Advanced Writing: Fiction and Film [Hardcover]

Wells Earl Draughon (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 25, 2003

Reader and audience appeal, global constraints, large-scale desiderata, dynamics, consummation scenes, characters, relationships, structure, embodiment, voice, the line level. Developing and testing a theory of writing. Discusses such topics as originality, credibility, contrivance, crudeness, monotony, repetition. Story appeal, story impact. Threat, hope, need to know, tension and pace. Character realization, character identification, character appeal, repellant characters, character change, character and dynamics, a group as a character. The reality of relationships, the identity of relationships, the appeal of relationships, relationships and dynamics. Architecture, design, types of structure, sequential structuring, story steps, the set-up, openings, endings. Embodiment, scene appeal, scene impact. Micro-dynamics. Point of view. Voice. Showing, telling and doing. Setting. Titles. Comedy.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Advanced Writing stands among the most important contributions to the screenwriter's bookshelf in the past decade. -- Script Magazine, September, 2004 --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From the Author

Other books have taught you the ABCs. Now, this book will tell you the XYZs. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 308 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse.com (June 25, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595657605
• ISBN-13: 978-0595657605
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,947,145 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

37 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars BUYER BEWARE!!!, March 14, 2006

By 

Pilgrim in Paris - See all my reviews

This review is from: Advanced Writing: Fiction and Film (Paperback)

This is the first review I have posted on Amazon because I was outraged enough to publish a rebuttal to the otherwise glowing testimonies you see here. I recently ordered a shipment made up entirely of screenwriting how-to books and, of the six I purchased, "Advanced Writing" was the second one I picked up to read (the first was Wendell Wellman's "A Writer's Roadmap" which, being as concise as it was useful, I read in one sitting. I highly recommend it).

As is the common practice, I based all of my book choices on the customer reviews - a time-consuming and frustrating enterprise, given that so many books inspire contradictory appraisals. Who to believe? People feel passionately about their books and money well (or poorly) spent. And so it was with a sense of gratitude that I added Draughon's book to my shopping cart - there were only a handful of reviews but all had given the maximum five stars. The moral of the story? DON'T BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU READ. This, of course, applies to my own review, but if I can save one screenwriter/filmmaker from wasting their hard-earned money on this poor excuse for a manual, then the time I spent earning the $21.95 to buy this book, will not have gone entirely to waste.

Don't be fooled by the table of contents - contrary to the author's claim that his book is intended for those with "college level intellectual sophistication" and "writers who are ready to take the next and final step towards becoming good writers", reading this book gave me the distinct (and icky) sensation of being dumbed down and preached to. Draughon is downright unhelpful - his prose is tedious and cumbersome, reaping 'insights' that are simplistic and condescending. Moreover, he has a chip on his shoulder that compels him to take a jab at critics, reviewers and anyone else who doesn't subscribe to his own view - time that would be better spent illuminating the reader on the subject of writing instead. But I will let the writer speak for himself. Some of his tips include:

Page 4 - On audience motives: "Some people want to immunize themselves against certain problems by, for instance, laughing at those problems. By laughing at the characters who have similar problems, they can laugh at their own problems and prevent themselves from feeling the effects of these problems as much."

Page 177 - "In order for the reader to believe that the two people would in fact fall in love, each of the characters must be: 1) attractive. This refers to the appearance of body parts, which need to be described or shown effectively. The writer must make the reader/viewer desire the opposite sex character, not merely show the opposite character desiring him/her. 2) eligible. The reader or audience is not going to invest emotional energy in hoping that a relationship will form unless both characters are available. They can be available emotionally even if one or both are married. 3) The reader/audience must not only be told how desirable these two characters are, they must see it and feel it themselves etc. etc."

And it goes on and on. Of course, the book isn't all bad - it is `gold' in that you could open it up randomly at any point and find something as hilarious as the excerpts above. And I have to admit to agreeing with the author on one matter and taking his advice: "some readers may discover that they have better ways to spend their evenings than with such a character. They tolerate the irritation for awhile, then put the book down. Permanently."

P.S. Another writing book I strongly recommend is "The Courage to Write" by Ralph Keyes. Interestingly enough, both Keyes' and Wellman's books had plenty of rave reviews by credible sources on their jacket sleeves - something that was glaringly absent in Draughon's book. This might explain the beef he has with critics and reviewers.

