Best Books, Blogs, and Online References

At USC's School of Cinematic Arts, the approach generally taught to beginning screenwriters is one that was developed by Frank Daniel, who taught at both USC and AFI. The two books on that method that are most often recommended by USC instructors are:

• The Tools of Screenwriting, by David Howard 
• Screenwriting: The Sequence Approach, by Joseph Gulino  (My Favorite)

However, USC students also inevitably read the two most popular screenwriting books.

• Story, by Robert McKee (Levin's Favorite)
• Save The Cat, by Blake Snyder

Reading books on screenwriting can be very helpful, especially reading the beat by beat analyses of individual films.  However, always remember that the analysis of successful films is not the same process as the creation of a compelling scripts.  Screenplay Guru Robert McKee is a genius at analysis, but he is not a himself a screenwriter.  

All books, blogs and screenplay instructors can offer are maps.  But the maps are not the territory.  A screenplay is not something that you engineer according to rules or even principles.  You're story is something that you discover, like an archaeologist searching for an ancient long-buried city.  All books, blogs and instructors can do is give you advice about where do dig.

As for blogs, the three most tracked by USC students are:

• John August 
• Go Into The Story
• Save The Cat

As for resources online, here are three basic sites that are useful for the class:

• The Writers' Store
• The Internet Movie Script Database
• The Black List

Because screenwriters are also filmmakers, and many of my students aspire to direct their scripts, I'd recommend this blog on independent filmmaking:

• Truly Free Film (by producer Ted Hope)

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