[Quick Summary: The personal side of how Wyatt Earp became a feared Wild West lawman.]
Please don't be dense like me.
For years, I scoffed at the value of reading scripts.
"Read?! REAL writers WRITE. What could I learn from reading?"
I didn't care that every famous screenwriter said to do it.
It was optional, right? I believe the answer is no.
It takes time and is a pain, but it's the only way to teach how to tell a story.
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An example from today's script:
"DOC (impressed): Bat Masterson. You're the man that killed Sergeant King in Sweetwater?
Bat nods, not knowing Doc's feelings about the deceased.
DOC: Got you in the leg, I understand. My congratulations to you, sir. King was a skunk of the first order.
BIG NOSE KATE: I wish you'd got him before he shot poor Molly Brennan. She was a sweet girl.
This is a subject of real feeling for Bat, who loved the dead girl. Quietly --
BAT: Yes she was, ma'am...."
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How do you interpret the bolded sentences above?
A new writer might think, "That's wrong. Those sentences violate the "show, don't tell rule."
However, a seasoned writer who has read many scripts will realize:
- It's ok to violate the rule if it helps the story.
- These sentences are NOT telling. They are describing REACTION SHOTS to the dialogue. That is why it is so easy to visualize this story.
I was naive to think I could pick up these tricks of the trade by reading once in a blue moon.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: Reading scripts is your continuing education.
I recommend setting a reading curriculum for yourself.
Don't stop learning.
Wyatt Earp (1994)
by Lawrence Kasdan and Jake Kasdan
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