Film Courage: What’s a good test to see if something is missing from your story, whether there’s not enough intrigue, the suspects don’t seem real, the stakes aren’t high enough?
Jennifer Dornbush, Screenwriter, Author, Speaker, Consultant, and Forensic Science Specialist: It’s a very common problem especially in the first couple drafts to have things not as suspenseful or falling flat or not making things as challenging on your investigator as you should, it’s very common. So first of all give yourself some Grace, take a breath. I like to workshop my work. I always workshop my work because even if I think maybe there’s enough suspension, challenge, mystery and authenticity, my writer’s group will definitely point out if there’s not. It’s good to have that accountability. I’m a big proponent of writers groups and community in writing because once you find the right community your work will get a lot stronger. You don’t have to rely so much on yourself because they’ll point things out for you and that’s really helpful although sometimes painful but really helpful.
Then the question becomes How do I fix this? All right it’s falling flat, things aren’t as suspenseful, I like to make sure that there are obstacles and intention in every scene. When I’m going back through to edit the second or third draft or more, that’s one of my checklists. I want to see if there’s something like a tension happening at the end of each scene even if it’s just a little baby cliffhanger or a little baby mystery, you’re leaving us with something unresolved in almost every scene. It could be an emotional element between characters or a relational element. It could be more something to do with the case at hand…(Watch the video interview on Youtube here).
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BIO:
Jennifer Dornbush is a screenwriter, author, speaker, consultant, and forensic science specialist. Jennifer grew up around the forensic world as the daughter of a medical examiner whose office was located in her home. She has been teaching and script consulting since 1997 and regularly leads seminars and workshops on screenwriting basics, writing for Hollywood, crime fiction, forensics, death investigation, and the creative life.
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