Screenwriting : FAST Screenplay: A Complete Online System for Screenplay Development by Celeste Palmer

I can certainly recommend FAST as a great way to improve your skills as a screenwriter, whether you are just starting out or have written dozens. After really learning the FAST system, i have been able to hone m craft and land several rewrite jobs. But that's not why I love it. I love it because every time I revisit the system, I learn more about myself as a screenwriter and how to develop my particular strengths as well as work through my specific weaknesses. It's not a guru, or a formula, but a living, breathing development tool that will work for each and every screenplay.

Yes, FAST Screenplay is amazing. It's everything it says it is and more. And worth every penny. Once you see the complete system at work in your writing you realise the financial cost is just a drop in the ocean compared to the potential it has unleashed. I paid up front. The system is a step by step guide. You can do one step each day moving at your own pace. I assume as long as your subscription is paid you just keep moving through the steps as you're ready for them.

Here's the deal. Screenwriting is an incredibly competitive field. In order to succeed, it makes sense to arm yourself with the best possible knowledge. That's why people enroll in classes, get MFA's, take workshops, go to seminars, hire consultants, apply for fellowships, follow gurus, engage mentors,etc. Are you where you want to be in your career? Do you feel like you already know everything you need to know about the craft of screenwriting and the business? Then you are on a good career path. If you recognize that you lack knowledge in some area, then FAST offers a lot of knowledge for a very reasonable price, along with a set of tools that are useful to help craft a strong screenplay in fewer drafts. There are a lot of good programs. I've had the privilege being a part of several, yet every thing I learned elsewhere was contained within the FAST materials. There was also a wealth of material that came from a producer's point of view, that I did not know. It makes sense, as the with other education I'd received, the information was presented by screenwriters who knew craft, but had less knowledge of the business side. But compare FAST to Screenwriting U, any college, or other complete educational program and it is very inexpensive. Does completing any of these programs or getting an MFA guarantee you a career? Absolutely not. That takes the ability to apply the knowledge that you pick up at any of these places, networking, reading screenplays, constantly working on craft, getting competent feedback, following the market and developing fresh concepts. If you do that, you may be able to write a script that is at the very least, a good enough sample to allow you to compete with produced professionals for the small amount of work that is out there. Even more rarely, you may write a spec screenplay that winds up getting made. Even the buzzed about optioned or "sold" specs are not produced. They die in development hell. There is no magic bullet. It's hard work and requires constant growth to not only break in, but to sustain a career. FAST is leg up, not a golden ticket. It is a competent, well though out, system for writing screenplays that are solid and ahead of curve.

Everything (within context) is free if you know where to look. Smells like a make money FAST scam to me.

Should we not pay for quality instruction we receive? You may be able to search the Internet and glean for free most of the content FAST presents. But it would take an awfully long time. I'd rather spend that time writing. Jeff Bollow has organised all the information into the optimum step-by-step guide - so you never get lost in the complexities of screenwriting. What you won't find anywhere else is the process of screenwriting presented the way FAST does, using the left/right brain dynamic - the right step for the right stage of the process. A system that builds on itself to a dramatic climax and resolution. The process is the same for beginners and professionals. It's highly unlikely beginners will churn out the same quality as the pros at first. But they'll learn a whole lot and be well on their way. FAST Screenplay has to be experienced to be valued. Why not take up the Free Start offer? http://www.fastscreenplay.com/ If you know everything you think you need to know about screenwriting then by all means, go forth and have a fantastic career!

No you shouldn't pay for something that you can get for free. There are plenty of free step-by-step guides on the web. There are also forums that will help you with any questions you have. Guys that sit there and post the same stuff over and over again as a type of payback for the free information they got themselves. Buy this and you're wasting your money. Indeed, buy this and you're not a writer. You're a mug.

