Sunday Picture Post 6 / Tip: Read Out Loud
For The Sunday Picture Post, we are going to flip upside-down the saying: “A picture is worth a thousand words.” Thousands of words are great if you are writing a novel, but if you are writing a screenplay, you need to do the opposite and be as concise as possible.
Each Sunday I will post a picture. For your screenwriting practice in brevity, in the comments section, please post one or all of the following:
- 1 word describing the theme, mood, or scene
- 1 sentence to describe the scene
- A pitch to sell the entire movie
The more colorful and creative you are, the better! Use any genre.
A good screenwriter is laconic, using a few words to say a lot.
SCREENWRITING TIP OF THE DAY: READ OUT LOUD
What we hear in our heads as we write is different from how people actually talk. What flows naturally in words on the computer screen does not necessarily flow naturally in pictures and sound on the movie screen.
As mentioned by actress Azita Ghanizada in her interview, an easy and powerful way to improve your script is simply by reading it out loud. This is essential for dialog. It is also helpful to catch grammatical errors and flow issues with the action descriptions.
Reading out loud alone is good, but having someone else read out loud is even better. This way, you can listen and make changes as you go, as well as get a fresh perspective.
If you can arrange it, have a person who meets the description of your character (age, gender, race, social standing) read the dialog.
For major improvements, you could hire a real people cast for the day to do a reading of your script. If you don’t have the money to pay, you would be surprised to find out how many people would respond to a free Craigslist posting just to have something weird to do for the day and to meet new people.
For believable diverse voices, ask your readers to reword dialog in their own way; you will have far more real-sounding characters.
In a cafe, I overheard a screenwriter and a Rastafarian type guy working out dialog. It was fun for me to hear them and clearly very effective for their script. Alone, the young white male Californian screenwriter would have never been able to properly capture this Jamaican’s true voice. In this case, it seemed from what they were saying that it was the reverse situation, where the Rastafarian had hired the screenwriter. [As a screenwriter, if you are strong on story structure, for example, you might get hired for a job like this.]
Reading out loud is free, easy, and will help you to write a better script.
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14 Responses to “Sunday Picture Post 6 / Tip: Read Out Loud”
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Uncertainty
Newly trained police cadets are setting out on their first foot patrol in Budapest, Hungary.
1. Tense
2. Group of policemen try to find out more about murdered collegue.
3. This is when vigilantes are born or V for Vigilante :)
JEAN and REEL NINJA — good!
Should I keep the mystery of images, or have a place on my site that describes the real stories?
Unisex
A body has been discovered in a government building’s unisex washroom of a man’s body with a woman’s head, along with a cipher code in the victims pocket. The identity of the killer, will shock everyone to their very core!
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Jaden, that certainly makes alot of sense about getting someone to read a script out loud to give the screenwriter a great way to pick up on things that they probably normally wouldn’t, and a great way to edit. It sounds like it would be alot of fun I think, to read a screenwriter’s script out loud. I know I’d be interested! They’d have to provide the drinks though, LOL!
It would be interesting to know what the real stories are and how far our imaginations have gone.
About reading your script out loud as an editing technique, I do that with all my articles on my site. After writing an article, I will look at a preview of it, read it out loud over and over again until I find that it flows and then I will publish it.
JEAN — Good to see. As your writing proves on your site, reading out loud works!
At some point, I will put up a page that I continually update with the true stories behind each image.
JAN — Laughing… Are you a closet fiction writer? I can’t believe you don’t write fiction. You come up with outrageous things.
I hope to be a writer someday. I heard its a tough road to tread.
REEL NINJA - I don’t know if you are serious or joking — you ARE a writer! No? You are treading the rough road with your website now, are you not?
You, Jean, Jan, and everyone who leaves comments here, I look at your sites, and from what I can see, you all write weekly, if not daily — that qualifies you all as writers.
If we are talking about fiction here, like I said in one of my posts, all your ideas in these Sunday Picture Posts are more interesting than the main line-ups at the movie theaters. The only thing separating you from those who are wielding payments are two things: writing a full length script/novel and selling it.
Your posts are compelling and well-written. If you have the interest and passion for fiction, I say go for it! You can also write nonfiction and base a story on research.
On this site are all the basics to get started. If you write a novel, you can just start rambling away in prose and see where it goes. If you want to write a screenplay, there is a strict format. In my RESOURCES section, see Screenplay Format and Screenplay Sample to get started.
I am very serious Jaden. Thanks for pointing me towards your Resources sections. Earlier today, I was visiting simplyscripts.com and I went through a couple of scripts just to see how it was written. This is something that has always interested me and I think I am going to give it a try. Maybe I will start with something really simple so that I can get the format right.
ReelNinja
Jan’s story gave me the best laugh I’ve had all week! That story idea rocks!
I agree with Jean, I also think it would be interesting to know what the real stories are behind all your weekly Sunday picture posts. A separate page/area on your site. Chances are, I’m probably the furthest from what the real stories are really about, LOL.
Jaden, honestly, I’m not any type of fiction writer. I’ve just dabbled in writing a few spotlight articles on our movie site basically. I guess maybe your website brings out my warped imagination, LOL.
Jaden, I must commend you for your words of encouragement to many of your visitors here who own, manage, or who are staff members on a website. At one time, writing for a website may not have been considered important or much of an accomplishment, but its become quite apparent in this day and age, how much blogging and bloggers have become more important it seems, than alot of newspaper publications!
Reel Ninja, good for you, and good luck and keep us posted on your progress!
Melissa, thanks!
1 word describing the theme, mood, or scene : CONVERGENCE
1 sentence to describe the scene : The Nation’s heroes, our soldiers, look up to witness our President announcing the end of war. No more killings, no more massacre. America still has the chance to redeem itself.
A pitch to sell the entire movie : You may not like war movies because it reminds you of your dead son, but this movie is not about war or death, but the final realization that we, as a nation, can still move on and recapture our old glorious past!
JAN — Yeah, I trust a blogger’s account of an occurrence more than a news source. News sources have big money controlling them, so they are not truthful. Bloggers often have nothing to gain or lose, they just like to share information and their opinion.
JED — What a word! Am speechless over this one… as there is just too much to say. Good one.
WOW Jed, great movie pitch indeed! I would hope that THIS would be one war movie that everyone would want to see.