"Unfinished Scripts" - Possibly the best(and funniest) lesson on how not to write

Some of those are impressively bad. What is the issue with 'suddenly' in screenplays, out of interest? Sometimes things do happen suddenly.

maz said:

Some of those are impressively bad. What is the issue with 'suddenly' in screenplays, out of interest? Sometimes things do happen suddenly.

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Yeah, I was laughing harder than I have in a while. I think he's over emphasizing the overuse of those words.

I guess the word "suddenly" is kind of lost in time. It's somewhere between present tense and future tense. If you wrote "An angel suddenly appears" you could also write, " An angel appears out of nowhere". Only one of the two ways makes you "witty". ...To me they both mean the same thing, but every venu has its nuances I guess?

I read in the "Book of Eli" script where "in an instant" was used instead of "Suddenly". To me, even if its an instant, it's still a period of time passing. The script also used the line, "If you blinked your eyes you missed it" to describe how fast Eli schwacks off that bad guy's arm with his blade in the opening act.

This truly is a strange profession. Lots of strange rules to follow.

-Birdman

"Speed Words":

Which is faster? "Suddenly"? Or "instantly"?

I say "Instantly" because you could have something "suddenly" appear, but on film it fades in over a second or so. If you saw an angel appear in one or two second's time you'd still tell your buddies that an angel suddenly appeared. However! If an angel "instantly" appears ...then you can't just fade her in smoothly, right?

But wait!

If a teacher directs a student to go to the restroom and you write, "The student instantly went to the restroom". That could mean he didn't do anything else other than go straight to the restroom. Hell, the restroom could be waaaay down the hall and take minutes to reach!

That's why you should always use "instantaneously"!

"Instantaneously" removes all doubt and is faster than, "suddenly", "in an instant" or "instantly" ....because it's a much bigger word!

-Birdman

I appreciate the humor. As an honest aside, most readers (and screenwriters) are taught to avoid adverbs (--ly). I think this is because they do tend to be overused by novice writers. Sometimes, it's the best word for the job, however ...

In screenwriting, you are describing what the viewer sees. To say "The angel appears" is the same as saying "The angel suddenly appears" or "We see an angel appear". We've added words that aren't needed. Because the first time you report the action, it is implicitly "sudden" or "instant". Of course "we see" or "we hear" so including them is unnecessary. You will often hear the mantra "Don't use adverbs" but I would suggest you use them sparingly and appropriately.

An example where it may be appropriate: "The angel appears, stumbles and frantically gathers up himself back up." Another might be "A gun goes off. The bullet leaves the muzzle racing towards the target. Time shifts as the angel moves towards the bullet frozen in space and examines it curiously." In these cases, the adverb qualifies the action as a guide to the actor. Most screenwriting guides will suggest you pull out the thesaurus to find an appropriate word. Using adverbs can be a cop-out by lazy writers.

"The angel turns angrily to the man." What does 'angrily' mean? How angry? Why is he angry? Angry, happy and most emotions should be described with more detail. "The angel's eyes squeeze closed, evincing a tear. The eyes flash open and he spins about to face the man." This conveys more meaning and context than "turns angrily". The script is a framework for the actor, director, and production crew. From that standpoint, every word should have a constructive purpose. So many "rules" are really just commonsense guidelines that have lost their context.

My apologies to the OP. The pages are fun to read (not just because they break the "rules").

If something happens "Hyperinstantaneously" ...I think you can actually go back in time? ...It's like brewing instant coffee in a microwave.

-Birdman