Customer Reviews

Screenwright

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There are a couple spurrious reviews on here, including one that chides Deemer for not having any scripts produced.

Well, how many have Syd Fields and Robert McKee and Linda Seger had produced? Maybe one among all three of them?

Deemer at least has sold numerous scripts, had numerous plays produced, and published a lot of written work as well.

Saying that not producing means his book is useless is like saying Thomas Harris shouldn't write about Hannibal Lechter because Mr. Harris isn't a psycophatic serial killer.

Screenwright lays it all out for you without pretention, without bells and whistles, it's not an expensive book, Deemer doesn't tour around the country hopping around on a stage in front of schmoes that paid hundreds and hundreds of dollars to watch him. Instead, he produced this slim, straight-to-the-point volume that says exactly what it needs to say.

Wholly recommended!

Despite what Spokane writer says -- since when is CHARACTER ASSASSINATION a review! -- Mr. Deemer has written an excellent screenwriting textbook that draws on the knowledge of dozens of writers who HAVE written successful movies, distilling their combined wisdom into clear, direct advice on writing a screenplay. The last thing Deemer does is present himself as a guru. He draws upon the accepted wisdom of screenwriting craft and organizes it in a way that makes learning to write a screenplay fun and inspiring. This is a very fine book!

I have read piles of books on screenwriting, and Charles Deemer's "Screenwright: The Craft of Screenwriting", is by far the best.

Mr. Deemer addresses all the aspects of writing in the screenplay form without all the nonsense and namedropping that are so often the hallmarks of screenwriting manuals.

In addition to dead-on information about the actual nuts and bolts of writing a script, Deemer offers valuable advice on decerning what kind of screenwriting career might be appropriate for your lifestyle and personality.

My other screenwriting books are in a box in the garage, but Deemer's "Screenwright" still sits within arm's reach of my keyboard.

Summary: Very good, covers everything you need to know from writing a good screenplay to getting it sold, shows several paths to getting there depending on your personal style.

Deemer's book started off as a comprehensive set of articles on the internet and it shows: it's easy to read, has lots of examples (links).

It's very well structured covering all the main elements you need : character, plot, structure, story, etc. He also lays out 2 basic approaches depending on your personal style. Tree people approach, for the analytical logical structured types. And Forest people, for the impulsive, creative, artistic types. He gives specific things to focus on depending on your style.

If you're a novice screenwriter looking specifically to understand how to actually write a good screenplay, but also want to know enough about how to format it and sell it once its written, read this book before any of the others. It gets the message across the simplest.

As a former screenwriting student of Deemer's, I find this book filled with the same clarity and passion for screenwriting that he shows in the classroom. This book is different from all other books on the market in one important way: Deemer is a teacher, not a guru, and as a teacher he brings together all the current "wisdom" about screenwriting, from all sources, and digests it into a highly readable clear text on the craft of screenwriting. Until his new book comes out, this is the best screenwriting book on the market as far as I am concerned. I think that nasty reviewer from Spokane must be a former student who didn't like his grade! Deemer's writing credentials speak for themselves and are easily found on the Internet. The electronic version of this book is even better and many reviews of it are available on the Internet. A little research will establish how well received this book has been. If you're a beginning screenwriter, you owe it to yourself to check this out.

The strength of this book is its point of view. Deemer presents himself as a screenwriting teacher who presents and evaluates many different appraoches to screenwriting, letting the reader choose what works. In this way, a great amount of information is presented in little space. This book is a quick and fun read and even inspiring. I highly recommend it.

I am another former student who has learned an enormous amount from Charles Deemer's classroom instruction and his invaluable corresponding book. I have studied with other screenwriting teachers and found Charles to be the most grounded, knowledgeable, generous, and gifted among them. Using what he has taught me, I have had my work read and optioned. His book sits next to my computer, so that I may turn to again and again.

Looks at many approaches to screenwriting, both in practice (how writers write) and theory (how people think scripts work). No fluff here, everything stark and to the point. Lots of movie examples. A writing track so you can use this as a workbook in a self-motivated course. It's best at covering the whole spectrum of theories about screenwriting, providing a good broad overview.