Screenwriting : A question about outlines by Hunter Huiet

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... and to nail the structure so it does the heavy lifting for you ...

For me. As I write an outline I see the story take shape. I can see if the character is “one note”. I can assess if it is working as a story.

It is better to waste 5 pages of effort than 105.

In this case, I would call them Beat Sheets, and they are in part to ensure each scene moves the story forward at a pace that is satisfactory to your audience. It's easy to get lost in the weeds without the structure/overview to help reinforce brevity.

One reason I use an outline is to see if an idea works or not. I'd rather find out during outlining that an idea doesn't work than write an entire script and find out the idea doesn't work.

It's mainly because abstract creativity and pragmatic structuring don't make good bed-fellows because they use different sides of the brain. The human mind tends to lean heavily into one at the expense of the other. This means it's very easy to go into a creative project and either neglect a core component of the craft or become locked-up due to confusion.

Outlining allows writers to get the structural side of writing out of the way first and give 100% of their attention to it. Then, when they come back to write in all the emotion and entertainment, they can do so without worry they are losing direction or over indulging.

It's the writing equivalent of a painter creating sketches to establish form before going in and adding detail.

Hello Hunter Huiet. Every event in a screenplay (every word, character, etc.) should move the plot toward the conclusion - no time/room for bunny trails. Without an outline, my characters and I have a great time together, but I delay getting them where they need to be.

CJ - left handed people are the only ones in their right mind.

OMG, do you want me to write a book? Hmmm, to avoid plot holes, keep the story moving forward, to stay on track and not 55 pages about the main character's best friend's grandmother's dog, to give yourself a compass to sail by, to remember your audience, to keep the film within a certain length, budget, and demographic. Basically to make sure it's actually written for success... ? Yes, that is it. haha

I almost never write and outline. Usually I will just write a brief 3 act synopses.

Hi Hunter, to be more specific for TV. I was listening to a podcast and they were talking to a show runner. He said he gets outlines as he has 7 people in his writers room. They supply outlines so they can see that the stories track over the entire season.

Craig D Griffiths Thank you so much

LOVE what CJ wrote. The “different sides of the brain”. In the past, I wrote to find out what I was writing about. I had a key inspiration, a theme, a character, an injustice, and I’d just wing it. I found it pretty astounding that in doing so, I’d subconsciously end up having followed the essential three act structure (for longer works) and even the prescribed ebb and flow of classic, post-commercial television. Oops, I need to take a moment to mention these HORRID new streaming services, particularly Peacock and IMDb. The way they stick commercials into a movie or series is with all the care and precision of a dart thrown, by foot, by a blind-folded, profoundly drunk, self-described “Laugh A Minute”. Often, the commercial lands in the middle of a WORD. “But, Lucinda! I demand to know why that gigantic fish IS IT TIME FOR A TRIP TO THAT PARADISE YOU’VE ALWAYS DREAMED ABOUT? Meet the Mercedes-Benz new C-GL-ExQ series. It delivers not only award-winning comfort and sleek drivability, but flight! Stop into a showroom today and say good-bye to the limits of GRAVITY sticking out of Cressida’s dressing table! I knew she enjoyed scales, but I’d always considered that to be merely a musical reference!”. Okay, outlines. Lines that are “out”. I have found them useful, especially with a work assignment where the producer/executive has a particularly detailed, premeditated “vision”, but I can also experience outlines, created prior to a gloriously indulgent first draft, like an ankle bracelet used to affirm home confinement. Too many premeditated boundaries. Now, I generally find boundaries, no fly zones and exclusions to be inspiring. A necessary narrowing down. An elimination of the Everything into the Something. But, with me, I must be careful. While inspiration can flourish within confines, it can also stagnate. It also brings into fine relief the fact that your endeavor is, not to please yourself, but others. Wise, perhaps, career-wise. But OTHER-wise? Just be wary.

I use a fluid everchanging outline to keep me moving from here to there - I still wander afield occasionally.