There is no better feeling than typing the words "fade out." It means you usually have a first draft. And that first draft is a block of marble that you have to sculpt into a story that hits the town and sells.
As someone who writes a lot of coverage and reads a ton of scripts, I find that most are missing three things that prevent them from getting pushed up the ladder.
So today, I want to take you through all three of those things and talk about what you can do to avoid them.
Let's dive in.
1. The "Why Now?"
I get annoyed when this comes up, because the reason "why now" is usually because I wrote the script now!
But I also try to have a BS reason I can tell execs to make the topic feel current.
What about the "Why now" on the actual page?
The biggest mistake new writers make is letting the plot happen to the protagonist rather than having the protagonist drive the plot. If your main character is just reacting to external events for 100 pages, the audience will tune out.
Your character needs to be active in their own story.
- The Fix: Every scene should be a result of a choice your character made in the previous one. No one is dragging them along.
- The Litmus Test: Ask yourself: "If my protagonist stayed home today, would the movie still happen?" If the answer is yes, you have a passenger, not a hero. Give them a steering wheel.
2. The "Inarticulate" Want
The needs and wants of your character are what drive the lot. And by that, I mean both the overt need and also the subtextual one.
But here's the thing, characters who say exactly what they feel are boring. It never feels real because in real life, we rarely ask for what we actually need.
That means your screenplay is missing subtext. That's the gap between what a character says and what they are actually trying to achieve.
So go back to page one and see if the internal stakes match the external.
Internal vs. External Stakes
| Goal Type | Definition | Example |
| The Want | The external, visible goal. | Winning the championship trophy. |
| The Need | The internal, emotional void. | Forgiving themselves for a past failure. |
If your character only has a "Want," the story is a cartoon. If they have a "Need," it’s a drama. Ensure the "Need" is making their "Want" much more difficult to achieve.
3. A Formidable Antagonist
It seems obvious that you need a scary baddie, but there are layers to this stuff. A truly great antagonist is the physical manifestation of the hero’s greatest internal fear. So what the heck is your hero afraid of?
If your villain is just there to be mean, your script will feel hollow.
Dig into the opposite of your hero. If your hero has to face their opposite, it forces them to grow, change, and eventually sacrifice something to win.
They can see themselves becoming better and choose the pathway that makes them good. Without a high-pressure antagonist, your hero never has to evolve.
Pro Tip: The best antagonists believe they are the heroes of their own stories. They shouldn't just be trying to stop the protagonist; they should be pursuing a goal that is diametrically opposed to the hero’s, with just as much conviction.
Summing It All Up
These are the things I see people screw up every day. They are also the things that trip me up, so I figure these pratfalls might trip everyone up.
Hopefully, they help you all, and they get you that big spec sale of your dreams.
Let me know what you think in the comments.
