Screenwriting : What type of scene gives you the most trouble writing? by Joshua Powell

I think for me action is hardest, probably because I naturally lean more towards dialogue and description. I’m trying to remedy this by remembering that film is visual and passivity is taboo.

Banafsheh Esmailzadeh your comment reminded me of writing an action scene. At some point, you can plan every movement, every beat, every camera angle—but eventually you have to let the character take the leap. Sharing a deeply personal story feels a lot like that. It's scary right up until you do it.

Was there a specific response from a reader or agent that gave you the confidence to keep putting your work out there?

Thank you Joshua Powell, you're absolutely right, I often let my characters take over because I find if my hand is shown it's not as effective. And of course I realise my best materials are the most personal so it becomes this paradox where the better something I made is, the more inclined I am not to share it xD but I think I'm getting better at this...

I think it was this one rejection letter from a short story contest that permanently altered my brain chemistry with one simple sentence: "Please keep going." Every time I wanted to give up on sharing my work, those three little words kept popping up in my head, making me feel bad that I was planning to disappoint this one particular reader, and that just struck me as inexcusable.

Reading-wise, I think bad introductions are hard to move past. I want to be surprised, drawn in, hooked straight away with something that feels different and compelling.

@Joshua Powell This is exactly what happens to me as well. I am writing a Fantasy novel and my characters keep doing things I did not plan. Do you outline everything first or just let them go?

Joshua Powell For me, comedy is probably the most challenging. Making people laugh consistently is incredibly difficult because humor is so subjective and timing is everything. What I've learned is not to force it when comedy grows naturally from the characters and the situation, it usually feels much more authentic. On the other hand, I enjoy writing emotional confrontations because they reveal who the characters truly are when they're under pressure.

The timing of it helps because I can always go back with an idea

Ibtroduction of a new character is one of my greatest difficulties. I have a tendency to over describe the character's physical appearance l, age, ethnicity etc.

When I write, with either prose or screenwriting, I try to know the ending first. Title, plot, ending. I think what helps me is the outlining. I write down the title, logline, and ending, and start figuring out how the story should go. I think the most difficult part for me is character creation. The names, making sure they have a purpose in the story, and how they help move the story along.

Writing for musical theatre is very different to writing for the screen. In most cases, when it comes to drama--or comedy--the heavy lifting is done by the songs or the dances. I find it particularly challenging to write lyrics for love songs since I'm rather cynical when it comes to romance. The real challenge is avoiding the word "love" altogether, or if one is forced to use it, one tries to turn the whole notion on its head, as in "Love Is Not Forever,"

For me, it's definitely endings.

Writing an ending that feels satisfying while making the audience eager to experience the next chapter is always the biggest challenge—especially in short-form storytelling.

What I've learned is that a strong ending doesn't always need the biggest twist. Sometimes the most powerful ending is the one that changes the audience's understanding of everything they've just experienced, while raising a new question they can't stop thinking about.

Curiosity is one of the most powerful storytelling tools we have.

Women. I find they're the hardest for me to write emotionally. I'm worried about slipping into stereotypes.

For me, it's introductions. Not because I don't know who the characters are, but because I want the audience to understand them instantly without making the introduction feel like an introduction.

Romantic scenes. I'm old, bitter and cynical so writing tender romance is really hard for me.

At this point, it is the darkest hour scenes, the times when the protagonist is pushed against the wall, waiting for the final strike, and what is going through their minds? it is fine to have a sidekick or partner to talk to, but if they are alone, you just have to be there as that character and ask them what they are doing. it may be that they are just standing there with a stupid look on their face.

I love to watch comedies -- but I don't think I could write a comedy script! But for what i do write, I try to sprinkle in some humor. I think it helps to break things up, especially for deep screenplays like dramas.

Verbalizing mental thoughts. I have a short story with the protagonist alone, and I need to express his emotional thoughts and mental turmoil in dialogue as he deals with doubt and feeling abandoned. ??

I think tightening scenes has always been my biggest challenge. My first drafts tend to include everything I’m thinking in the moment. During revisions, I’ve learned that scenes become much stronger when I ask myself, “What absolutely needs to stay?” Trimming dialogue, getting into the scene later, leaving earlier, and trusting the audience to connect the dots has made a huge difference. It’s still something I work on, but every rewrite teaches me to be a little more ruthless

Definitely endings, we all want the dramatic ending that shocks the reader and keeps the story relevant. The Crying Game ending is a good example.

Hands-down: it's the endings. After finishing my first feature screenplay, I went back and changed mine a dozen times. Endings can't disappoint. They have to land right, make the reader cry, laugh, celebrate. There's too much riding on them.

My weakness in writing the script is emotional confrontations. I have a hard time choosing the background where the characters fight or a sense of betrayal at the end of Act Two. I mean, you have to have a sense of conflict and escalation. Otherwise, what's the point of starting a fight without one that connects to their emotions or their hearts.

My humor is good, but the problem is the action. I didn't have time to write baseball scenes because I wrote too much and just wrote the action through montages instead. It didn't convince me to be a sports comedy show if you need action through sports like baseball.

That's my take.

Romantic scenes. I tend to avoid them entirely by deftly employing implication and leaving it there.

Romantic scenes written by me are often cheesy, awkward, or occasionally edge toward pay-by-the-minute vibes. None of which I am ever going for.

So, queue the wind blown curtains! (Not really, but sorta)

Story structure that weaves my story better. I watch Nolan talk about how he writes it was mind blowing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPe1x9L6tMY

I spend a disproportionate amount of time on the "final Image" in the final scene of every script. If it's an "episode" script, I take the time to think about the cliffhanger or seamless transition to the next episode. If it's a feature, I don't necessarily think about a sequel, but in all my scripts, I want the "leave the audience thinking and talking about it." I want to make an impact -- and that takes considerable time.

Elle Bolan hahaha....fantastic!

I have no difficulty writing in any genre or creating any type of scene. For me, writing is a natural talent and a true passion. I am confident in my ability to bring different stories, characters, and worlds to life through my writing, with a professional and original voice.

Boy Ghada Elrahim - you are going to be real popular here, haha.

Any scene can become difficult. It's hard not to make them wrong. In Russian, there's a word for it: "cardboard." It's when a scene doesn't correspond to reality, and the characters don't live, but repeat lines. Although the result will always depend on the talent of the director and actor.