Screenwriting, Screenplays, Screenwriters - Writing a Screenplay Using Structure

Effective screenwriting relies on the good understanding and use of structure.

Inexperienced screenwriters may believe that structure inhibits creativity, but experienced writers know that following a template helps them to problem identify, generate ideas, select good ideas and develop them to reach that all important words-on-paper first draft ? structure is not a hindrance but an enhancer of creative output.

If doubts about structure still exist, then they are soon eliminated ? when screenplays are presented to decision makers for evaluation, writers soon learn that structure becomes an important part of the evaluation process.

A writer, through an individual and tortuous process of trial and error, may develop templates, or he or she may use one of the classic templates such as the Hero's Journey. But a writer will rarely admit to the use of templates (it reduces the perception of originality) or he or she may be only mildly aware that they are following a process.

The Classic Hero's Journey story structure template contains 106 sequences and more than 30 in the final act alone. It is an evolution of Campbells' original model, containing only 17,18 or 19 sequences, depending on who the interpreter is.

There is a theory that there are only five jokes in the world. Similarly there is a theory that there is only one story in the world. An analyses of nearly all the stories produced by Hollywood bears this out from a certain perspective and the Hero's Journey would be this universal template.

But from the one universal template are derived many descendants, and one of those is the NO WAY BUT DOWN story structure. In it, the anti-hero heads for self-destruction as a result of his own misdeeds and the betrayal of a shape shifter, allies and goddess et al. It is more exploratory of the darker side of human nature and behaviour and there are no happy endings?but it still makes for a fascinating story.

The Classic Hero's Journey and the No Way But Down story structure templates can be found at http://www.managing-creativity.com.

You can also receive a regular, free newsletter by entering your email address at this site.

Kal Bishop, MBA

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You are free to reproduce this article as long as no changes are made and the author's name and site URL are retained.

Kal Bishop is a management consultant based in London, UK. He has consulted in the visual media and software industries and for clients such as Toshiba and Transport for London. He has led Improv, creativity and innovation workshops, exhibited artwork in San Francisco, Los Angeles and London and written a number of screenplays. He is a passionate traveller. He can be reached on http://www.managing-creativity.com

Use eBay as Cheap Traffic!

Did you know that according to alexa, www.eBay.com is ranked number 8 out of over 36 billion sites on the web? (36,000,000,000!). On average, it recieves 40 million hits daily, and of that, it's average user views 17 pages. That's impressive! What's also great, is that most listings get at least 50 very targeted views. If you can get listed on eBay's "The Pulse" (most popular internet auctions) you are guaranteed at least 5,000 visitors to that listing, and many of them will click through to your site, affiliate link, whatever makes you money.

Your probably thinking, big deal, it's almost like a ppc. What you probably don't realize is that you have COMPLETE control on the content of your ad (err?listing?). Two to three sentences not cut out to describe your site accurately? Then don't bother with Overture or Adwords, (Or kanoodle, goclick, etc etc) as they only offer you a few senteces.

The price of a listing that can potentially garner you over 1,000 visitors? About THREE DOLLARS!. What PPC campaign can offer you such bulk, targeted visitors with such minimal cost and effort? Not any that I can think of! Another great thing, is that your listing doesn't cost more or less based on your keywords! No more spending upwards of 2 dollars (overture expenses anyone?) for keywords such as "Make Money" or "Real Estate Profits", or even upwards of 7 dollars for keywords such as "Website Promotion." Simply amazing?.

The only pitfall of this is that you must have an actual product to bid on. Many simply don't think too hard about this, and try to sell an email or sales letter, or something of no real value, just so they can justify their listing on eBay. What you SHOULD do however (if you own your own product, this is harder to do with an affiliate link) is sell your own product!

Simply modify and copy your sales letter as your listing. EBay is notorious for quick shoppers who are very irrational when buying things. Candy wrappers selling for over 100$ sound odd to you? Not on ebay. Some eBay bidders actually make it a habit to buy and collect this stupid crap, and resell it all as a "Greatest Hits of eBay" collection. Now that's smart thinking! You want to take that a step further? Write an ebook about eBay mystery auction, and strange auction in general, or a guide on how to think of such crazy idea's and sell that very product on eBay!

