Screenwriting Tips: How An Ideas File Can Help Your Creativity
One of the most useful tools for any screenwriter is an "Ideas File". An "Ideas File" is nothing fancy, it's simply a place where you can keep anything that comes to you that might one day be useful in your writing.
I find that interesting ideas seem to always come at odd moments - in the middle of the night, when you are out running, when you are in the shower.
Rather than worry about when you might use them, simply find a convenient way to store your ideas. It's a matter of personal preference - some people have a notebook for writing notes in, for others jot them down on a piece of paper or write them up on their PC.
And what do you put in your ideas file? Anything! Examples of the things I have in my ideas file include:
· Interesting snippets of conversations I have overheard
· Descriptions of interesting characters that I meet - this can be someone I know, or simply a stranger who catches my eye on a bus or on a train
· News headlines that fascinate, amuse or intrigue me
· Book topics - sometimes I see a book or a magazine article that I wish I'd thought of first - that's OK, set it aside, it may be possible to develop an original idea inspired by the book
· Story seeds - the germs of ideas that I don't yet know where they are going. But if something about this idea intrigues me, I write it down for later consideration
It might not seem like much, but starting your own Ideas File is part of thinking and acting like a professional scriptwriter. I often talk to people who have one idea, write it up, make a half-hearted go at marketing it, then quit.
What they don't realize is that to be a successful screenwriter requires not just talent but dedication and staying power. You might write five, six, seven scripts before you sell one, but with each one you write your skills will be improving.
So where do the ideas come from to write six or seven scripts? From your Ideas File of course! By keeping track of the interesting ideas that come to you, you will ensure that you always have something interesting to write about.
I find that interesting ideas seem to always come at odd moments - in the middle of the night, when you are out running, when you are in the shower.
Rather than worry about when you might use them, simply find a convenient way to store your ideas. It's a matter of personal preference - some people have a notebook for writing notes in, for others jot them down on a piece of paper or write them up on their PC.
And what do you put in your ideas file? Anything! Examples of the things I have in my ideas file include:
· Interesting snippets of conversations I have overheard
· Descriptions of interesting characters that I meet - this can be someone I know, or simply a stranger who catches my eye on a bus or on a train
· News headlines that fascinate, amuse or intrigue me
· Book topics - sometimes I see a book or a magazine article that I wish I'd thought of first - that's OK, set it aside, it may be possible to develop an original idea inspired by the book
· Story seeds - the germs of ideas that I don't yet know where they are going. But if something about this idea intrigues me, I write it down for later consideration
It might not seem like much, but starting your own Ideas File is part of thinking and acting like a professional scriptwriter. I often talk to people who have one idea, write it up, make a half-hearted go at marketing it, then quit.
What they don't realize is that to be a successful screenwriter requires not just talent but dedication and staying power. You might write five, six, seven scripts before you sell one, but with each one you write your skills will be improving.
So where do the ideas come from to write six or seven scripts? From your Ideas File of course! By keeping track of the interesting ideas that come to you, you will ensure that you always have something interesting to write about.