Stealing Hollywood for Writers @AlexandraSokolof

LUCY BURDETTE: When I heard that Alexandra Sokolof had a new writing workbook out, I asked her to come talk about it.  She is very very good at explaining why a story works and what we fiction writers can learn from Hollywood. Welcome Alex!

ALEXANDRA SOKOLOF: Always a pleasure to be here!

I was a screenwriter for ten years before I wrote my first novel, and now in between being a full-time mystery novelist, I teach my Screenwriting Tricks for Authors workshop all over the US and internationally (last week as a master class for the Bloody Scotland Crime Festival) as well as to film students in Los Angeles.

The key to the story structuring technique I write about and that everyone's always asking me to teach is the Three-Act, Eight-Sequence structure. Most writers are at least vaguely familiar with the concept of the Three Act structure (but it never hurts to review – and this post may give you a better idea of why it’s so important!).

But the real secret of film writing and filmmaking, that I teach authors to steal for their novel writing, is that most movies are written in a Three-Act, Eight-Sequence structure. Yes, most movies can be broken up into eight discrete 12-15-minute sequences, each of which has a beginning, middle and end.

I swear.
The eight-sequence structure evolved from the early days of film when movies were divided into reels (physical film reels), each holding about ten to fifteen minutes of film (movies were also shorter, proportionately). The projectionist had to manually change each reel as it finished. Early screenwriters (who by the way, were mostly playwrights, well-schooled in the three-act structure) incorporated this rhythm into their writing, developing individual sequences that lasted exactly the length of a reel, so that as the reel ended, the sequence also ended, on a cliffhanger climax – so that as the projectionist was scrambling to change reels, the audience was in a state of high anticipation about WHAT HAPPENS NEXT – instead of being frustrated and pissed off about having their moviegoing experience interrupted in the middle of a key scene. Because nobody likes having a climax interrupted, right?

Obviously these days we have digital projection and no one is up in that projection booth scrambling to change reels, but modern films still follow that same climax-every-15-minutes storytelling rhythm. Because - what storytelling form came along mid-twentieth century that really locked that cliffhanger rhythm into place?

Right! Television! Network TV writers always end a sequence on a cliffhanger before the station cuts away to a commercial break. It’s just too easy to change channels, otherwise. 

 
And the eight-sequence structure actually translates beautifully to novel structuring, although we have much more flexibility with a novel and you might end up with a few more sequences in a book. But watching movies with the eight-sequence structure in mind is an excellent way to get familiar with this storytelling rhythm, and once you’re able to spot the sequence and act climaxes in movies, they’ll start becoming very apparent in the novels you read as well (you’ll be seeing these climaxes about every fifty pages in a 400-page novel.)

If you’re a writer, you are probably already unconsciously following this structure – that’s what most people in my workshops discover! They just needed someone to point it out to them and show them how to make the most of their climaxes (sorry, it’s impossible to talk about this without sounding like the non-fiction version of 50 Shades…).

Think about it. How many movies and TV shows have you seen in your lifetime? I’m willing to bet it’s thousands. You know this rhythm. Your readers know this rhythm. And here’s the thing: your readers unconsciously EXPECT this rhythm, and if you’re not giving it to them, they’re going to get worried that you’re doing something wrong.

So it’s very, very useful to get conscious about the eight-sequence structure yourself, so you can use it most effectively.

If you’re new to story breakdowns and analysis, then you'll probably want to check out my sample breakdowns (full breakdowns of different movies are included in the workbooks) and watch several, or all, of those movies, following along with my notes, before you try to analyze a movie on your own. You can also sign up for my Story Structure Extras list and get free sample movie breakdowns.

But if you want to jump right in with your own breakdowns and analyses, this is how it works:

       Take a film that is similar in structure to your own WIP (work in progress), and screen it, watching the time clock on your DVD player (or your watch, or phone). At about 15 minutes into the film, there will be some sort of climax: an action scene, a revelation, a twist, a big SETPIECE. It won’t be as big as the climax that comes 30 minutes into the film, which would be the Act One climax, but it will be an identifiable climax that will spin the action into the next sequence.)

Proceed through the movie, stopping to identify the beginning, middle, and end of each sequence, approximately every 15 minutes. Also make note of the bigger climaxes or turning points – Act One at 30 minutes, the Midpoint at 60 minutes, Act Two at 90 minutes, and Act Three at whenever the movie ends.

NOTE: You can also, and probably should, say that a movie is really four acts, breaking the long Act Two into two separate acts. Hollywood continues to use "Three Acts." Whichever works best for you!

So how do you recognize a sequence?

It's generally a series of related scenes, tied together by location and/or time and/or action and/or the overall intent of the hero/ine.