You can probably understand why you should consider eBay one of the most unique prospects on the internet. It's like the search engines USED to be, where you are guaranteed hits and visitors no matter what the field, and where being outrageous pays off. Maybe you should check out eBay a little more?

Chris Everson
http://www.emoneyreport.com

You WILL make money.
http://www.therealincome.com
Learn the Marketing Secrets of the Guru's

Getting Comfortable in Your Own Skin

What does it mean to be comfortable in your own skin? It's about expressing yourself in a way they feels the most appropriate.

When we think about expressing ourselves, we automatically think of the superficial ways. How we dress. The way we wear our hair. The car we drive. If you wear jeans and a T-shirt one day and a business suit the next, what is it expressing about you? Is it that you are sophisticated one day and unsophisticated the next? Actually, your outer appearance expresses very little about who you truly are.

Instead, when we talk about expression, we should look at what's harder to change about ourselves. Our habits. The words we use. How we treat people. And, most importantly, how we express our spiritual gifts.

Ah, spiritual gifts. That elusive term. It's also known as your calling. But how do you express those properly? We could each have similar gifts, but decide to express them differently. For example, let's say that 3 women are trying to figure out the best way to express their calling of teaching. One woman might become a high school teacher. Another might teach English in a foreign country. While another woman might home school her own children. Who is expressing their spiritual gifts properly? All of them. It is a personal decision.

You might say that the first two women are career women. Some women might look down on the woman who chose to be a stay-at-home mom. But is this fair? Does that mean that the way she is expressing her spiritual gifts is any less fulfilling or any less valid? No, not at all. The concern about others judging us is often what stops us from getting comfortable in our own skin. What if our family doesn't like what we're doing? What if our friends think the path we're taking is weird?

Too many of us are embarrassed about what others will think of our spiritual journey. We end up sabotaging our own happiness. We are missing out on the great opportunities that will open up once we get comfortable in our own skin.

As you begin reflecting on your spiritual gifts it's great to keep track of your progress. You can do this throughout the day or at the end of the day. You could add your thoughts to a journal or record them on a microcassette recorder.

Here are 3 questions to ask yourself to begin the process of getting comfortable in your own skin:

1) "Have I taken the time to identify my spiritual gifts?" Get in touch with those inklings, those glimpses of what your calling might be. For example:

topics that you are continually drawn to, but you aren't sure why;

what you do in your spare time that makes the day more enjoyable;

things that you do that make it easy to lose track of time when you're doing them.

2) "How am I expressing my spiritual gifts?" Remember that there are many ways to express who you really are. You might try one way for a while and find that it isn't a good fit. If something isn't working, don't be afraid to make changes at a pace that is appropriate for you. Expression of your gifts is so personal. No one has the right to tell you that you are doing it right or wrong.

3) "Am I genuinely happy with my personal and professional life right now, in this moment?" Are you just postponing your happiness until you accomplish your goals? Maybe you're even envious of what others have accomplished in their lives. Happiness isn't in the accomplishment. It's in the journey. If your goal in life is to become rich, you might be so focused on your current financial state that you are missing out on the lessons to be learned in the journey. If you are striving to express your spiritual gifts, life will seem almost effortless. You will meet the right people and find the right opportunities. That is where you will find your happiness.

I started out by mentioning the superficial ways we can express ourselves. What's so interesting is that when you are expressing your spiritual gifts, people will notice a change in your appearance. They will start mentioning how much happier you look or that you look younger. They'll notice something different about you, but they won't be able to put their finger on it. You truly will be comfortable in your own skin -- inside and out.

Leila is co-owner of Data-Scribe(tm) in New Mexico. Their newsletter, the "Micro-Business Gazette" provides tips and resources to empower small businesses. Leila's unique approach to professional development is captured in her workshop program and forthcoming book called "Driving to Success: Let Your Spirit Take the Wheel" - http://www.datascribe.biz.

