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A screenwriting book that sucks…

FADE IN The Screenwriting Process Written by Robert A. BergmanOur second … Pretty soon we should OWN that search phrase in … Oh, we already do… LOL.

So I’m ALWAYS reading screenwriting books. Some are and worn while others look absolutely pristine… Because they suck.

The one I just finished reading, sucks.


Written by Robert A. Berman

I know this may get me in a little hot water with some of you readers but holy shit… I hope nobody out there who did purchase this book took it seriously enough to actually write a screenplay based on the information inside.

I’m in today because of a meeting we have with the … I actually got here yesterday and bought the book at a local bookstore… After all, it does have a great title.

Yow. This book HURT me. What’s worse, is the author’s screenplay in the back of the book. Yikes! He tediously mentions throughout the book that he did everything he needed to do to this screenplay but I submit he failed to do the most important thing.

Shitcan that script.

Okay, maybe not completely shitcan it but this thing needs some serious rewriting to bring it up to player’s level.

Just like my earlier posts on , this is definitely the book to buy to learn what NOT TO DO.

The screenwriting process? Please.

I’m not really sure about the legal ramifications so I won’t include any of the material from the book but wow…

The author admits that he’s never sold a screenplay… If the rest of his screenplays are anything like the one in the book… Whew.

Talking heads all the way through. Exposition at its finest!

The author also admits that his “other scripts” are “pretty good.”

He does mention the loglines of the other screenplays and in none of those loglines did I read a high concept. Maybe some of the stuff he’s written would translate to a low budget Indie film… Nothing wrong with that however, in the book, the author explains how he holds a yard sale to come up with $2000 to go to Los Angeles for a week to get an agent.

He comes up empty of course but I detected a kind of “” attitude while reading about the meetings with the agents. This is a solid case of someone who thinks their shit doesn’t stink.

While he admits that some of the notes others have given him will in fact improve the screenplay, I never really got the idea that he believed the notes at all… Rather, these statements come off as obligatory.

If one can learn ANYTHING from this book, it’s this…

Do NOT quit your well-paying job, hold a yard sale and sell all your fishing tackle, take the $2000 and go to Los Angeles for a week and expect to pick up an agent or maybe even sell your screenplay.

That’s exactly what the author says he did… He does come up short of course which is to be expected.

Let me also say that I have no problem with someone writing a book that’s never sold a screenplay before… What I DO have a problem with is a book that purports to be a book that will help those of us to write a screenplay and sell it.

This book FAILS on all levels as far as I’m concerned. There is some decent reading in there but this book is also more expensive than a LOT of that we should all be making .

Needless to say, I found more than a few problems with this book but I feel too exhausted to list every one of them RATHER, here’s what I want to do…

I want to start our very own little right here at … I want as many of YOU to read this book as possible BUT I don’t want you to go out and buy it. For that reason, let’s get a list going on a first come first served basis…

Just send me an email IF you’re interested in reading WHAT NOT TO DO and I will send you the book for free but there is one catch. You must agree to read the book right away and send me some kind of review that we can post here on the blog. In addition, you’ve got to send the book on to the next person on the list who wants to read it… So yeah, you gotta pay for the postage…

If nothing else, READ THE SCREENPLAY in the back of the book to see what I’m talking about. Learn what a screenplay with talking heads is like. Learn how to tell a story through exposition.

If you’re interested, throw me a comment and an email and let’s get this book passed around.

Unk

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Friday: 22 September 2006|1816|Under Books

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Comments

16 Responses to “A screenwriting book that sucks…”

  1. MaryAn Batchellor on Friday: 22 September 2006|1936

    First — I believe you. But (I’m sorry I have to ask), if it sucks so much, how is there a second edition? Or– wait a minute, wait, I got it, I got it, I got it — THAT’s why there are so many lame screenplays floating out there? Please say yes.

  2. Unknown Screenwriter on Friday: 22 September 2006|1946

    MaryAn,

    That’s definitely ONE REASON for sure! Another reason they printed a second edition is because of Michael Wiese Productions and the plethora of GOOD BOOKS he does publish.

    Being published by MWP gives your book some respect… I had no idea how many bad reviews of this book there were on the net until AFTER I had actually read it (in one night including the screenplay) and did a search.

    I can’t find anything that the guy has written that has also been produced… Can’t find any winning screenplay competitions… Nothing.

    On the other hand…

    There are parts of the book that are definitely interesting… Most of the “SCREENWRITING PROCESS” he talks about is old hat and simply rehashed… So nothing really new there at all.

