There has been a book I've had, written by a very successful independent filmmaker that, to be honest with you, I have been reluctant to share with others.
It is probably the best book I've read on this subject. It not only covers writing screenplays, but how to create stories in any genre and medium that can be extraordinary successes. Not only that but Tom Laughlin has written down a system of ways to measure the potential for a story's success, before it is ever published.
Here is how Laughlin describes the book:
"Movie, TV Show, Play or Novel No WRITER, STAR, DIRECTOR or PRODUCER can afford to be unaware of the 9 Secrets that finally explain why people go to one movie and not another... PLUS: The most thorough financial box office analysis ever that proves the 9 Secrets are always present in the hits and missing from the failures.
Tom Laughlin's 9 Secrets to Writing a Hit Movie, TV Show, Play or Novel.
WHAT IF: there really was a way to know - in advance - the box office success of a film?
WHAT IF: someone made box office predictions on a summer's worth of films - in writing - and was almost 100% correct ? (WITHOUT READING A SCRIPT!!)
WHAT IF: there was a book for anyone going to produce, direct, invest, green-light or write a picture could radically increase the possibility of commercial success?
Who is Tom Laughlin? Maybe you're familiar with the Billy Jack movies that were so extraordinarily successful in the 1970s. Tom Laughlin was the actor who played Billy Jack in the movies. His films grossed close to 100 million dollars each at the box office, and that was 30 years ago with no studio backing.
If you simply want to learn how to write stories that will appeal to those you're writing to, I simply couldn't recommend you getting this book. Yes I do have it and have read it over and over again.
So you also can know, I have no financial incentive in promoting this book. It is not part of some affiliate program or anything like it. It's simply so good, that I wanted to let you in on it.
'Shane Black whose $4.5 million fee for "The Long Kiss Goodbye" kicked off the spec-script boom in 1996, remains especially upbeat about the profession, despite a lot of hard knocks in recent years. "I think screenwriting can be enormously satisfying work -- not just financially but spiritually as well.'
Certainly gives me a good idea of what top line scripts can garner. I was recently entertained with at least a six figure number from reading some articles on the web...
Posted by: P- | May 2, 2006 12:53 AM | Permalink to Comment