Make Your Prospects Speak

You've probably heard people speaking about someone that he was born a salesperson. You might think that talent and native skills are all what you need to succeed in sales. In spite of what most people believe, selling is a science. Native abilities can help you to feel more comfortable in salesman position, but first comes learning.

You have to build and permanently grow your knowledge and techniques. It's not just about putting up a web site, or using a replicated web site and promoting it to free classified ad sites and FFA pages. It is not just about learning by heart your product and telling to your customers all what you know.

The most important part of sales science is to listen.

A serious prospect is one who is interested to get what he needs. By the consequence, having some questions or concerns related to your product, he is really interested to find out if your product fits his needs. He will come to you to tell about his questions and concerns. Be prepared to welcome him in silence, selling is not about talking, it is firstly about listening.

Pay attention to his questions or concerns.
What are his likes and dislikes?
Is he motivated by your product price or he perceives the value ?
How your product fits his desire for status ?
Listen to him is like listen to your market.

When is your turn don't start answering, better ask what he means by every question. Make him speak and listen what key words he uses for explanations. Tailor your answer based on the information you gather and be prepared to reply using these key words to emphasize the image of your product.

This technique requires effort and practice to be able to leverage its full potential, so take the time to study and practice it. Make your prospects speak and their concerns will do all selling work for you.

Valerian Dinca is the owner of the newest online business tutorial. Everything you need when you need it.

What They Never Told You About Adsense!

That's right! Many webmasters are getting suckered into joining adsense in hopes of earning quick cash. What they aren't being told is that it's harder than that.

Though google adsense is still one of the best programs out there to earn revenue from your site, there is more to it than that. For example if you think you can just past the links in your site content and watch the money flow in well... In truth few people ever get that lucky some of have to work at it for a while before we get our cash. One of the few mistakes people ever make is thinking google adsense does all the work for you.

Of course we all know that adsense has the most features out there and that it is the best in customer support. Still though if you have a hard time getting clicks off your adsense account, you are not alone. Truth is even though most people may find the ads relevent, many surfers out there have caught the anti-ad bug. This is due to the fact that most ads on sites always misleed you. Everyone knows free hats,free ps2s, and just about free everything. Wich in reality you won't get the said materials. So even though they see an ad they what to click they will not click on thinking that it will mislead them.

This is partly due to the fact that many ads are circling the net with false promises. There exist no way to get past this except fooling the users into thinking that the link is not an ad but a link written by you. Though this is hard hence the ads by gooogle label that goes with every adsense advertisment. But that's why most people get more clicks by blending their ads with their content. Though they the ads by google they believe the links are not misleading since the sites are part of your site.

It's like soldiers when they wear camo. They want to blend in as much as possible. Well try it and see what you get!

Author of http://allaboutadsense.blogspot.com/. I write articles about my many webmastring experiences.

Naming Your Baby Is Part of The Challenge of Being a Parent

Baby names are as diverse as the people to whom they are given. Choosing the right name for your baby can be a very challenging yet fun exercise! This is my story.

Before I was married I used to work as a midwife in a Labor Ward. I have helped deliver over 1,000 babies. It was an awesome feeling every time I placed the baby in the mother's arms for the first time. Often I would ask, 'What's your baby's name?' The mother would look up at me with such pride and say, 'His (or her) name is....'. I loved sharing their joy. Seeing the mother snuggle up to her baby and announcing her baby's name!

I was destined to be married! An unmistakable inner thought filled my mind at the age of sixteen. I knew then that I would do nurses' training, two years of bible college and then I would get married and go to Ethiopia as a missionary.

Bill, my husband-to-be, had been a single missionary in Ethiopia for five years. While praying one time, a strong impression came to him that God would give him a wife when he returned to Australia on leave. Bill stopped in Singapore on the way home and bought the engagement and wedding rings. He had just enough money left to buy a watch, and the brand name of the watch was "Rebekah". As Bill was reading the story of Rebekah in the Bible, this verse stood out "Just as I led Abraham's servant to find a wife for Isaac, I will lead you to your future wife." (Genesis, chapter 24) Hang in there! I am telling you this story so that you will understand why we named one of our daughters Rebecca!