    So… Do you wanna read it???

    Unk

  3. Dave on Friday: 22 September 2006|2229

    LOL

  4. Maggie on Friday: 22 September 2006|2237

    Thanks for the heads up on the terrible book. Yeesh. Hate it sight unseen. And thanks for the link! Where does a person buy buffalo salami, anyway? Now I need some.

    Maggie@Bootstrap

  5. Schmucks with Underwoods on Saturday: 23 September 2006|0303

    I’ve read it. Years ago and yes it sucks. There is also a book by Jimmy Sangster, Screenwriting: Techniques for Success. He is supposedly a working screenwriter and he also has a screenplay in his book that sucks. Actually, while we are in rant mode here. This whole idea of putting the author’s script in the book is to me a total rip off. As far as I’m concerned it’s just a way of them padding out the book because they don’t have enough real content in there. Jeez, they can point us to a web site to download the .pdf if they really want us to read their crappy scripts. End of rant.

  6. Mystery Man on Saturday: 23 September 2006|0632

    Hehehe… I wouldn’t want to read the book, but I’ll digest any of YOUR book reviews. That was great.

    -MM

  7. Dante Kleinberg on Saturday: 23 September 2006|1133

    It’s really tough to know when to trust someone as a teacher or not. On the one hand, someone can be an extremely good critic and knowledgable teacher without being a successful writer themselves (if Roger Ebert or Robert McKee gave me advice on my screenplay, I’d probably take it) but how do you know before you lay your money down if this person is one of those?

    I get nervous when I see so many writer’s conferences and writing classes and panels and books where the person’s only credits are that they’ve taught classes and wrote how to books.

  8. Laura Reyna on Saturday: 23 September 2006|1606

    I leafed thru Berman’s book at the store & didn’t buy it. So yeah, i agree, it’s bad & not worth buying.

    One book i do recommend is SCREENPLAY: WRITING THE PICTURE by Robin Russin & William Missouri Downs. Both of these guys are pros with legit credits– & they write like it, too.

    The book isn’t just theory & analysis like so many others written by wanna-bes & academics. So many of these books are just tedious re-hashes of 3 act structure theory, all WHAT & very little HOW.

    Russin & Down’s book is worth buying just for chapters 7-9 where they cover conflict, obstacles motivation, beats, scenes & sequences . These chapters really get to heart of how a screenplay is constructed.

    Their breakdown of Sea of Love & Field of Dreams into scenes & sequences is so simple & brilliant.

    If i were giving a screenplay class or seminar, I’d use SCREENPLAY: WRITING THE PICTURE as one of the texts.

    This is the book we should be passing around!

    And, no, i’m not related to either of these guys. :-)

  9. Unknown Screenwriter on Saturday: 23 September 2006|1617

    Laura,

    I actually purchased that book last year at the Screenwriting Expo because I had never seen it before.

    You’re absolutely correct. Good book… Great reading.

    Unk

  10. Sal on Sunday: 24 September 2006|1435

    Interesting that no-one’s taken up the challenge to read and review the book yet - OK, I’ll do it

  11. moviequill on Monday: 25 September 2006|0554

    UNK - what book or books would you put on a Must Read list? Other than Lajos and Hero’s Journey. I am so sick of stumbling upon screenwriting craft books that lack techniques and insights.

  12. moviequill on Monday: 25 September 2006|0608

    BTW, if you’d be willing to lend me that Robin Russin book I promise to mail it back, undogeared, no highlighter on the pages haha.

  13. I am not Star Jones on Monday: 25 September 2006|1152

    thanks for the headsup. i’m just curious how someone with
    such a poor track record is
    expected to be an expert?

  14. Anonymous on Tuesday: 26 September 2006|1513

    Speaking of authors thatinclude their own scripts. How about Syd Field’s hilarious one about the guy that wants to break the speedboat record? One of the characters is named Strut! I almost peed my pants.

    P.S.
    I’m presently enjoying Alex Epstein’s Crafty book quite a bit.

  15. English Dave on Wednesday: 27 September 2006|0230

    The first screenwriting book I ever bought was Lew Hunter Screenwriting 101.

    I thought there were some great tips for the fledgling writer, but boy, even then I realised that the script ‘The Glass Hammer’ sucked monkeys.

  16. David Hepburn on Friday: 3 November 2006|0235

    Wow…sounds BAD. I’d be happy to read it. (Those two sentences sound funny together.)

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