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Lay bare the heart and soul of your character just like Oprah would.

Why is Oprah the queen of interview TV? Because she gets down to the dirt, the nitty-gritty, the very core of the people she interviews. She skilfully asks all the intimate and pertinent questions that we want to ask, and then she asks the questions we didn’t even think to ask. She finds out the details and information that we want to know. We are left saying, “Damn! She’s good!” At the end of one of her shows, we are left with the feeling that now we really know her guest, thanks to her revealing interview.

That is the way you must think when you are creating a character. Pretend you are Oprah and your character is sitting opposite you in a comfy chair. (Or the hot seat!) Oprah asks the hard questions, and so must you. Really listen to your character, hear what they have to say, pay careful attention. Get to know your character intimately by asking the revealing questions. Be fearless and conduct a character interview that will illuminate the heart of your character and lay it bare. By the time you are done, you will know that character like the back of your hand.

Oprah is Queen of the Interview.

Ask the hard questions, ask the digging questions, ask the questions you don’t dare to ask. When you get that character in that interview chair, be nosy, throw manners and etiquette out the window because you can. (Even Oprah can’t do that!) Or, if you need to handle that character with gentleness, love and patience, or kid gloves, then do so. Only you will know what to do, it is your character after all.

What will emerge if you really explore your character — as you would anyone you were really interested in and wanted to know more about — is an entire being, a real 3D individual. A character your audience can invest in.

Here’s a great Character Worksheet from authorJody Hedlund to get you started. This is the type of writing tool you want to arm yourself with when you want the fine details about a character. Thanks for sharing Jody!

The Script Lab also has a great Character Questionnaire that helps to reveal the heart and soul of a character.

Or, go out on a limb and get creative! Put together your own list of questions and specs to develop a unique, well-rounded and fully fleshed out character.

Remember, your characters, especially your MC, wants to reveal every nuance of his or her nature to you. It’s up to you to convince them to do just that.

I’m big on the process of writing. It helps me build and bring life characters, their stories, and the worlds they live in. Before I configured my own writing process, I had a pile of unfinished stories for one reason or another. Either the characters were flat, too many plot holes, I didn’t know where they story was going, or the story itself was just lacking.

I consider the stages of my writing process as an obstacle course that my stories and characters have to conquer. If my project fails any of the course stages I know not to waste my time on that project. My writing process helps me get a jump on those flat characters, gaping plot holes, and many of the other million things that can bring my project to a halt.

Now, I know my process won’t detect every single problem my story might have right off, some problems I just won’t see until my work is almost done, or already “completed”. For me, having a writing process in place is like having an early warning system of sorts. It helps me identify problems early on in the stages of development so I can nip them in the bud right then and there.

Last time, I shared my views on getting concepts down. This time, I’ll talk about outlining/structuring. My understanding of what story outline is, is putting down all the major events of a story that MUST happen in order for my story to take place. Sounds simple enough, and it is for the most part.

Years ago, when I first started to outline my stories, at one point I never did hence my pile of unfinished works, I used a simple Beginning, Middle, End format. It was cool, it worked out well enough. I mean, how hard is it to put events in order from beginning to end?

Through the years, my view went from Beginning, Middle, End to Act1, Act2, Act3. As I wrote more stories, I realized that it was easier for me to visualize their structures in quarters. Four quarters of a whole. Act1, Act2, Act3, Act4. Looking at it this way just helped me with pacing and such.

Last year, when I dove into the world of screenwriting and wrote the first draft of my first screenplay, Xandy Sussan, @covermyscript on twitter, pointed something out to me that was pretty much “right there” in my face. She said, “Remember that each section/part of your story’s structure serves a particular story telling purpose, and should have a Beginning, Middle, and End of it’s own”. It’s not word for word, but you get the point.

Now, the type of person I am, I take advice, mull it over, size it up, put it to the test, and wear it out. What Xandy helped me to see, once I re focused my story telling lens, was that a story is not just a Beginning, a middle, and an End, or in my case, Act1, Act2, Act3, and Act4. Each section is deeper than that.

Act1 is not just the Beginning, it’s the Introduction, the Set Up as most like to call it. For me, the purpose of Act1/Introduction is to introduce the characters, their individual goals and motives, and the world they live in. This introduces the audience to the story.

Act2 is not just the Middle, is what I like to call the “Agitation” and what most call “The Build Up”. In the last section we were introduced to the characters and their world. In this section, we see how the characters, their goals, motives, and their world conflict with each other. This is the battlefield the audience is caught in the middle of. On this battlefield, characters fight to achieve their goals, alliances and enemies are made, tempers flare, feelings are hurt, some characters are forced to change, some are killed. The stakes are raised higher and higher as the story’s opposing forces strike at either tit for tat.