24 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Have for all writers!, November 25, 2004

By 

Adrienne (Greenville, RI, United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Advanced Writing: Fiction and Film (Paperback)

There are so many HOW TO books out there, and sadly, most of them are subpar. Mostly they are hacks of hacks. A few are useful. A few might be insightful. If you want to learn the basics, you can find those books in any search on screenwriting or fiction writing.

Now, this book doesn't waste your time with the basics. Instead, the author analyzes all the ingredients of great writing/great film. Dynamics of Hope, Threat, and Need to Know are explored. Characters and character appeal, reader and audience appeal are also explored. Honestly, I can tell you that if you want to raise your story telling to a professional level, this IS the book. This author is analytical and insightful in ways that all the others are not. Any hack moron can tell you that you need a plot or a three act structure or those basics. But this writer goes far beyond that, exploring what makes a story more compelling and engrossing. I bought this book two weeks ago and have been reading it very slowly because there is just so much wonderful stuff to absorb.

Here is a chapter breakdown:
Introduction
Reader and Audience Appeal
Global Constraints
Large-scale Desiderata
Dynamics: Threat
Dynamics: Hope
Dynamics: Need to Know
Consummation Scenes
Characters
Character Appeal
Relationships
Architecture and Design
Sequential Structuring
The Set-up or Problem Situation
Beginnings
Endings
Scenes and Embodiment
Voice
The Line Level
Description and Setting
A Note on Comedy
Developing and Testing a Theory of Writing
Endnotes

As you can see, the author delves into all of it, giving the reader opportunity after opportunity to analyze their story and see where it fits in, how they can improve it, what it might be missing if it's not selling, etc.

There's a sort of common sense approach about this book, but it's the sort of common sense writers tend lose when they have a story in mind, and they are so passionate about it that they overlook some of the key ingredients any well written work needs. But DO NOT mistake this for some sort of cookbook to churn out script after script or novel after novel. It's simply a study of techniques - all the things that make a good story a great story or even a bad story a good one.

The insight this book will give you is worth it's weight in platinum. This book should be the one all writers read after they've got down the 'basics' of their craft. It definitely is advanced and it will help advance any writer's story to the top of the pile.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars So many pages, so few insights, December 26, 2006

By 

Antonio Goncalves - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Advanced Writing: Fiction and Film (Paperback)

The basic premise here is as sound as it is obvious: You must hook the reader/viewer from the outset, and then keep him/her hooked. The book is thus about the tricks of the trade in reader/viewer hooking. The author disparages "devices," but in fact offers nothing but. His views are offered as dogma, usually in a way that summarily trashes other views. For example, on p. 257: "Most books on fiction writing present this [first or third person use] as a choice for the writer. The choice is spurious. Third person should be used. Readers object when character suffering is presented in the first person: the character is perceived as whining; [...]" That simple. It is fortunate that Salinger wrote "The Catcher in the Rye" without the benefit of this book's advice.

Draughon is very big on coining new terms, since according to him the old ones are either misleading or meaningless. For example, still on p. 257, the term "stance" appears for the first time in the following sentence: "Three questions are confounded under this single term [point of view]: (1) whether one or more than one stance is used to tell the story, [...]" So far, no explanation of what the author means by "stance". The next use of the term is two paragraphs down: "More than one stance should be used." Still no explanation. At the third use we get it, sort of: "Shifts in stance (that is, shifts in "point of view") are [...]" This seems to indicate that "stance" is synonymous with "point of view", but that the author prefers "stance" for the novelty of it.

Apparently this kind of thing is "advanced" stuff. It seems to constitute the how-to side of the author's new theory of writing, which is offered in another book. The I-am-the-smartest-person-I-know tone is irritating, as are the incessant put-downs of "N.Y. editors" and "academics." Enough already! The useful content of this book - yes, there is some - could have been boiled down to a dozen pages.

If you think Draughon's advice will get you past the much-vilified "N.Y. editors," think again. It hasn't worked for him. All his books, including this one, were self-published through iUniverse or its subsidiaries. You might want to save your money toward the $499 minimum package at iUniverse. After all, even James Joyce had to self-publish at first.