Your site is actually laughable. It truly is. "Set yourself up to write screenplays ANY producer can use." That is taken directly from your site. I don't think you quite realise how stupid that sounds. Not just Producers, but ANY producer can use. Here's what one buying this service can hope to achieve from the "Set-up Phase". "Beat procrastination and make daily writing fun Do the very first thing you absolutely must do every time Avoid the key mistakes that derail most writers at the start Silence your inner critic Unleash your imagination Spot fresh story ideas everywhere Get inside the mind of your audience Understand the producer’s real needs See the screenwriter’s job in an empowering new way Understand the basics of genre, budget, planning, formatting Turn daily action into a habit and a whole lot more..." Most of that is common sense, perfectly natural already for a writer. Certainly a joke, and whatever advice you get from them is surely not going to be worth very much, especially as everything (EVERYTHING) they offer is available for free. Avoid the flashy "click me, click me!!!!!!" front page, navigate away and read their pathetic attempts. There are real screenwriters here and all over the web that will give all of that information for free. If you're not intelligent enough to do that, then you should seriously consider another career.

OMG $1299.... sounds like some designer clothing you see. Pay for the label, the lifestyle it promises, but really it's just made from old plastic. Expensive must be good, right? If someone comes out saying they sold a script for a clean million that otherwise would not have happened without that software, fair enough... but I doubt that'll ever happen.

What's particularly interesting here is that people here who have NO EXPERIENCE with this program are dismissing it as a rip off. If you aren't interested in improving your writing with instruction and you are satisfied with the trajectory of your career, what drew you to the page to begin with? Using a million dollar sale analogy, Full Sail University's MFA in creative writing must be a rip off. It requires a significantly larger investment than this. They don't have any graduates with a million dollar sale. I can't speak to the quality of their program, as I have not taken it and I would not discourage others from choosing it based on that criteria. I do know, however, there are graduates of this school actively working in Hollywood. Working is the key, having a career and getting paid to write versus some dream scenario where you land a million dollar spec sale. If you notice when that rare thing happens, everybody lays claim to that person. If they took one class at Screenwriting U, if they ever entered PAGE, they take responsibility for that person's success. It's simple advertising. They are selling a dream. The point isn't whether or not you can teach yourself to write a screenplay. Some people can. Clearly some people struggle with that or there wouldn't be so many online courses, university classes, books, etc. This web forum discussion doesn't seem to be designed for those of you who have successfully taught yourself how to write a quality screenplay that generates a) a sale (unlikely) or b) work from your sample (more likely). This forum is about people who haven't accomplished that and are looking for a way to gain those skills and want to discuss the merits of this particular program. If there are people who have completed the program and felt like it was overpriced or not beneficial, by all means, they should speak up. But the people who are making an assumption based on no experience whatsoever, well sorry, it's not really credible or fair to people who might consider and benefit from this program because they can't afford an MFA or one of the the hundreds of other programs out there. Perhaps instead you should start a forum where you discuss how great the MFA program you took was and how it's been beneficial to your career or how a certain book, or website guided you. Positive information is so much more powerful and influencing than a bunch of mindless negativity.

The reason there are so many of these courses available is preying on the vulnerability of new writers. Many of which will never have a career, no matter how much money they throw at it. Real talent stands on its own merits, it always will. if you have that talent, as Dan has pointed out before, then never give up. As you travel along on your journey you will make contacts and get chances. I write because I enjoy it. I wrote for pleasure for over 20 years before I considered getting serious. I was simply waiting for the right time. I don't need a course providing those sorts of things to show me what I need to do. It's blindingly obvious what I need to do and the advice is freely available on line for anyone caring to invest time to learn. Three people may well have careers in Hollywood, sweeping floors, however many more from the real world have done the same thing and far, far better without this course.

