Check Out "Go Into The Story"

Sadie prefers to "Go Into The Ocean"

Scott Myers, who runs the screenwriting blog "Go Into The Story" (which you may have noticed I like to promote) gave me permission to re-post the story below.

I could have linked to the story, but then you could have just skipped over it, and I really think if you are interested in screenwriting you should give his site a visit.

Besides having sold screenplays to Hollywood, Scott also works as a screenwriting instructor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill -- Two of my favorite coffee-shops ever are in that area, by the way. Worth the trip down from Alaska...

Speaking of Alaska, Scott has visited here. Twice. He even wrote the script for the film Alaska. And, yes, some of it was shot up here.

But, I digress.

There are plenty of sites, books, classes, on the subject of screenwriting. The reason I recommend a visit to Go Into The Story is that it contains a nice balance of information. Some original, some pulled from other sources, and all of it relevant to the screenwriting world.

There is a lot of information on his site. His post below will help guide you through it, as well as give you a good introduction.

Enjoy!

Welcome to Go Into The Story (re-posted courtesy of Scott Myers)

During the last few months, the site has had a noticeable increase in visitors, so I'd like to resurrect a practice I do occasionally at the beginning of the month: Welcome folks and provide a tour of the site. So grab this virtual steaming macchiato and join me for a journey through the wonderful world of GITS!

First off, it should be noted I post on average six items per day. Why? (A) Because I'm just this shy of crazy. (B) Because if your writing habits are anything like mine, you like to take a break every couple of hours or so. Therefore I post here at 6AM, 10AM, 12PM, 2PM, 4PM, and 6PM (Eastern time zone), giving writers a chance to drop by for news and inspiration.

Being a military brat, I even have a schedule for the type of posts I do. Here it is:

Mondays-Sundays (6AM): Daily Dialogue
Monday (10AM): On Writing
Tuesday (10AM): Hollywood Tales
Wednesday (10AM): Screenwriting 101
Thursday (10AM): The Business of Screenwriting
Friday (10AM): Great Characters
Saturday (10AM): Interviews (written)
Sunday (10AM): Interviews (video)

In addition, during the week I collect all sorts of articles, a combination of informative, humorous, and sometimes downright weird, and post a weekly Saturday Hot Links.

Having worked for many years in Hollywood, I know how little attention screenwriters get and how much we deserve. Therefore GITS honors and promotes the work of professional screenwriters.

However as the site has evolved, a major focus has become an ongoing dialogue about the craft of screenwriting. To wit on the right-hand side of the blog, if you scroll down you'll see something called Lists. It is a veritable treasure trove of information about the screenwriting craft with literally thousands of posts on almost every conceivable topic. Here are just a few you should check out:

2008 Spec Script Sales Analysis

2009 Spec Script Sales Analysis

2010 Spec Script Sales Analysis

Every day I track the sales of spec scripts in Hollywood. At the end of each year, I do an analysis of sales trends breaking them down by genre, studio, representation, first-timers, and big dollar deals. If you want to know what the studios are buying, GITS is perhaps the best single free site on the Web as I offer solid, up-to-date inside information.

GITS Q&A Interviews

Here you will find exclusive interviews I have done with Hollywood professionals with an emphasis on screenwriters including several 'first-timers' (writers who broke into The Biz by selling a spec script). Combined with the hundreds of other interviews for which I have links -- here, here, and here -- you have a massive resource of first-person wisdom from actual professional screenwriters.

GITS Reader Questions

Early on after I launched this site, readers started asking me questions about screenwriting and the movie business. In response, I provided my two cents worth. Since then I have fielded around 200 questions ranging from minor matters such as screenplay style to big ones like how to get an agent. If you have a question about the craft, chances are I've touched on it, so it's worth your time to check out GITS Reader Questions to see what information is available there.

How They Write A Script

If you get sick of hearing me pontificate about screenwriting, why not check out what some notable screenwriters, past and present, have to say on the subject? That's what How They Write A Script is about, excerpts from interviews with such writing luminaries as Paddy Chayefsky and Diablo Cody, Alvin Sargent and Sterling Silliphant, and dozens of others.

The Business of Screenwriting

After innumerable requests from readers to hear more about my own personal experiences in Hollywood as a screenwriter, last year I started a weekly column: "The Business of Screenwriting is a weekly series of GITS posts based upon my experiences as a complete Hollywood outsider who sold a spec script for a lot of money, parlayed that into a screenwriting career during which time I've made some good choices, some okay decisions, and some really stupid ones. Hopefully you'll be the wiser for what you learn here." To date there are 30 columns. Look for a new one each week.

The GITS Club

Moderated by the inimitable Michael Scherer, The GITS Club is a peer review site where members read and critique each other's stories in all stages of development.

These are just a few of the resources GITS makes available to you about screenwriting and the movie business. And in a demented bit of anti-capitalism, they are all free and without any yucky web ads to frag your creativity.

There are also links to other screenwriter blogs, movie blogs and news sites, and tons of other bloggers who have interesting things to say.

So there you have it -- a quick trek through the mysteries that constitute GITS.

One aspect that is most definitely not a mystery is the GITS community, an amazing array of writers and readers from around the world. And to that end, if you are a frequent or even irregular visitor to the site, but have yet to post a question or comments, let me give you this chance to introduce yourself!

Go into Comments on this thread and tell us a bit about yourself -- your interest in writing, what type of movies you like, what aspirations you have as a screenwriter, TV writer, novelist, playwright, and/or filmmaker. If you have a blog you think might be of interest to the GITS community, please post your url and I'll add it to the Friends blogroll list.

And while you're at it, please consider signing up to follow GITS. At a very basic level, the number of GITS followers lets me know you dig what I do here and keeps me motivated to stick with it.

Again welcome to all you newcomers. And to my loyal readers, some of whom have been following the site since May 2008, I thank you for making GITS a part of your daily or weekly routine.

Let me end with a writing mantra: Trust the process.

Be well. Write well. Live well!

P.S.: If you have any suggestions for the site or requests in terms of subjects you'd like to see covered, please post those in comments.