Screenwriter-to-Screenwriter.com » how to beat out a script

Q&A: On Screenplay Beats: Examples of Beats in Scenes

Monica — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 15:13:19 +0000

Dennis L. writes: I’m a screenwriting neophyte and if you could, please, give an example of a scene outline? I think I’m over-thinking what constitutes how a “beat” should read in a scene.

This comment is in reference to my article on the types of screenplay beats.

Monica says: Okay, so let’s discuss how a “beat,” or emotional [...]

Clarity Above All

Monica — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 15:13:19 +0000

There is no shame in being absolutely clear with your beats. In fact, I am that reader who is likely to not get something if it isn’t on the page. You should assume that if it’s not clear on the page, your reader is not going to get it. If you hint at something but [...]

Look at it from the Reader’s Perspective…

Monica — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 17:17:01 +0000

I just got through another big push of scripts. There were a handful of recommends, but overall many of them were dismal. When writing, just get the words down on the page. Get through that first draft. But, then rewrite. Rewrite, rewrite, rewrite.

As you get closer to the time you’re going to send [...]

Breaking Story: The Six Major Beats

Monica — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 15:05:23 +0000

Generally, when people begin the outline process or look more specifically at the structure of any given script, they look closely at the six beats. In film school, it was explained to us that these are the major “tent pole” story points – the major points of story upon which you hang the rest of [...]

Screenplay Plotting: Where’s the B Story?

Monica — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 15:02:46 +0000

Many of the scripts I’m reading at the competition level are very unsophisticated in the plotting of their B stories. Many don’t have B stories at all. Your A story may be well plotted and the characters may be clearly and succinctly drawn, however, if there aren’t interesting B stories dense with subtext that inform [...]

What, Technically, is a “Beat” in a Screenplay?

Monica — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 17:50:18 +0000

A writer friend of mine emailed asking me to better describe what is a screenwriting “beat.” Here’s the skinny.

This is actually a point of confusion for many people, and I recall it was very confusing to me when I started at film school because there are actually three kinds of beats, but people just use [...]

The Screenplay Outline: Carding Out Your Story

Monica — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 00:22:56 +0000

I am a big outliner. I think it’s important when breaking story. I know some screenwriters approach writing the screenplay as do many novelists: they let the story find them. However, with the script, page count is so limited and every scene and every word so valuable – so why take the risk of not [...]

Screenplay Genre and Structure: Why the Beat Sheet?

Monica — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 06:55:00 +0000

The beat sheet is the best way to learn about screenplay structure, genre conventions and how to structure your script when you’re starting to outline.

A beat sheet is basically what you should create for yourself as an outline before going to page, however even before you start beating out your own script it is [...]

Romantic Comedy Beat Sheet: The Wedding Planner

Monica — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 06:25:57 +0000

Here is a breakdown I did on The Wedding Planner. First of all, I love this movie (love you, Shankman!). I think it’s funny, romantic, really charming and well written (go, Pam and Mike!). It is also very well structured, so it’s a good one to study.

What is of notice is the [...]