First, let me say I in no way considered this thread to be a solicitation for FAST screenplay. My apologies if you took it that way. My understanding is that the purpose of this thread a discussion of the instructional program by people who had participated in it. I am not an investor or a sales representative and it makes no difference to me whether you enroll in it or not. In fact if I was a sales rep, I'd be pretty broke, since I don't get online and push it in this or any of the dozens of other writer's forums out there. When several people chimed in that they considered it was some sort of scam, I spoke up to say that is not my experience. I paid for and received an extremely valuable set of screenwriting tools and complimentary instruction that have had a positive effect on my ability to craft a marketable screenplay. A scam or "rip off" is, by my definition, someone who takes money and doesn't deliver the goods or services promised. What I do with those goods and services, well that's up to me. I also have not made any disparaging comments about my education at UCLA or any of the fellowships or other programs I have been a part of. I learned a great deal from each of them and I'm deeply grateful for the opportunities they afforded me and the relationships that I made there. My comment in context, was that the educational materials that I got from these other programs was in the content provided by FAST, plus there were additional materials that weren't in any of those programs. In simple terms, I've had a lot of education and the FAST program is impressively complete and well thought out when compared. Why would I continue my education? Because that's my nature. I make some sort of effort every day to improve my knowledge and execution of the screenwriting craft. If I recognize a weakness, I undertake exploration to increase my understanding of that area. I have no idea what field your master's degree is in or what your experience is in that field, but obviously, the next level is a doctorate. Seeking candidacy at that next level will provide you with a deeper and broader understanding of your chosen field and push you closer to mastery. Some people drop out of high school and succeed brilliantly. I guess it's a matter of personal preference. I haven't looked at the advertising for FAST in a while, but there was nothing there that made me feel like they were promising that if I completed their program, I'd sell a particular screenplay. Maybe it's because I understand the reality side of the business versus the dream side of it. But I think I made that clear in my previous post. I'm really shocked that anyone who isn't considering the program has any interest in spending time discussing it. I made an attempt previously to shift the discussion from a negative to a positive, but it seems to be attracting mainly negative comments. FAST is a great program. I highly recommend it to anyone who is looking to further their screenwriting education or to people who are interested in becoming a screenwriter and want to get a baseline education. To anyone who doesn't have the resources to invest or who feel a different path is best for them, best of luck and I hope to read your name in the credits of a great piece of entertainment some day soon. The industry is too hard to be hating on one another, I'd rather spend my time lifting people up and working on craft.

Cat.... what does FAST offer that an intelligent writer cannot figure out for themselves?

To answer your question Dustin, I'll ask you, what is your weakness as a screenwriter? Do you know that for a fact? Do you know what you need to do to improve that? If you know the answers to those questions I think you can create a strategy to find what you need to improve your craft by searching around and maybe finding a book, if you prefer to be self taught. My personal preference is to get organized instruction, because that gives me more time to do the number one thing to improve craft... WRITE and read screenplays. No replacement for those two steps no matter how many courses or books or other materials you have at your fingertips. If you have to choose between enrolling in a program or having time to write, use the time to write. A lot of writers aren't sure exactly what makes the difference between a script that a producer will choose to read or one they will choose to pass. FAST actually gives you a system to analyze your work in a very objective way (well as objective as we can ever be... none of us think we totally suck or we wouldn't even try, huh?) and it offers some specific tools to spotlight and strengthen any weakness. So it's fine tuned. You might be brilliant at plot, but your dialog makes a reader give up on page one. Your dialog might be great, but your plots convoluted and hard to follow. My personal number one take away wasn't something I even thought of as a weakness until the system shined a light on it as I was working through an exercise. Everybody has their own way to learn, you have to honor that. I'm only speaking to the people who want to learn the way I do, by organized instruction. Michael Arndt is an NYU grad, Quentin Tarantino is a high school drop out. Michael has one Academy Award, Quentin has two. Which followed the right career path? It's clearly individual. You have to do what works best for you.

Actually, I think this program sounds pretty good for "high school dropouts"! I expect it would be more beneficial for high school drop outs than those with academic training. I have a PhD, so personally I feel confident in my abilities to structure my learning and progress, and indeed to be objective in analyzing my work. This program could well help me, but the simple possibility and promises alone doesn't justify it for me personally. Clearly some people may find this program beneficial, and there are some aspects that sound very interesting. What's definitely clear is the market for screenwriter tools, along with the screenwriting competitions, courses, books, and software-- I think it's a mini industry in itself nowadays.

Love those comics!!

I stole my 'How To' book. Nah, just kidding. It was 'Save the Cat' and I paid around £13 or something.

