How to Start (and Finish) Your First Screenplay

I once saw a funny segment of a local news show where the reporter went to Venice Beach in Los Angeles and asked a dozen people “How’s your screenplay coming?” More than half said they were stuck in the second act!  Which means lots of folks want to be screenwriters, but many of them never finish a script.

If you’re one of those people who just can’t seem to get your story onto the page you might have watched dozens of tutorials, and read hundreds of instructional books. But are you actually doing the most important thing of all – writing? Books and tutorials are great, but sometimes they serve up a lot of theory and not enough practical tools. Leaving a newbie writer with no real strategy to actually go about starting (and finishing) their first script.

Make no mistake, writing a script can be daunting even for experienced writers, but with the right strategy (and a hell of a lot of self-motivation) it is totally doable.

Here are 5 tips to get you out of your head and start getting your first screenplay on the page: 

1. Read, watch and break it down

If you’re going to read anything before you begin to write, read a great screenplay. Read it, then watch the resulting film. Unlike an instructional book on screenwriting, reading an actual script and then watching the movie shows you how words on a page translate into an effective ‘live action’ or animated film. A great exercise is to choose one of your favorite films and analyze it scene by scene. Understanding the building blocks of a movie can help you figure out the structure of your own story, and give you the confidence that writing a screenplay is possible.

2. Find the Logline

A logline is a short, usually one or two sentence description that encompasses the main story you are trying to tell. Loglines are primarily a marketing tool, but they can also be a great tool for writers. If you pin down your logline before jumping into your first script draft - you will have a clear, succinct description of the overall story you want to tell: Who your main character is, what they want, what major obstacle they might face, and what genre your story exists in. Then, once you start writing your draft, you can use your logline as a kind of ‘barometer’ to see if you’re still on the right track, or if you’ve lost the main plot entirely. To read more about how to create your own dynamic logline check out my post, 3 Essential Steps to Creating a Killer Logline. 

3. Create a Plan

A lot of beginner screenwriters jump into writing their script without a plan. This usually results in a screenplay that’s too long and has zero structure. If you want to end up with a blazing hot screenplay, you have to face one of the most difficult steps in creating a script: developing the structure. A lot of professional writers create an outline before they ever type one word of the actual script. This gives them a map of every scene, every character arc, plot escalation, and transition necessary to tell their story. Then when they sit down to actually turn that outline into a script, the process is less daunting, because all they need to do is follow the map. An outline can be as involved or simple as you like, but I encourage you to take the time to do it. You won’t regret it.

4. Write a Bad First Draft

Alright, you’ve read scripts, watched movies, written a killer logline, and outlined your entire story beat-by-beat. It’s time to start writing your first draft. This is another place where a lot of newbie writers get stuck. They want their first draft to be perfect, to be as good as all of those professional screenplay they’ve read. Don’t get trapped in ‘perfection paralysis’, just get something, anything onto the page. Set a timer and just write, write, write until it goes off. Don’t worry about creating beautiful sentences or the most dynamic dialogue. Don’t even edit your work. Then after you’ve finished a writing session - however rough it was - relax. Take a walk, or get a coffee. Let your brain rest and catch new ideas. Then repeat the process until you’ve completed a first draft (often referred to as the “vomit draft”, you can understand why). Also try not to drag this process out. No matter how stilted, overwritten, or just plain bad it is - once it’s finished you’ll have something to work from. And trust me, editing something, is a lot easier than having nothing. Which brings me to –

5. How to Start Editing

Writers all have their own editing process. But if you have no idea where to start, try following these four steps: 

1. First, read your “bad” first draft. But don't start making changes just yet. At most, make notes on what you want to change, thoughts, new inspiration, etc.

2. Next, pay close attention to anything that doesn’t move your story forward. Fill in any plot holes, flesh out and finesse your characters and dialogue, cut scenes that don’t serve the larger story you’re trying to tell (this might involve completely rewriting scenes, or cutting characters all together. Don’t panic. It’s all part of the process). Repeat this step until you’ve cut all the ‘fat’ you can find.

3. Then, polish. Here is where you can get laser focused on making the dialogue, comedy and action lines as tight and dynamic as possible. Find and fix all grammar and formatting mistakes.

4. Once you are satisfied you have done all you can do to create the best screenplay you can. Get it out of your hands. Find a fellow writer you trust to give you feedback. Then, using the feedback that resonates for you, go back in and create Draft #2.

Here’s the real trick of this editing process: Set yourself a deadline for each step. Don’t give yourself so much time that you wind up in the perfectionism trap, but don’t give yourself so little time that you don’t do the job to the best of your ability.

Now that you have a mini-guide to creating your first screenplay, dive in! There is no time like the present. And when the reporter asks you, “How’s the script coming?” You can say, “It’s finished!”

How did you go about writing your first screenplay? Let me know @CaroleKirsch!

Get the F*CK UNSTUCK

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