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Screenwriting
- Thread starter sathvikm
- Start date
What is the first scene in your story?
My suggestion is to write that down.
I know how I would begin a story like this - how would YOU begin?
Yes it very much could work. It's all about the execution and what happens between the opening scene and the last scene.
As to your follow-up question, my simple, generic response? Hook us. Give us 5 to 10 pages that introduces the "world", sets the tone, introduces the principal players, throws down the gauntlet 'so to speak' and makes us want to buy in to the story you're about to tell us.
As to your follow-up question, my simple, generic response? Hook us. Give us 5 to 10 pages that introduces the "world", sets the tone, introduces the principal players, throws down the gauntlet 'so to speak' and makes us want to buy in to the story you're about to tell us.
Make sure you have a solid ending and work from there.
BTW, drug addiction is closely linked with many psychological disorders - major depression, PTSD, bi-polar disorder, etc. in addition to anxiety. Many drug users/alchoholics are what the mental health community refers to self-medicating, using the drugs/alchohol to "feel better" and/or to suppress unwanted emotions. So resolving the addiction still leaves the underlying mental illness. For example, without the crutch of drugs a person suffering from chronic depression start thinking even more strongly about suicide.
Make sure you do LOTS of research.
BTW, drug addiction is closely linked with many psychological disorders - major depression, PTSD, bi-polar disorder, etc. in addition to anxiety. Many drug users/alchoholics are what the mental health community refers to self-medicating, using the drugs/alchohol to "feel better" and/or to suppress unwanted emotions. So resolving the addiction still leaves the underlying mental illness. For example, without the crutch of drugs a person suffering from chronic depression start thinking even more strongly about suicide.
Make sure you do LOTS of research.
"I can stop anytime I want to" is a pretty big cliché.
Can you do better than a conversation?
Yeah it is a cliche but that is how most of the addicts feel as per my understanding.
I am thinking about starting it with a funny banter between the protagonist and his friend where one of them feels that he can easily beat it while the other is cynical about it, although they understand the truth they joke about it and the scene ends
I am thinking about starting it with a funny banter between the protagonist and his friend where one of them feels that he can easily beat it while the other is cynical about it, although they understand the truth they joke about it and the scene ends
Don't worry about being satisfied with the first draft, just get everything on paper/screen as fast as you can. What's important to get your ideas solidified. After that you can edit to your hearts content.
Michelangelo was supposed to have said that the sculpture was already in the marble; all he did was remove the unneeded bits. As a sound designer I subscribe to the same ethic when I begin, I throw everything at and create my own "marble." Then I start whittling away the "unneeded bits" and modify/replace things as required.
That's what writing is - starting afresh when you are not satisfied.
You have passion for this idea, I hope you write it.
Just recently a writer posted here saying he wants to write with
someone; HERE'S THE LINK
One of the problems with a writing partner is finding the project you
BOTH have passion for. You would like to partner with someone to
write YOUR story. I suspect nielsTRY would like a partner to write his
story.
Maybe you can co-write with him on his idea and he will then partner
with you to write your story.
My recommendation for the opening, speaking generically, is to have an initiating event. An action. As has been said above, just talking about wanting to kick an addiction is a bit cliche' if not a bit "on the nose" so to speak.
I would consider starting with introducing your characters in their current life. A day in the life of your main character/protag as an addict.
Then you should have an initiating event or action that changed the trajectory of your character/protagonist onto the path (in this case, kicking their addiction). But be aware that this too is full of cliches like "friend ODs" or "gets arrested stealing to fund the addiction", etc. but that doesn't mean you can't use that, just that you need to execute it well.
So again my recommendation is to show us the path your characters are on, introduce a triggering or initating event or action that changes that trajectory and then we're on the path of the story you want to tell.
I would consider starting with introducing your characters in their current life. A day in the life of your main character/protag as an addict.
Then you should have an initiating event or action that changed the trajectory of your character/protagonist onto the path (in this case, kicking their addiction). But be aware that this too is full of cliches like "friend ODs" or "gets arrested stealing to fund the addiction", etc. but that doesn't mean you can't use that, just that you need to execute it well.
So again my recommendation is to show us the path your characters are on, introduce a triggering or initating event or action that changes that trajectory and then we're on the path of the story you want to tell.
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I think that's a great idea. I would do some google searches like ... "drug forum most desperate thing done to get high"
Do some research and find a few dramatic examples of addicts at their lowest points.
