion.
- Act one (Page 1 - 17). Act two (Page 17 - 85). Act three (Page 86 - 110)
- Artists are generally boring heroes because their inner conflict isn't easily dramatised or visualised.
- Make sure your story always has the potential for sex and violence. It will keep the audience engaged.
- Get your ideas by watching films and read books. Maybe you could even adapt a book. Read magazines, newspapers, biographies. Conversations, overhead or otherwise. Carry a notebook and write snippets of interesting conversations you hear down. Use past experiences, painful though they might be. Research arenas of human experience. For example, learn everything there is about being a lumberjack. Look at issues, history or your own fantasies of who you wish you were. Use primal fears or asking 'what if?' Write as revenge over someone.
- Write something you're passionate about. Never write for money by guessing what the market wants.
- Research! Research! Research! Become an expert in that area. Give research the time it needs.
- TAKE ACTING LESSONS!
- Never get put off an idea because it's been done before.
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