Beginner's Guide To Writing A Story - Tony DuShane

Tony DuShane, Writer/Podcaster/Teacher: What would  be the greatest job in the world that you could   ever have and think of anything, anything at all.  What would you like to do for eight hours a day? Film Courage: How do you define story and  how do you teach it to students and clients? Tony: We tell stories all the time even  as I’m talking to you I’m telling stories   I'm bringing characters in. We are made to tell  stories. We are made to tell stories about what   our aunt did that Oh my goodness, she's  crazy. She's out of her mind. What she did   and so we're story building constantly just even  if we don't know it. That's when we go okay so   how do we craft it? That's when I talk about  character and plot. Let's talk about a character   okay. What does this character do? Let's  talk about plot. I do a free writing workshop   for the library once a month and so it's one of my  favorite things to do because I get nobody I know   in there it's just like all of a sudden I have  all these eyeballs looking at me going Teach us   how to write a story and sometimes they have a  lot of experience and sometimes it's the first   time they've ever even thought of being a writer  and so right away I just talk about character and   plot and the what drives me nuts about there's  monumental catalog of books out there 500 pages   how to create a plot into screenplay 500  pages character work and throw all those out   there's not it is the we can't be bogged down by  this intellectual this is how it is in black blank   blank blank blank it is good to read those books  I mean I'm a fan of Joseph Campbell I'm a fan of   I I'm a geek about storytelling but as far as as  far as it's concerned just start writing and just   have a character and just give them a goal and  then just get in the way of the goal and just   see what happens and then what I do is I do free  writing so I'll do a free writing exercise so I'll   just put that I'll have them do a free write and  then they usually don't know that there's a second   and third part I'll throw in the plot twist for  them and and then they're and then they they've   they create kind of full-fledged stories within  30 minutes and there's a beauty to that it's   it's there's a beauty to having a time limit and  then just going what you all wrote crap everything   you wrote is problematic and awful I can't wait  till you bore me with your story because what you   wrote is you it took you 30 minutes there's  people that write for years to write a good   short story so let's let's see what happens and  usually they're all very interesting they're it's   way more interesting than anyone would ever think  and so that's that's kind of how I wanted I want   people to just jump into it and write a story  in 30 minutes and then kind of walk away and go   I can do it and this is like yeah you can  but you kind of got to do it every day   and it's got to be a practice like anyone  could anyone could do yoga they might but   you're not going to go do a handstand on the  first day if you've never done yoga in your life   you got to come and practice every day you got to  teach your body so when you're writing you got to   teach your mind teach your mind that you're  coming to the page you're coming to the page   then your mind starts to go oh crap we're coming  to the page I better come up with something so   yeah can you give me an example of let's suppose  what a free writing sort of assignment the in   five minutes Karen I need you to and and you you  would have me write something out what would it   be so what what I so here's an assignment that  I get that I give is I asked I would say Karen   what what would be the greatest job in the world  that you could ever have and think of anything   anything at all what would you like to do for  eight hours a day and then I would hear what   you would like to do for eight hours a day and I'd  be like great on this scenario you're going to get   50 million dollars a year to have this job but  you only have one more you've been through eight   interviews they want you you have one more  interview so you need to you need to drive   to the interview but when you as you're driving  to the interview you're gonna get a car accident   and someone's going to cut you off and so  right and I would tell you to write that   write that scene you got the last interview  for the greatest job in the world for all the   money you could ever want but this car cut  you off and that would be the beginning of   that writing exercise and then the plot twist yeah  everyone write it out and usually it's just like   that that just I'm gonna cool and oh and it's  just great they like really get into it because   as they find something they're passionate about  the character it's we've created the character   the character has a passion and the character has  a goal and then after that that limit I go okay   great now you're now your character's at the  interview and they find out that the person they   got in the car accident with is the person that's  interviewing them now how does that play out and   that's when it's just like because they weren't  thinking of that there and so then they they're   like oh how do we how do we resolve this  huge problem now usually that has been a very   contentious scene is now the person that they  need so it's a lot of fun and then after that   my big question is that the last sentence is  do they get the job or do they not get the job   and usually it's 50 50. usually people  find a way around it people it's   so that would be that that would be one of the  the one of the one of the lessons I use a lot to   get someone to write and that would be about 30  minutes so I'd have them right about 10 minutes   just really dive into the anger of the scene ten  minutes of resolution and then five minutes after   that so excellent that sounds fun yeah I know  sometimes the beauty of being in a writing class   is just hearing the other people it's not it's not  so much getting critique on your own yeah and in   that situation there's no critique at all because  it's just re it's just reading it oh I see okay so   and and for the most part everyone is laughing at  every story because they're so good and it's and   people get really ten like i've had people who  are like that is the first time I have ever read   anything i've written in front of  everybody it happens more than not   and and I'm like were you expecting that  reaction they're like no and I'm like   you got story to tell so make a  decision you're going to join us in hell what is it laugh with the  sinners or cry with the saints   Virginia come out [Only The Good Die Young by  Bill Joel] yeah I don't know why I'm singing I   shouldn't be singing why are you allowing me to do  this no no but I village I would join in if I knew   it I got to watch Mystic Pizza I got to listen  to Billy Joel if we were to have a Tony DuShane   part writing process to a story what would that be  I don't know why I'm drawing a blank a pen paper   yeah a pen paper good cup of coffee  or whatever or whatever drink   and a desk or even a chair just somewhere and  whether you're disturbed or not disturbed I   think something that happened with is people  said oh it must be great for you because you   can write now like you want I'm like no no no  you don't get it I have to be irritated right   people are not I need to be in a cafe where people  are talking loud on their cell phones people are   being awful and I have to tune that out and then  I have to write I have to kind of write in the   in situations where it's kind of  antagonistic where things are coming at me   and that's when I do my best writing when  I'm at peace I don't do great writing yeah yeah no the certain coffee shops  are great for conflict and for oh and it   has to be boring people are like oh do you have  intelligentsia I'm like oh no I'm at coffee bean   they're just like why would you go there  and like because it's boring and corporate   oh so you don't want too much too much  happening I don't want it to be cool   oh I see okay yeah yeah I don't want it  to be hip okay so no filtered water and   yeah Arabica beans or what you've got to have  more just I mean my coffee bean has great coffee   so yeah you just want something where it's not  there's not hipsters coming in all the time   well yeah it's it I just I don't want the whole  place to be a fashion show oh okay yeah you know but it's a group hipsters or not I mean people  look at me and people look at me and sometimes   oh great there's a hipster here I get it well  sometimes what's greater are old diners I know   they're hard to find where there's someone that  I'll be right with you and it's like they're   going to serve it from one of those ancient  coffee pots and that's great because there's   so many characters in a place like that and  it's real quiet and there's just everyone like   each person has a fascinating  story like what they're doing and   yeah but there's not that many places like  that anymore yeah they've been replaced. What do you like about this video?

Channel: Film Courage

Views: 101,124

Keywords: Screenwriting tips, screenwriting 101, screenwriting for beginners, screenwriting techniques, screenwriting advice, writing a screenplay, how to write a movie, writing advice, writing tips, Tony DuShane, drinks with tony, filmcourage, film courage, interview

Id: 8FxdZ1wdltw

Length: 9min 51sec (591 seconds)

Published: Mon Nov 29 2021