Act3 is not just the Beginning of the End, it’s the Confrontation, or the Climax. This is where the opposing forces, having exhausted all but one avenue to achieve their goal, face off with each other. There is where in the real world you’d say, “Okay, you know what? I’m tired of this shit.” and you go handle your business, lol. The confrontation/climax could be a big argument, the professing of love, a daring rescue, a one on one fight to the death, etc. Either way, this is the biggest event of the story. This is what the other two stages were leading to.

Act4 is not just the end, it’s the Resolution. Here we see the end result of the big Confrontation. How things are left off for better or for worse. The guy gets the girl, the world is destroyed, somebody lands their dream job, a family is brought back together, blah, blah, blah.

As it should be, I know other writers have their own ideas for outlining and structure, but this works for me. It’s the simplest way that I can break it down for myself. Introduction, Agitation, Confrontation, Resolution.

At any rate, my point is that each section of your story serves a purpose other than “This is when/where “X” happens”. Each section tells a particular part of your story, requires certain types of events to works, and ultimately should have a beginning, middle, and end of it’s own. The end of each section, in a sense, should be a cliff hanger to the next, causing the audience to “want” to see what happens next.
QQs: What are your views on outlining and structure?

Here they are people! Where I was bang on with my predictions you will only see WINNER. Where I missed the mark, you will see My Prediction followed by WINNER. And where you don’t see My Prediction, I didn’t predict because I was undecided. Hope you enjoyed the Golden Globes! Don’t forget to tell me how you graded Ricky Gervais. And tell me, what was your favorite Golden Globe moment?

Best Motion Picture – Drama
The Fighter ~ My Prediction
Paramount Pictures and Relativity Media; Paramount Pictures and Relativity Media

The Social Network - WINNER
Columbia Pictures; Sony Pictures Releasing

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama
Natalie Portman – Black Swan ~ WINNER

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama
Colin Firth – The King’s Speech -WINNER

Mark Wahlberg – The Fighter ~ My Prediction

Best Motion Picture – Comedy Or Musical
Alice in Wonderland ~ My Prediction
Walt Disney Pictures; Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

The Kids Are All Right - WINNER (Well deserved!)
Antidote Films, Mandalay Vision, Gilbert Films; Focus Features

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Comedy Or Musical
Annette Bening – The Kids Are All Right ~ WINNER (Though it’s tough choosing between Bening and Julianne Moore!)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Comedy Or Musical
Johnny Depp – Alice in Wonderland ~ My Prediction

Paul Giamatti – Barney’s Version - WINNER (I had a feeling even though I chose Johnny Depp.)

Best Performance by an Actress In A Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
Amy Adams – The Fighter ~ My Prediction

Melissa Leo – The Fighter - WINNER

Best Performance by an Actor In A Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
Christian Bale – The Fighter ~ WINNER

Best Animated Feature Film
Toy Story 3 ~ WINNER
Disney * Pixar; Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Best Foreign Language Film
In A Better World (Denmark)
The Country of Denmark
(Hævnen) Zentropa Entertainment; Sony Pictures Classics

Best Director – Motion Picture
Darren Aronofsky – Black Swan – My Prediction

David Fincher – The Social Network - WINNER

Best Screenplay – Motion Picture
Christopher Nolan – Inception ~ My Prediction

Aaron Sorkin – The Social Network - WINNER

Best Original Score – Motion Picture
Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross – The Social Network - WINNER

Hans Zimmer – Inception ~ My Prediction

Best Original Song – Motion Picture
“I See The Light” – Tangled ~ My Prediction
Music By: Alan Menken
Lyrics By: Glenn Slater

“You Haven’t Seen The Last Of Me” – Burlesque - WINNER
Music & Lyrics By: Diane Warren

Best Television Series – Drama
Boardwalk Empire (HBO) ~WINNER
Leverage, Closest to the Hole Productions, Sikelia Productions and Cold Front Productions, HBO Entertainment

Best Performance by an Actress In A Television Series – Drama
Julianna Margulies – The Good Wife (CBS) ~ My Prediction

Katey Sagal – Sons Of Anarchy - WINNER (Go Peggy Bundy!)

