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How to Organize Screenplay Ideas

Every screenwriter, at one point or another, goes through a phase in which he keeps coming up with ideas, but cannot develop them further. This leads to frustration and often a lack of confidence in personal ability, but with the right attitude and organization-these "lost" ideas can eventually prove profitable. Here are steps to getting "organized."

Instructions

    • 1

      Never, ever, under any circumstance, throw an idea away. If you took the time to write down even just a paragraph, it clearly has some life or value.

    • 2

      Instead, when you get to the point that an idea cannot be developed further, file it either on a computer or in a cabinet with an appropriate folder.

    • 3

      A week later, revisit the idea and see if anything hits you via inspiration. I have had this happen a few times. I was so spent when originally thinking of the idea that my mind was zapped. A week later, with a clear head, I developed it further.

    • 4

      If your cabinet or folder is growing larger, pick a day to analyze all of these ideas, and either alone or with a friend, attempt to diagnose the stopping point-the point at which the idea halts.

    • 5

      If such a diagnosis can be made, you may have very well solved the problem and may now be able to work past it.

    • 6

      If not, see if these ideas can be used in conjunction. Perhaps the issue isn't with you, but rather that the idea is a storyline, not a total plot. Maybe three of these ideas put together, makes a movie!

    • 7

      Elicit advice from friends or family members who are not in the business. Everyone loves movies and has dreams of being in/making their own, so their advice may spur the creative juices.

Film Production

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