In many movies a sequence will take place all in the same location, then move to another location at the climax of the sequence. The protagonist will generally be following just one line of action in a sequence, and then when s/he gets that vital bit of information in the climax of a sequence, s/he’ll move on to a completely different line of action, based on the new information. A good exercise is to title each sequence as you watch and analyze a movie – that gives you a great overall picture of the progression of action.

But the biggest clue to an Act or Sequence climax is a SETPIECE SCENE: there’s a dazzling, thematic location, an action or suspense sequence, an intricate set, a crowd scene, even a musical number (as in The Wizard of Oz and, more surprisingly, Jaws. And Casablanca, too.).

The setpiece is a fabulous lesson to take from filmmaking, one of the most valuable for novelists, and possibly the most crucial for screenwriters, and I talk much more about them throughout the Screenwriting Tricks workbooks.

But me talking about it is not going to get you anywhere. You need to DO this. Watch the movies yourself. Do the breakdowns yourself. Identify setpieces yourself.

Screening one movie looking for this structure one will get you far, three will lock it in, and as you practice looking out for it, this new awareness will open new worlds in your writing.

But eventually, it will be as natural to you as breathing, and you will find yourself incorporating this rhythm into your storytelling without even having to think about it. 

So go, go, watch some movies. It's WORK (don't you love this job?)

And here’s where you can learn more:


STEALING HOLLYWOOD ebook

STEALING HOLLYWOOD US print

Alex's Website

Alex will be stopping in to answer questions, so bring them on!

Mary Andonian takes us to "Bitsy's Labyrinth"

HALLIE: I had the pleasure of meeting Mary Andonian at the Willamette Writers conference in Portland, Oregon. She was coordinating the enormous programming schedule, wrangling agents and editors and making me, a newbie there, feel comfortable and welcome.

Mary is a novelist and a screenwriter, and her new book for teen readers, Bitsy's Labyrinth, is set in the beautiful Willamette Valley.

Welcome to Jungle Red, Mary. Tell us about Bitsy.

MARY: Bitsy Johnson is a teenager suffering from her parents’ benign neglect. Her dad has recently remarried and prioritizes the new wife over his kids. Bitsy’s mom is in recovery, which is a good thing, but spends all of her free time helping other alcoholics. Bitsy’s left to fend for herself.

HALLIE: Was it hard for you to think like a 13-year old? Particularly one who's dealing with divorced and dysfunctional parents and starting to have feelings for boys?

MARY: I felt like Bitsy represented a lot of us who grew up in an “almost normal” household. I remember as a teenager reading extreme stories of abuse and neglect, and thinking I had no right to feel bad about my situation. I wanted Bitsy’s story to capture what it was like to feel lonely in your own home.

HALLIE: I love the idea of a lavender farm, which is where this book is set. Are there really lavender farms in the Willamette Valley?

MARY: Absolutely! The Pacific Northwest is actually the perfect place to grow lavender. The setting is my friend Sarah Bader’s farm, Lavender at Stonegate, in West Linn, Oregon (www.lavenderatstonegate.com). It’s gorgeous. The first time I went there I knew I wanted to write about it. Ironically, she plans to build a labyrinth on the property!

HALLIE: I can see why it inspired you. It's gorgeous! (And, mental note: they ship lavendar plants all over the country.)

Why a labyrinth? I can't help wondering if you ever built one yourself, and where the idea came to you that a labyrinth could be a place of contemplation.

MARY: I’ve loved labyrinths ever since I walked my first one at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco. When the lot next store to our home became available, I told my husband I wanted to buy it and put a labyrinth there. He said I was crazy. After the lot sold to someone else, I decided to do the next best thing: write a fictional story about a family who builds a labyrinth and find out what happens.

HALLIE: That makes me laugh -- I set my last novel in a gorgeous Victorian house that my husband and I bid on but didn't get.

I know the novel started out as a screenplay. You've said that what you learned about screenwriting helped make Bitsy's Labyrinth a better story. How?

MARY: During the process of writing the screenplay for Bitsy’s Labyrinth, I noticed I had done way too much “telling,” and not enough “showing.” I needed to move scenes around to fit the classic three-act screenplay structure. Characters had to be introduced earlier on in the story. I realized I hadn’t sufficiently increased the stakes or created enough tension, and my payoffs were coming too early. I made all of these changes when I wrote the screenplay, and then incorporated them back into the manuscript when I was finished.

HALLIE: That's so fascinating. Jan is right now turning a screenplay into a book. Such an interesting process.

In this blog we're all mystery writers, and I'm convinced that every good novel has a mystery in it. Without spoiling it, what kind of mystery do you think Bitsy's Labyrinth has in it?

