A hands-on workshop, this book allows the reader to participate in the processes that have made Syd Field's workshops invaluable to beginners and working professionals alike.

Includes index.

Part One: Preparation. The blank page -- About structure -- The paradigm -- Four pages -- What makes good character? -- The tools of character -- Conflict and the circle of being -- Of time and memory. Part Two: Writing the screenplay. Structuring Act I -- The first ten pages -- The second and third ten pages -- Finding the mid-point -- First half, second half -- Writing Act II -- Act III: the resolution -- The rewrite -- The 'good read'.