Writing the Romantic Comedy (Paperback)

by Billy Mernit (Author) "If you're reading this book, you probably have at least some rudimentary knowledge of what constitutes a good screenplay..." (more)
Key Phrases: romantic comedy writer, best romantic comedies, exterior conflict, Annie Hall, Michael Dorsey, Pretty Woman (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
According to Billy Mernit, all the Hollywood studios--and most major actors--"are actively seeking romantic comedies." But the same studios and actors reject hundreds of romantic comedies a month. Mernit should know. As a story analyst who has read nearly 4,000 screenplays in the last 10 years, Mernit has seen the good, yes, but also too much of the bad and the ugly. With Writing the Romantic Comedy, Mernit presents his UCLA Extension rom-com writing workshop in book form. Believe it or not, it's not enough to have Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks play the leads. You actually have to create characters for them--characters that an audience will believe "absolutely must end up together." Mernit manages to lay down ground rules without seeming rigid: "he can't be in it only for the sex"; "she can't be in it only for the money"; "at least one scene or sequence [should be] laugh-out-loud funny." Mernit offers five ways to bring your characters to life and seven basic romantic comedy "beats." He has chapters on chemistry, humor, dialogue, and sex ("in romantic comedy, there's nothing sexier than sublimated sex"), and he draws generously upon the surprisingly small canon of great romantic comedies to demonstrate his points. Finally, given that the conflicts in romantic comedies are internal, you needn't look far for inspiration when you feel stuck. "Think of one of the most painful, humiliating, embarrassing things that ever happened to you with someone of the opposite sex," he says, and go from there. --Jane Steinberg --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review
"Writing the Romantic Comedy is so much fun to read it could pop a champagne cork." -- -- Alexa Junge, writer/producer of Friends --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Harper Paperbacks (July 31, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060935030
• ISBN-13: 978-0060935030
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #154,061 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My thoughts on the book, September 24, 2000

By	Paul Lind "potheman" (Los Angeles,, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Writing the Romantic Comedy: The Art and Craft of Writing Screenplays That Sell (Hardcover)

I've been looking for a book like this for a long time. Most of the screenwriting books out there just cover the usual nuts and bolts of screenwriting and cite the same movies as examples (i.e. Citizen Kane, The Verdict). I found this book very useful because it was specific for the Romantic comedy genre. The author obviously studied the genre exensively as hundreds of romantic comedies old and new are cited. The book has a very good chapter on the basic structure road map of romantic comedy--but leaves enough flexibility and points out exceptions to the rules...like Sleepless in Seattle where the couple doesn't technically meet until the very last scene (but the screenwriter got around the rule well). I also liked the way the book lays this out to you in Layman's terms, not like the Robert McKee book where you end up more confused by the end than when you started. The book also offers some good chapters on Theme, imagery,dialogue, character chemistry, story credibility and "being funny" and offers specific case analyses at the end of the chapter to highlight what the author's talking about. The book also goes into the history of romantic comedy, the future, and a list of sub genres and sub categories--but what really made it worth my money was the chapters on theme and structure and the case studies. Now, if only there were more books out there on all the other genres...

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Isn't It Romantic?, November 5, 2004

By	Robert Payne (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I'm a sucker for romantic comedies. Watching stories about cuddly, charismatic couples falling in love can turn this hard-bitten cynic into a mushy puddle of Jell-O in no time. They're this writer's Achilles' heel. You could show me the worst romantic comedy ever made, and I'd still probably find something good to say about it. So, I was delighted to come across Billy Mernit's "Writing the Romantic Comedy."

Although I've done some screenwriting in my time, my head isn't exactly bursting with ideas for romantic comedies. But since I'm an admirer of the genre, Mernit's book felt like a guided tour through a favorite building when you don't have any plans to construct a building of your own.

Hollywood producers notoriously hate to read, so if you're a Hollywood writer, you need to pick up a few tricks to make reading as easy for them (or their surrogates) as possible. As a writer for the entertainment industry, Mernit has obviously picked up a few tricks of his own, making his book a brisk and enjoyable read. The historical overview is appreciated almost as much as Mernit's disassemblies of some of the rom-com's stand-outs to show how the genre ticks.

Although the book is sprinkled with a few factual errors (for example, on page 177, he refers to author Milan Kundera as "Polish" instead of Czech), these aren't enough to upset the taco stand. Mernit's explanations of the genre's components are straightforward, artful, but clearly presented. And his dubbing of the Mr. Wrong character (a convention in many rom-coms) as the "Bellamy," after actor Ralph Bellamy who specialized in such roles, had me laughing out loud. My only criticism of the book is a mild one: There ought to have been at least a handful of movie stills illustrating some of the films that Mernit talks at length about -- this would have heightened the book's visual interest. I highly recommend "Writing the Romantic Comedy" even if you're not a screenwriter. Understanding how the genre works may make you appreciate it even more.

I do have one word of advice for aspiring screenwriters: If you're just starting out in the craft, you won't want this to be the first book on the subject that you read. Start off with something that teaches you the nuts and bolts of scribing for the movies, like "Screenwriting" by Syd Field or one of its clones. Next, I would recommend "Writing the Character-Centered Screenplay" by Andrew Horton, which talks a little more in depth about the vital components of character and structure. For good measure, you might also want to check out "Making a Good Script Great" by Linda Segar for advice about how to tighten a screenplay. Only then will you want to give Mernit's book a thorough going-over. If you're an old hand at screenwriting, you're probably already familiar with these books.

Once you've got all of them under you're belt, you'll be inspired to sit down at the keyboard and write and write. It may only be your name over and over, but you'll still be inspired to write.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This goes on the shelf next to my computer!, June 19, 2002

By	Carol A. Strickland (Efland, NC USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

A fabulous book not only on writing romantic comedy movies but on writing, period. In particular, a romance writer of any medium would find this invaluable.

Mr. Mernit examines the basic components of story and character, but also provides fascinating insight to such subjects as theme. End-chapter exercises are unusually helpful and enlightening.

Critiques of a few movies show just how they accomplished what they did. (The examination of "Tootsie" is amazing!) I appreciated the breakdown of how romantic comedy in the movies has evolved through the years and am now collecting many of the titles listed in the book that I've never seen. (The recent AFI list on romantic movies is also a good source for more study.)

This book is on my shelf now right next to Syd Fields and Debra Dixon. I will certainly be referring to it again and again in the years that come.