Best Performance by an Actor In A Television Series – Drama
Steve Buscemi – Boardwalk Empire (HBO) ~ WINNER

Best Television Series – Comedy Or Musical
Glee (FOX) ~ WINNER
Ryan Murphy Television, Twentieth Century Fox Television

Best Performance by an Actress In A Television Series – Comedy Or Musical
Edie Falco – Nurse Jackie (SHOWTIME) ~ My Prediction

Laura Linney – The Big C (Showtime) - WINNER

Best Performance by an Actor In A Television Series – Comedy Or Musical
Jim Parsons – The Big Bang Theory (CBS) ~ WINNER

Best Mini-Series Or Motion Picture Made for Television
Carlos (Sundance C) - WINNER
Film En Stock and Egoli Tossell Film, Sundance Channel

Temple Grandin (HBO) ~ My Prediction
A Ruby Films, Gerson Saines Production, HBO Films

Best Performance by an Actress In A Mini-series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Claire Danes – Temple Grandin (HBO) ~ WINNER

Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Al Pacino – You Don’t Know Jack (HBO) - WINNER

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Jane Lynch – Glee (FOX) ~ WINNER

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Chris Colfer – Glee (FOX) -WINNER

And there they are! How did you do?

Originally posted by Kyra (aka @BrighterScribe) at The Scribe’s Desk

So, you’re sitting at your desk at work, standing in line at the grocery store, or driving down the road and it hits you. Seemingly out of nowhere, you have a new idea for a story. Images flicker through your mind, you see characters within vague scenes. You can hear sound bites of dialog you’ve yet to write. Just the sheer potential of this new idea fills you with excitement and you can’t wait to start working on the story. But first, regardless of how wonderful your ideas are, you must combine your fragmented imaginings into a strong and solid story concept.

Weather you’re a Plotter, like me, or a Panster, like many other writers, developing your story concept is key. Over the years, this has become my first line of defense. Back in the day, I’d get an idea for a story and just start writing. I figured I’d work out the kinks as they made themselves known. After many stalled projects and spending hours trying to make a story work, I realized something was wrong. Before pouring hours and days into a story, I needed to make sure it was worth pursuing.

Now, if a story is worth pursuing or not is totally up to its creator. No one outside of yourself can tell you to stop writing a story, for it is your creation, not theirs. For me, the decision to pursue a story hinges on the development of its concept, and if I can’t make it out of that very first stage, I know that the story is not ready to be written. So, I put it on the back burner until that time comes.

Most, if not all writers have their own ways to develop story concepts, and I”ll share mine with you today. It’s pretty simple and straight to the point. There are eight development points in total that need to be addressed before I consider the concept complete. The first five can usually be answered in one or two sentences, but the last four, the meat of it, will probably be a paragraph each. The development points can be developed in any order, the goal is just to have them all completed before going on to the next phase of writing.

1. Genre: Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Romance, Science Fiction, etc… I have to know what kind of story I’m going to write. The genre alone will greatly influence the development of the story .
2. Title: What is the story called? This may not be as important as some of the other development points, but I hate not having a title for my stories before I start work on them. If someone asks me what I”m working on, I’d at least want to be able to give them a title. Besides, developing the other points of the story concept usual gives me an idea for a title anyway.
3. Logline/Tagline: A very brief description of the story. One or two sentences. The should be able tell some who and what the story is about without giving away the ending, and at the same time leave them asking questions and wanting to know what actually happens to said who in said story.
4. Protagonist: The main character(s) of the story. The axis of which the story will revolve around. I like to have an idea of who my main character(s) is and what they do.
5. Antagonist: Same as above. Who is the main person(s)/thing(s) opposing my protagonist.
6. Plot: Okay, this is where is starts to get juicy. This usually speaks to the protagonist, their situation, their goals, and their motives.
7. Conflict: This usually speaks to the antagonist, as well as other major obstacles that conflict with the protagonists goals.
8. Twist: The story deviates from its assumed course, sometimes pointing our protagonist towards a different goal. That is IF there is a twist. Not all stories have or need a twist. I like for my twists to come naturally as opposed to forcing one into existence to try to add spice to a story.
9. Resolution: How are the story’s main conflicts resolved? How does it all end? I MUST know this to work on a story. I need to know what I’m writing towards. If somewhere down the line the resolution changes, great, so be it, I’ll adapt to it at that time. But, I won’t write a single word until I have my resolution down.

So, that’s how I work things out for my story concepts. It works wonders for me but it may not work for others. Everyone has their own process for developing stories, and for those of you who do, care to share them with us?

Once upon a time on a typical winter’s evening two long distance Twitter friends and screenwriters living outside of Hollywood found themselves in their end of day Twitter banter.  As usual, they discussed writing specs, competition deadlines, attending festivals and the challenges of breaking into the industry while living outside LA.

However on that cold winter’s evening, the pressure of fastly approaching deadlines fed an emotion- charged  Twitter DM conversation. Yet  little did those former strangers now Twitter buds know, they were giving birth to a vision…a supportive family of writers… a consortium of TELEVISION, FILM and WEB Scribes.

The TFWScribes would provide creative and professional support to fellow writers, host monthly online chats with industry professionals and forge networks – on and offline – to elevate their writing game.   It was a late December’s day when the screenwriting revolution on Twitter was born.

The moral of the story is… join the revolution #tfwscribes.