79 - Rigorous, structured daydreaming

Mar 5, 2013

Craig and John take a look at an old post that found new life this week when it got picked up on Twitter and Reddit. We go beyond the bullet points to look at the process of writing a scene, from asking the basic questions to getting the words on the page.

1. What needs to happen in this scene?
2. What's the worst that would happen if this scene were omitted?
3. Who needs to be in the scene?
4. Where could the scene take place?
5. What's the most surprising thing that could happen in the scene?
6. Is this a long scene or a short scene?
7. Brainstorm three different ways it could begin.
8. Play it on the screen in your head.
9. Write a scribble version.
10. Write the full scene.
11. Repeat 200 times.

Through this lens, we look at three new entries in the Three Page Challenge.

LINKS:

• @RyanRivard's How to write a scene graphic
• The Reddit post
• The original 2007 blog post
• Three pages by Josh Golden
• Three pages by Kate Powers
• Three pages by Andre McGee
• How to submit your three pages
• Waking Mars for iOS
• Homeland on Amazon Instant and Blu-ray
• OUTRO: New York (Daviglio cover)

UPDATE 3-8-13: The transcript of this episode can be found here.