Monday, November 12, 2012

Small Detour: The Dramatic Writer's Companion

In lieu of a Gossip Girl review, I thought I'd post up the book review I had to do for my English class since that's what's been distracting me from reading lately.

My teacher told me to pick something about the writing process, but also something that will help you in the future. Because of this, I picked The Dramatic Writer's Companion: Tools to Develop Characters, Cause Scenes, and Build Stories by Will Dune. Mind you, I just finished writing a 5 page analysis so forgive my lack of elaboration. I'm a little burnt out (lol) and am just trying to keep my blogging schedule.

I guess your only reasons for reading this would be:
A) are absolutely a second away from blowing your brains out of boredom or 
B) are really interested in screenwriting.



Author: Will Dunne

Pages: 359

Publisher: The University of Chicago Press

Summary (from the back of the book):

Moss Hart once said that you never really learn how to write a play; you only learn how to write this play. Crafted with that adage in mind, The Dramatic Writer’s Companion is designed to help writers explore their own ideas in order to develop the script in front of them. No ordinary guide to plotting, this handbook starts with the principle that character is key. “The character is not something added to the scene or to the story,” writes author Will Dunne. “Rather, the character is the scene. The character is the story.”
Having spent decades working with dramatists to refine and expand their existing plays and screenplays, Dunne effortlessly blends condensed dramatic theory with specific action steps—over sixty workshop-tested exercises that can be adapted to virtually any individual writing process and dramatic script. Dunne’s in-depth method is both instinctual and intellectual, allowing writers to discover new actions for their characters and new directions for their stories.


Thoughts:
It's amazing: structure-wise, content-wise, everything is good. I honestly see no weakness. He sounds eloquent when he talks, but doesn't talk much. Dunne just explains all the ground rules and exercises and why everything is set up the way it is, and then he lets you get to work. It's hard to get lost when he makes every exercise strong enough to stand on its own.

'til next time, stay classy!♥
-M

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