At one time or another, all of us, have been told by those wiser that we should “write visually” as screenwriters.

It’s good advice and frankly no self-respecting screenwriter should ever stop thinking visually.

But, what exactly does it mean?

Every scene in a screenplay should serve a purpose and contribute to the overall narrative. While the specific goals may vary depending on the story, genre, and context, there are things that every scene should accomplish.

"Who wants what?" is a fundamental question that helps drive the narrative and character motivations for screenwriters when they sit dow to write. It's a concise way of summarizing the core element of conflict and desire in a scene.

Here are the winners for a few categories at the Golden Globes.

When you're writing an action/thriller or suspense drama of some kind you have to be able to create tension, and well, suspense. The movie SPEED always comes to mind when you think about a really effective ticking clock story element. The ticking clock plot device is a powerful tool that adds urgency and tension to the narrative. It usually involves setting a specific deadline or time constraint for the characters to achieve their goals.

It has been asked and debated for a long time whether screenwriting is an "art" or a "craft"?  It is true that some in literature circles (as well as Artists) look down on screenwriting as a limited craft with its strict guidelines.  The nature of screenwriting is brevity, but within the confinements of the form the ability to create art within the craft still exists.  The distinction between art and craft is often blurred, and in the case of screenwriting, both elements are integral to the process. And its important for you as a screenwriter to understand that to be great, you must master both.

"Lowtide" writer, director and producer Kevin McMullin has sold his short story "Bomb" and is tabbed to write the script for "low seven figures" and "Gladiator" director Ridley Scott is attached to Direct.  According to reports, 20th Century beat out studios Apple, Netflix, Sony, and Warner Bros. 

Creating conflict is a crucial element in storytelling as it keeps readers engaged and invested in the narrative. Here are five ways writers can introduce and escalate conflict in their stories:

I love Readers! Yes they are the gatekeepers to the Promised Land and like it or not they do have power. But just how much? Well, I’m here to show you. I got my hands on a classified document folks, the holy grail… An actual copy of a real STUDIO MEMO covering GUIDELINES for their READERS.

Screenwriting is an art.  Some will say, no, it is a skill; others will say it is neither.  It is true that with prose fiction writing the writer has almost unlimited range in how they can present their story.  The ability to get inside a character's head and reveal all kinds of facets to the aspects of that character. The skill and art of screenwriting is the ability to express your story with emotion and drama while still conforming to the limiting structure of the screenplay itself.  Some screenwriters get stuck and feel so confined by the significant limitation of screenplay structure that they never evolve as a writer and ultimately give up. 

There’s really no right or wrong in Hollywood, but based on reading a zillion query letters, here’s some suggestions when undertaking a letter writing campaign.

All of us creative types have things we're naturally good at, and things we've learned to do, and things we aren't that good at (yet). This creates a creative trap: when approaching a project, we often work on the part we understand best — the part that scares us least. So if you're good at plot, you write the plot first, and then fill in the characters later. If you're good at characters, you write up the characters and then feel your way towards a plot.

When your story ends the unfolding of the narrative needs to have been logical. It doesn't always have to be evident at the time of the character taking action, but once the narrative is resolved the audience needs to experience that "Ah ha" moment. The narrative should be logical at its conclusion.

Hollywood loves buzzwords, and one of the latest is "vertical," as in make your screenplays vertical. Like many buzzwords, this one is based on a fundamental truism: it is easier to read a manuscript that is "vertical" with lots of white space on the page than one that has great text density.

Books are the fastest and easiest way you can learn from an expert. In screenwriting, it’s no different. Some of the best screenwriters and those who have mastered the craft, have created countless books trying to encapsulate all they’ve learned in their work. If you’re a new screenwriter and looking to improve or simply to learn how to create better scripts, these three books will help you out.

Everybody has a perspective. Everybody in your scene has a reason. They have their own voice, their own identity, their own history… But if you don’t know who everybody is and why they’re there, why they’re feeling what they’re feeling and why they’re doing what they’re doing, then you’re in trouble.

Okay.  Been a while.  Here's some advice for you newbe screenwriters, just don't. Go back to bartending, uber driving, or living in mom and dads basement.  Anyway, stuck story? Get it unstuck.  Here's how.

Everyone pursuing a screenwriting career will eventually realize this journey is not for the thin of skin or for those who cannot handle the emotional ups and downs this business brings. If you haven’t yet experienced the soul crushing disappointment of finally having written a script that goes into development, but it doesn’t make it to production and sits on a shelf, I don’t envy you. It’s happened to me a handful of times out of my nearly two dozen paid screenwriting assignments. Learn this early — there are no guarantees in the screenwriting game. You take your lumps, heal, and move on to the next screenplay and the next one.

Dr. Linda Seger is the original script consultant having literally inventing the job in 1981; before her it didn't exist.  Since then she has consulted on over 2000 scripts and presented screenwriting seminars in over thirty countries around the world. Seger has written nine books on screenwriting making her the most prolific screenwriting author we have.   Seger consulted for Peter Jackson’s break-through film, BRAIN DEAD and Roland Emmerich’s breakthrough film, UNIVERSAL SOLDIER. She also has given seminars for studios, networks including ABC, NBC, CBS, production companies, television series (MacGyver, The Mary Show), film commissions, universities and film schools. 

Building tension in your thriller or drama story can be difficult at times.  There really is an art to creating the tension that audiences love and that will separate your script from the pack.  Here I will cover three key elements to creating tension in your screenplay story.