Bill arrived back in Australia and decided to visit the bible college where he had trained. On the way, Bill heard an inner voice saying, "She is in the college." He prayed a prayer similar to Abraham's servant, "Lord, let it be the first girl I meet." I was the first girl he met! We were so sure of God's plan for our lives that the next time we met we were engaged.

A few months later we were married and on our way as newly weds to work in an isolated area southwest of the capital, Addis Ababa, in Ethiopia. After three challenging years we flew home because of the imminent birth of our eldest child. We named her Leanne Maree. Leanne was a name we always wanted if we had a girl. Maree was chosen because the night we were engaged we went to see the movie, 'The Sound of Music' and Maree was our modern version of Maria in the musical.

We were back in Ethiopia for the birth of our second child. An American doctor helped bring Carolyn Joy into the world, in a remote Ethiopian hospital. To minimize the risk of infection, the doctor advised me to only stay in the hospital for one hour after giving birth. The nicest thing about the experience was bringing our little bundle of joy home! Carolyn Joy was named after the doctor's daughter.

With each pregnancy we expected a boy! We wanted to call him Peter, because Peter's character in the Bible reminded me of myself. He was outgoing, loving, passionate and spoke his mind. We did not have ultrasound in Ethiopia to determine the sex of the baby so we anxiously waited to see if we would have a Leanne or Peter. When Carolyn was coming it was Carolyn or Peter. I was pregnant again when we left Ethiopia at the beginning of the communist's occupation. This time it would be Peter Andrew or Rebecca Grace. Rebecca Grace won ? she was named after Bill's watch brand, Rebekah, and Grace is my second name!

With three beautiful girls we both agreed that Peter was not to be! Until one night I was reading from the Bible and these words stood out, "Next year you will have a son." Peter Andrew was born nine months later.

No doubt if you are having a child or have had children you can tell a story of how you came to choose your baby's name. Choosing the right baby name is one of the biggest decisions you will have to make in life.

Talking of names! Another big decision you will have to make is whether you will have your name written down in Heaven. The Bible says clearly that the moment you come alive spirituality and become God's child your name is written down in Heaven. When you become his child, your name is recorded in his family register. A cartoon flash presentation on my website (www.ydyc.org) will show you how you can become God's child and have your name written down in Heaven. You can be sure of your final destiny.

Wilma Watson is the producer of the cartoon website: http://www.ydyc.org

She has a passion to help people reach their maximum potential through making spirituality simple and fun.

Choosing the right name for your baby can be a very challenging yet fun exercise! This her my story.

Phentermine Price Watch: Comparison Shop To Buy Phentermine At The Best Values Online

When compared with the other prescription diet pills, Phentermine is the best buy if you're looking for a way to just finally get a handle on your weight loss without embarassing gas problems or dangerous blood pressure levels. When you begin taking Phentermine, you'll enjoy another huge benefit: Unlike other diet pills that block fat, Phentermine stops your cravings so you can focus on eating healthy foods in healthy portions. This also means that Phentermine makes it easier to continue good habits after stopping treatment.

When looking for the weight loss pill with the best overall value, Phentermine is an obvious choice. But what's the best choice when you want to buy Phentermine online at an internet pharmacy?

Many people just look for the lowest prices on their diet pills, and many end up being ripped off. Some get the wrong pills, and some receive impure medication that doesn't work. But others never even get their order in the mail. In many markets, such as the car market, the saying that "you get what you pay for" doesn't really apply. But this saying is definitely true when we shop for prescription medications online. That is just the unfortunate truth.

After 2.5 years of experience, we have decided to research every online pharmacy we can find, and in most cases, the news isn't good. Many end up linking back one processing company, and only some of them are legitimate. In the interest of breathing some real life into the online pharmacy industry, we have compiled our research into a "best buys" website for your convenience.

Copyright (C) Shoppe.MD and Ian Mason, 2004-2005

Compare top-rated pharmacies to buy phentermine online using Shoppe.MD, your source for extensive phentermine prescription information and weight loss support forums.