Cat... you don't answer a question with a question... so to answer your question, I don't have any weaknesses as a screenwriter. Ah, one. I lack contacts... which I am strengthening every day. I am working with three different producers currently, on two shorts and two features, one of the producers I'm doing both a short and a feature with. This interest was garnered from showing just one script, my first. Ah that's actually a lie, the short with the one producer has stood on its own merits. It's funny, because with that short I had one producer want to make it then back out, then a month later another guy wants to make it. I know I've got what it takes and I've always known that. A writer is what I've always been and it was just a matter of time before I had the confidence to reveal myself. You seriously think you can help me? If you're a Manager, find me work and I will give you your negotiated cut. Ah... you want me to actually pay you. I could have millions in the bank and a rat will always smell like a rat. I'm glad your business model appears to be working for you, however I fail to understand the necessity in spamming a forum like this. Wouldn't it be more professional and indeed more beneficial to both parties if you sought to sponsor the site instead? Seems plenty of room for some tasteful ad's to me.

"I can certainly recommend FAST as a great way to improve your skills as a screenwriter, whether you are just starting out or have written dozens. After really learning the FAST system, i have been able to hone m craft and land several rewrite jobs. But that's not why I love it. I love it because every time I revisit the system, I learn more about myself as a screenwriter and how to develop my particular strengths as well as work through my specific weaknesses. It's not a guru, or a formula, but a living, breathing development tool that will work for each and every screenplay." Cat That's not somebody talking about their experiences. That is a blatant pitch. You probably did it for a discount on your course.

Dustin, I'm sorry you misunderstood my response to your question. I was trying to say that if you already have it together, you don't need to waste time on a course, a book, a seminar, pitch sessions or anything else. Why would you? You don't have any weaknesses as a writer, so you should be writing some great material. Spend your time writing. You've got people paying you for your work already, right? But I was a bit confused because you asked me if I was a manager and if I could find you work, but maybe you were just being sarcastic. I love sarcastic humor, but it's hard to get inflections and stuff when it's just words on a screen. You should be able to find work, there's a nonstop need for content., more today than ever. Great writing will get you all the contacts you need. No bones about it, I love what the FAST screenplay system did for me personally. I assume people who investigate it are looking for instruction. I don't knock on doors or send out email, or do anything other than answer questions. I didn't start this thread, all I did was post to this thread out of the obviously misguided notion that someone INTERESTED in instruction might want to ask about it. If it was a Save the Cat Master Class thread, I wouldn't have commented, because I haven't taken that class. I still have a tremendous respect for Blake's contribution to screenwriting education, even when movie critics are making fun of it and blaming it for boring, predictable movies As was mentioned in a previous post, there is an entire industry of people making a living off people who are interested in the screenwriting profession, so I understand the angst toward that, but really we are the ones that create the demand. To be fair, I think most of these people, outside of a few contests that have been exposed as being totally bogus, are people who are excited about possibly finding the next "it" writer and launching that person's career. I'm not one for pitch fests, contests, gurus, and don't get me started on reader services that charge $1100 to read one screenplay. So I'm not about to stand up and try to separate a struggling screenwriter from their money by making false claims about a screenwriting program. I haven't so far, and don't plan to start. I'm more one for learning different processes and seeing which ones have a positive effect on my material, that's where I've invested my time and money. I outline like crazy, even rewrites. I have a software program I really like for outlining, I rave about that too, just not here, because that's not what the thread is about. And it's not part of FAST, so I'm not like a brainwashed cultist. They have a course too, and no, I haven't taken it, at least not so far.... but still love the software. If you wanted to know about that software, I'd tell you all about it, too. I'm gushy that way. I totally respect the fact that everyone has their own process. If you want to share yours here, go for it. Maybe it will help somebody that isn't into or can't afford instruction.

Jesus Christ, Cat. Excuse my French. Is every post you make on this thread going to be an excuse to launch into another FAST pitch? I stopped reading after your first paragraph. The first paragraph says it all. I'll put it into one sentence for you. No, FAST can't do anything for a writer with an IQ over 110. Cheers.

I say tomatoe.... you say tomatoe....each to their own... For all of us who can not afford to pay for the suggested Fast... We have to use our own imagination, and go in search of those in the know... Who do offer advice to script writers, in order to better themselves. Nothing better, than a real time mentor. Those links are invaluable to me...

I can't say enough about how important mentoring is. My partner is also my mentor and without him giving me, not only screenwriting tips but tips about the industry in general, I'd have a much harder time getting anywhere.