Screenwriting

I don't know of any structure besides 3 acts. As for a perfect first 10 pages, absolutely. Try to make the whole damn thing perfect. If you want to see a perfect first page, check out the first page of FALLEN ANGEL in Lew Hunter's book "Screenwriting 434."

Hi, Alyazin Alriyami. I use the three-act structure for feature scripts. I used a three-act structure plus a cold open (at the beginning) and a tag (at the end) for a kids show pilot I wrote a while back, and I used a four-act structure plus a teaser (at the beginning) in an old Action Crime Drama pilot.

Stage 32 has a webinar called "How to Master The Story Structure Of Your TV Pilot Script" (www.stage32.com/education/products/how-to-master-the-story-structure-of-...).

And here's some free TV writing webinars: www.stage32.com/lounge/screenwriting/Stage-32-and-Netflix-Partnered-Up-o...

If it's a Series Pilot, you can have Four Acts - Literally Act One; Act Two; Act Three; Act Four. You can also add two- or three-minute TEASERS at the start - -Excerpts of what happens later - - and add two or three minutes of TAGS at the end -- adverts of what happens in the next episode. That gives you a 'Six Act' structure - which if it is fifty minutes total, gives you a traditional TV one-hour Pilot Episode. For 'The First Ten Pages' read lots of scripts first ten pages of successful movies or TV shows. The perfect first ten pages, means telling a great story beginning, which is properly formatted and doesn't have daft mistakes in it, like bad spelling, wrong scene headings, wrong character names, huge blocks of dialogue, or the author thinking out loud notes. etc

Thank you very much for this great encouragement Sandra Isabel Correia

Yes, we can make it, no matter what.

Happy NWC

Always welcoming the challenges Sandra Isabel Correia! It's what keeps us going!

That’s the truth my friend Eon C. Rambally :))

I’m really happy to share that today I finished writing the screenplay for The Misstep, a total of 97 pages!

My original plan was to complete it by November 28, but thanks to focus, resilience, and dedication, I reached this milestone one week early. Sometimes the work happens faster than we dream, and this is one of those moments.

Because of this achievement, I’m setting a new goal for next week: polish the screenplay for The Misstep. This way, I’ll be ready to move into packaging and prepare for the festival circuit in 2026.

Grateful for the motivation and support from this community. Let’s keeping pushing forward together!

Sandra Isabel Correia, it is excellent seeing this! Great anticipations for the next move!

The momentum is spectacular!

I use all three of these in scripts, Ehsan Rahimpour, especially suspense. I don't think I've used all three in one scene. I might try it.

That’s a solid idea Maurice Vaughan, but it really depends on what the scene or story organically calls for. Sometimes all three are essential, while other times one alone packs enough punch.

Ok, thanks, Ehsan Rahimpour. I'll definitely keep that in mind.

Hi, Shay Booth. Welcome to the community. Stage 32 has a blog that'll help you navigate the platform and connect with creatives and industry professionals all over the world. www.stage32.com/blog/how-to-successfully-navigate-the-stage-32-platform-...

Stage 32's November Community Open House was Tuesday. It'll help you navigate Stage 32 and connect with creatives and industry pros. The recording is up now. It's free to watch. www.stage32.com/education/products/stage-32-s-november-community-open-ho...

I suggest adding a detailed bio to your profile. It'll help you build relationships/network on here. You could add things to your bio like why you became a screenwriter, your accomplishments, your goals, and what movies and shows you like. You can edit your bio by clicking the gear symbol in the top right-hand corner of Stage 32, then selecting “Edit profile” in the drop-down menu, then clicking the red button underneath your location and choosing "Edit Profile."

I suggest adding your last name. It’s Stage 32’s policy that members have a proper first and last name or a pen name on their accounts. A lot of Stage 32 members are reluctant to accept network requests from profiles that don’t have proper names, and they’ll report the accounts as spam, which will cause the accounts to get removed.

Static Screams sounds intriguing! You could post your script on your profile. Producers search profiles for projects. That and networking are how I sold four short scripts to a producer. Click the gear symbol in the top right-hand corner and select “Edit profile” in the drop-down menu. Scroll down to “Loglines” and click “Add/edit loglines” to the right of “Loglines.” You can also post your script on your profile this way: www.stage32.com/loglines (near the top where it says “Add a Logline”)

Hey, Maurice Vaughan Thankyou so much for the advice, I will add to my profile :) Appreciate the help.

You're welcome, Shay Booth. Reach out to the Success Team at success@stage32.com. Geoff and his team can help you connect with producers, executives, and more.

And Stage 32 is the Global Screenwriting Contest Hub (www.stage32.com/scriptservices/contests).

thank's maurice ;)

You're welcome, Fares Mohamed. I'm a Stage 32 Lounge Moderator. If you ever have any questions about Stage 32, let me or another Lounge Moderator know. We have badges on our pictures. Or you could email support@stage32.com.

And it's Stage 32’s policy that members have a proper first and last name or a pen name on their accounts. A lot of Stage 32 members are reluctant to accept network requests from profiles that don’t have proper names, and they’ll report the accounts as spam, which will cause the accounts to get removed.

thank you very much for your message and for your help.