MARY: For me, Bitsy's dad poses the biggest mystery. Why do some Fathers forsake their own children for new spouses? And how do kids cope with this realization?

HALLIE: Just reading that makes me want to cry.

Mary will be stopping by today, so if you have any comments and questions for her, please post them.

Screenwriting Tricks for Authors

ROBERTA: Today's guest, Alexandra Sokoloff is a woman of many talents.
Coming from a background in theater, she's acted, directed, sung, danced,
written screenplays, and written four well-acclaimed horror and thriller
novels, most recently BOOK OF SHADOWS. We welcome her to JRW today to talk about her expertise in screenwriting tips for novelists. (She has published a
workbook on this subject, published as an ebook on Kindle.) Take it away Alex!

ALEX: Always great to be here on Jungle Red.

These lovely vixens, I mean ladies, have invited me today to talk about screenwriting, a very unladylike subject. And Roberta says I only have 800 words, so this is going to be all about the discussion, people! Jump in and ask those questions.

So I worked in Hollywood as a screenwriter for twelve years. For a while it was great. My screenwriting partner and I wrote original scripts, thrillers, which mostly sold, and we got hired to do assignments, sometimes off original pitches, some novel adaptations. I was getting paid well to do what I love, working with wildly talented people-and some assholes-but mostly, truly, incredibly talented and passionate and fascinating people. I was having too good a time to realize I was miserable.

And then, in the middle of what seemed like a run of the best luck possible, I crashed. We had gotten our dream director on an original script, a ghost story set on a college campus, and were also working on an adaptation of a novel based on a famous parapsychology experiment that had always compelled us. Two dream projects. I was on top of the world.

But then we lost our director to another movie that got its financing together first. And the production companies attached to the book we were adapting reversed power roles and suddenly we were faced with starting over, a page one rewrite, with no extra money offered for the extra work (an increasingly dire reality for screenwriters, the "one-step deal" that becomes a never-ending nightmare).

Now, this kind of thing happens in Hollywood all the time-- it's turned into the norm, actually. But this time, I snapped.

And so while we pounded out that adaptation that wouldn't die, I took my original script, and started writing it as the novel that became THE HARROWING. Even if I could only write a paragraph at the end of the day, I would force myself to do it. People always ask me if it was hard to make the transition from screenwriting to novel writing, but it was no harder than any writing ever is. We screenwriters know all that internal stuff about our characters anyway--now I didn't have to hold back.

I gave the book to my film agents, they hooked me up with my fabulous literary agent within a week, and he sold the book to St. Martin's Press in a two-book deal two weeks later.

While every book sale and subsequent career has a lot to do with luck and timing, I also know that my quick representation and sale had a lot to do with my screenwriting background - because my agent and editor said so.

The truth is, book agents and editors and the whole publishing business in general has been corrupted--I mean, influenced--by Hollywood. The blockbuster mentality is rampant. Even though the bottom line is always a great book, publishing houses increasingly want big ideas; fast, visceral, visual plots; and a big, high concept hook for marketing.

So that means authors can give themselves an edge by using film techniques to make their stories more immediately appealing and easily marketable--and by the way, to create better, more engaging books. I believe any novelist, from aspiring to multiply-published, can benefit from these screenwriting tricks of the trade.

But when I started teaching writing workshops (a happy and unexpected perk of being an author), I realized very quickly that the storytelling techniques that we Hollywood types take for granted (such as the Three-Act, Eight-Sequence Structure) are a huge revelation to people outside the glass dome of the film business.

The thing is, film is such a compressed and concise medium that it's like seeing an X ray of a story. In film you have two hours, really a little less, to tell the story. It's a very stripped-down form that even so, often has enormous emotional power. Plus we've usually seen more of these movies than we've read specific books, so they're a more universal form of reference for discussion.

It's often easier to see the mechanics of structure in a film than in a novel.

So the workshops I teach, now all over the country, my Screenwriting Tricks For Authors blog: and the workbook http://www.amazon.com/Screenwriting-Tricks-Authors-Screenwriters-ebook/dp/B0032JSJ9U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=digital-text&qid=1262864197&sr=1-1 , are my way of making these screenwriting techniques and tricks available to novelists and aspiring novelists who may not live anywhere near Hollywood, but who could get the same benefit I and other author friends have reaped from applying screenwriting techniques to our novel writing.

My word count is up (already!!!!) but here are some links to get you started on the basics of screen story structure.

What Is The Three-Act Structure And Why Should You Care?

The Three Act, Eight-Sequence Structure

The Master List

The Index Card Method


And I'll be in and out all day and very glad to answer any questions people have on the business or craft of screenwriting.

ROBERTA: Thanks so much for stopping by Alex. Now let's have all your questions--Alex is full of great information!