WHAT FICTION WRITERS CAN LEARN FROM THE OSCAR WINNING MOVIES

There's nothing better than a good movie, and there are six valuable lessons we can learn from writers of screenplays:

1) SCREENWRITERS DON'T WASTE TIME GETTING INTO THE STORY. Since we live in a world of sound bites, text messages, IM, and emoticons, readers don't have the patience to open a book, much less concentrate long. Therefore, we need to take this attention deficit disorder into account and make sure there's an emotional connection right from the beginning story.

2) SCREENWRITERS NAIL THE BEGINNING. As novel writers, we must revise the first ten pages over and over and over again. Revision is the only way to get it right.

3) SCREENWRITERS CREATE MEMORABLE HEROES. 

And villains. As authors, we need to make the protagonist a fully rounded character. This is especially true if the protagonist is also the POV narrator.

4) SCREENWRITERS WRITE ECONOMICALLY.  Every line in a screenplay moves the story forward. Every scene in a novel should be there for a reason. We must not overwrite. We must delete, kill our "darlings," get rid of  "on the nose" dialogue, and cut out lots of backstory. 

5) SCREENWRITERS CREATE GREAT DIALOGUE. 

We need to make sure every character in our story has a unique voice. Dialogue should reveal character and move the story forward.

5) SCREENWRITERS KNOW THEIR AUDIENCE  As novelists, we need to analyze our readership, the genre we're writing in, and the type of readers we want to attract. Choosing a few Beta readers from this group is helpful during revision.

6) SCREENWRITERS UNDERSTAND THE THREE-ACT STRUCTURE. Novel writers can benefit by analyzing this story structure. In a nutshell:

By page ten, readers want to be introduced to your hero, know what he or she wants, and feel comfortable in the genre of the story. 

By the end of Act One, readers should have an idea where the story is headed, what the stakes are, and the obstacles preventing the hero from achieving that goal. By the middle of Act Two, readers expect the stakes to be raised, a new character introduced, and/or a more difficult obstacle.  

By the end of Act Two, readers know your hero will be in terrible trouble, backed into a corner, thrown into a crucible, or caught in the midst of some inescapable situation. And the tension builds. 

In Act Three, readers expect your hero to overcome the odds, create a new plan, or escape, learn to deal with, or thwart an impossible situation. And this leads to the big satisfying ending. 

OSCAR WINNING MOVIES provide enjoyment for audiences and lessons for authors.  Writing is an art form, and novelists and screenwriters can learn from each other. Analyzing screenplays can become a part of your creative process and lead to better story scenes, structure, and dialogue.