No worries on my end regarding my name: my name is Fares, so everything is in order. Thanks as well for the information about connection requests and the risk of being reported as spam — I’ll be careful.

Have a great day, and I look forward to connecting on Stage 32!

You're welcome, Fares Mohamed. I suggest adding your last name. Have a great day too! I hope you find success on here!

I am in Sweden, also part of Europe. I translated my latest script into American English. Then I wrote to about 100 production companies which appeared to accept submission from us who have no agent. Almost all the companies I wrote to were based in USA. But still the only answer which appeared encouraging was from Australia.

Hi, Julie Lamont. I look for a writing partner who has the same vision for the project and someone who'll be professional and respectful.

You could make a collaboration post on the Job Board (www.stage32.com/find-jobs).

When I look for a writing partner, I look for someone who differs from me. Preferably opposite gender and very different age. Different social background. Unfortunately that maximizes the risk for disagreement. At the same time, collaboration for me means that one person tells "this is what I have in my story right now so tell me all you want to add". And when the first person receives suggestions from the second person, the first person decides which suggestions to use.

Congratulations on the request, Suzy Miller! I suggest emailing writerhelp@stage32.com.

You're welcome, Meriem Bouziani. Great. There's a lot to do in the Writers' Room. I hope those pitch resources help!

If I'm doing a phone pitch I have my script ready to go. I'll rehearse it several times to make sure it's not to long and that helps me make sure I reach all the things I want to tell them.

Always finish up with "I'd be happy to answer any questions you have." It helps sounding confident and willing to to work with them.

Good luck.

Thank you very much for your help.

I wish you the best of luck as well Bill Albert

You, too. Another thing to remember is they want you to give them the best idea they've ever heard. Let that help your confidence.

yeah, originality matters. I hope my story, The Silent PFC War, stands out as something unique and layered to them Bill Albert

I like that pun, Banafsheh Esmailzadeh. I like puns, but I don't think I've used any in my stories. Thanks for the idea.

You're welcome, Maurice Vaughan, and thank you :D I also like anagrams but I'm hilariously bad at them (I didn't even clue in that "Neo" is an anagram of "One" until it was pointed out to me lol, that's how bad I am), so I stick to my strength with puns. You can do so much with them, it's a blast :D

I didn't know "Neo" is an anagram of "One," Banafsheh Esmailzadeh. I want to try using an anagram now. Maybe in a Mystery script.

Maurice Vaughan definitely! Anagrams blow my mind when they’re pointed out to me lol it’s just too bad I can’t for the life of me plan one out on my own. They’d be very useful in a mystery! Definitely do it :D

Hi, Tatiana McClintock. Happy Thanksgiving! I’m a Stage 32 Lounge Moderator. I wanted to let you know that I moved your post from the Acting Lounge to the Screenwriting Lounge since it's about the Writers' Room. Let me know if you have any questions.

You can sign up for your first month of the Writers’ Room free here: www.stage32.com/writers-room/plans-vip

There's a lot of perks in the Writers’ Room:

You can submit your scripts to Open Writing Assignments (OWAs). Here's a post that explains what a Stage 32 OWA is: www.stage32.com/lounge/screenwriting/What-is-an-OWA

The Coverage Reports are every Monday. WR members read a member's script and write feedback on the script before the Coverage Report, then everyone gives their feedback during the Coverage Report.

There's an Executive Hour webcast every week where an executive comes in and talks about the industry, gives advice, etc.

Pitch Practice is every Thursday night at 5:30 P.M. PST/8:30 P.M. EST. You can sit in and listen to members practice their projects and give them feedback. You can pitch your project too, but you have to sign up. The hosts, Noel Thompson and John Mezes, take names during Pitch Practice for people to pitch the following week. You have to sit in and listen at the practice before you can pitch (I think once or twice). One night each month is the Pitch Practice Happy Hour where everyone hangs out and gets to know each other better. I think it's the 3rd or 4th week every month.

The Pitch Tank in the Writers’ Room is an incredible pitching resource too. The Pitch Tank is where you pitch your script to an executive and get feedback. The Pitch Tank is once a month.

There's a Writers' Cafe different times throughout the week. The Writers' Cafe is like a writing accountability group/encouragement group.

There's also a private Writers’ Room Lounge for members to network, ask questions, and more.

The Writer's Toolkit. The toolkit has documents to help you on your screenwriting journey. Documents like scripts you can read, pitch decks, a query letter template, etc.

And there are other WR perks (I'm copying and pasting from the "Frequently Asked Questions" section on the Writers' Room portal page):

10% off Stage 32 Coverage, Consultations, Contest entries

10% off Stage 32 Next Level Education Labs and Classes

Annual members receive 1 (one) free contest entry per year

Surprise Perks including Free webinars, discounted Pitch Sessions, and more! The savings that you’ll get on the services pays for the Writers’ Room membership! The more you utilize the Stage 32 services, the more valuable the membership becomes!