Advice — john truby

Truby's Breakdown -- 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding' Breakdown: an analysis of story techniques and structure as viewed through the eyes of the Seven Steps and 22 Building Blocks contained in Truby's Blockbuster story development software. ~~ My Big Fat Greek Wedding The script for this film, written by the lead actress, is very funny, even though it covers familiar ground. It confirmed for me a valuable lesson for the writer: find the gold in your idea and stick with it. This is a love story. Yet, unlike the normal Hollywood love story, there is almost no time spent on...

I'm sitting here struggling with how to write a critique of this highly praised yet flawed screenplay. Besides my feeling of it not being good enough - in spite of being highly successful in Hollywood - what I really want to do right now is have a muffin, and I might as well have coffee too, although it might be better to exercise first. Kaufman - the writer not the character - has been applauded for his very post-modern technique of including his own struggle to write an adaptation of "The Orchid Thief" as part of the story. If we're...

Secrets of Blockbuster Movies Part IV Writing for Hollywood requires more than a good premise and strong storytelling ability. You also have to write what Hollywood wants to sell. In today's entertainment business, that means a script with blockbuster capability. If the buyers don't think your script will appeal to a massive worldwide audience, they won't buy it. What may surprise you is that the elements that buyers think will appeal worldwide are found in the deep structure of a script. DESIRE LINE One element essential to good storytelling is a strong desire line. The main character wants something very...

I've spoken before in this column about the fact that 95% of writers fail in the premise. You may come up with a terrific one-line idea for a movie, but if you don't develop it the right way, the best scene writing in the world won't make a difference. The single most important decision you must make when developing your premise is: what genre should I use? Genre is a particular type of story, like detective, comedy, thriller or action. The reason genre is so important is that the entire entertainment business is based on it. That sounds like a...

In past articles, we've talked about the story elements found in most blockbuster films. But what about the obstacles that prevent us from writing a hit film? I'm referring to the misconceptions many writers carry with them that make it almost impossible for them to write a successful script. One especially egregious myth that kills writers is the idea that their script will succeed if only they get the right agent or make the right contact. We all know that thousands of scripts are written every year. So we think the answer to winning this intense competition is to get...