Creative writing is something that a lot of people believe they do to a publishable standard. The infinite monkey theorem states that a monkey hitting keys at random on a typewriter keyboard for an infinite amount of time will almost surely type a given text, such as the complete works of William Shakespeare. If approximately 26 years of the internet tells us anything at all, this is not the case.
I receive scripts all the time from all over, some of the worst from academics. A typical cover letter will state “I have a Ph.D. in English language (substitute, Law, physics, medicine, etc.) and I have written this groundbreaking romance story.” I always make a cup of coffee and take a seat as I know it is going to be a long night. The temptation is to reject the script at that point, but sadly I carry on. I had one English professor wanting a massively detailed account of why his script failed. I did on that occasion spend a lot of time explaining why it didn’t work. He explained that he was an English professor and went on to tell me why I was wrong, arguing each point of the rejection. further debate was pointless. The ability to write a scientific paper or mark student’s English compositions is not the gateway into romantic fiction. That said it doesn’t bar you either, we have had some great scripts from academics.
I would like to give a few tips on common reasons why we reject scripts.
A lot of scripts are thin, he said, she said, then they did something. Get into the character and stay in that character. Show me their emotions don’t just tell me. I lot of scripts head hop. Anchor the character at the beginning of a chapter. Whose eyes are we seeing the story through? If it is woolly the reader spends time trying to work out who is doing what, because it really isn’t clear. Paint the scene with your words. A quick example of what I mean, and forgive the skanky pros as this is off the cuff. You have a scene:
Peter finished his long, boring meeting. He got up, put on his jacket and walked out into the hot sunshine.
Is told and dull.
The extended, tedious meeting, which he had not been looking forward to in the first place had finally come to an end. Peter, felt the stress of the day, tight in his neck. He gave a huge sigh, relief washed through as he realized that work was at an end. He rose from the uncomfortable chair and flexed the muscles in his shoulder and back. He slipped on his old jacket, the cloth worn shiny at the elbows and walked slowly outside. The sun warmed his face and he took in a deep liberating breath as he looked around the grounds of the stately home.
Both say the same thing, but the second is giving the reader a little of the personal experience from Peter’s point of view, showing a little emotion.
Another tip is, don’t have too many characters and introduce them all at once. More people do not equate to a better story. The same with the word count, the longer the story is, does not necessarily make it better. It is more about what words you use rather than the number of them.
I realize I may have opened a hornet’s nest and that as I sit here authors are making an orderly queue, to write and telling me I am wrong. These are just my thoughts and opinions. I would love to hear your thoughts, experience or any views you might like to share. On here, the blog, Facebook or Twitter