Sitcom Mission

How To Annoy A Script Reader - Part 7

Friday 5th June 2015

Pompidou. Image shows from L to R: Pompidou (Matt Lucas), Hove (Alex Macqueen). Copyright: John Stanley Productions

Script Reader 7's issues...

Spelling mistakes and name errors (the wrong character speaking) - i.e. when the script hasn't been proofread properly!

Scripts which are too long always start out on the wrong foot - anything over 120 pages but even 90 often feels too long (for a feature/film script).

Dialogue which doesn't feel natural i.e. not enough contractions (e.g. I'm instead of I am) which people would use in normal speech. Always read your dialogue out loud to make sure it sounds right.

Overly flowery and lyrical prose which detracts from the action of the script itself. Use descriptive prose sparingly and try to focus on active/visual verbs and avoid the passive voice.

More: Tip 1, Tip 2, Tip 3, Tip 4, Tip 5, Tip 6, Tip 7, Tip 8, Tip 9, Tip 10, Tip 11, Tip 12, Tip 13, Tip 14, Tip 15, Tip 16, Tip 17


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