Guy Gallo takes the
reader through a method of writing a screen play, with focus on the
characters and how to make the reader or person watching your end
product on the screen actually care about the characters. Rightfully
so, if you do not care about the character, why care about the story
at all.
The whole book throws meaty digestible information to the reader
without a bunch of fluff filler on, not necessarily process for
writing screen plays, more like some well thought out and proven
habits that can accomplish results in a stories content.
While it goes over things from a screen play perspective, and all
that is, is a really well done story for the screen…this can be used
for writing novels, short stories and even stage plays, or the
techniques can even work in a comic book script as well.
The pointers and glimpses of process the writer takes you on is a
comprehensive journey, which may well cause you to go in different
direction than what you planned for your screen play. Those
directions may well be even better than you anticipated. Guy Gallo
gives the benefit of his experience masterfully mixing screen
writing techniques and assists the budding screen writer in bringing
something out in their screen play.
From beginnings and groundwork for what your about to create, and
onto the first draft and even revisions, and all the little things
that make a good screen play great it’s all covered here from this
writers proven thought process on the subject.
Guy Gallo also covers some of the things that a writer would want to
stay away from, or better yet a way to spice it up so that the scene
and the dialogue between characters does not come across as throw
away material just to cover some time and pages. Gallo goes over
different ways to deliver a scene and not always with static
dialogue. It’s a cornucopia of knowledge and technique.
Just like anything with writing you do not want to become so stuck
on an idea that you are not open to other possibilities. This book
Screenwriter’s Compass: Character as True North, takes the time to
be more of a sign post on the journey of writing a screen play with
focus on the characters to drive the interest of the end product of
your labors, and keep the interest of the eventual audience.
Edwin Millheim
Impulse Gamer
