Overfall Presss The Idea: The Seven Elements of a Viable Story for Screen, Stage or Fiction

The idea is one the book I consider in the domain of screenplay as the new generation lense. A lense through which future writers can look through so as to generate more ideas and new approach of film writing. It soo short and soo efficient. Everything is so breifly explained with a lot of facilities that any curious reader can easily learn from it.The main idea "PROBLEM" that it defends for me is just an explicit explaination of great books in screenplay domain made simple by Mr Erik Bork the author.Punishing should be a Relatable story which should have a kind of Originality while being Believable with Life Altering circumstances related in an Entertaining and Meaningfully way.It's a book to be read by all aspiring writers even though I would have expected more in it on dialogue, structures and etc

EXCELENTE livro impresso. COMO OUTROS CASOS, li até madrugada sentindo o prazer do cheirinho de livro e do barulhinho delicado do folhear das páginas e do direito de riscar e personalizar do jeito que eu quiser - o que nunca jamais será igualado por livros e-book - que NÃO COMPRO. Uma biblioteca de qualidade e história para filhos, netos e outros jovens da família tem livros impressos, não livros invisíveis.

The craft aspects of the book were applicable. Three particularly memorable, applicable parts stood out to me as clear-cut positives1.) The approach the author takes in the introduction, describing why and where it's difficult breaking through, the importance of the logline, and the general challenge in the industry of getting noticed. He answers questions on a lot of writers' minds, and he sets out to solve the PROBLEM -- an acronym for key elements to a successful story -- in the chapters that follow.2.) The section titled "Sticking to the Audience's Ribs" is gold, listing specifically and explicitly ways in which an audience might emotionally react to a story or theme. These are all takeaways that make it very clear what it is we're trying to achieve, and provides a great basis for evaluating ideas.3.) The process of ideation is actionable. The basic principles listed out from page 208 -- "Note things that you like and are interested in, in the world and in other stories. Keep track of these" etc. -- aren't particularly novel or scientific, but they're presented in a way that leads believably to results: more ideas, habits and discipline in generating them, and ways to filter through the bad ones early. I appreciate the cut-and-dry approach.The one thing that hinders the message is a viewpoint permeating the text that "Writers almost never break in with a green-lit movie. Rather, breaking in means impressing a manager, an agent, or a producer with a script that likely won't even sell, let alone get made, but that puts them on the radar of the industry, gets them fans, and starts to give them some momentum toward future sales or employment." The realism comes from a good place, a position of setting expectations, but in the end, not all writers are seeking mere "momentum" or "future sales or employment." Point being: Some writers just have an idea (for a book, a movie, or a project), and their sole purpose is to get that idea out there in a consumable form, business-plan and long-term "career" be damned. I don't think the author does enough justice to the creation of singular, standalone pieces of art, whether that be an independent film, a breakthrough novel, or the successful completion of a personal project that may not even fit an existing medium. The idea of submitting ideas just to get employment isn't that appealing; writing a single, timeless piece of work can be the end goal, and that level of singularity isn't addressed with enough respect in this book.Having said that, I still found the book enjoyable and enlightening to read, and I'd recommend it to writers under the caveat that, like a TV series, it focuses a bit too heavily on building a career, or developing one's idea filter, rather than advancing an idea.

Cool book, over the expectations, best book

For a while now, I've shared Bork's sense that the basic premise of a script is the most important part, and doesn't get nearly enough attention in screenwriting pedagogy. I bought the book to see what he had to say on this subject, though I expected to be disappointed—like many, I thought that "having good ideas" was a talent one either has or doesn't, and that a craft book would have very little to say about it that was generalizable enough to be useful.I couldn't have been more wrong. This is the book every screenwriter should start with. Not Story, not Save the Cat. As Bork very convincingly lays out, the basic idea IS what usually makes or breaks a script, and there ARE principles for what makes a good one—principles that are specific enough that they're hardly ever done right, and general enough that they apply to almost any project, not just the "mainstream Hollywood" movies that many of us writers deride.These principles are the Seven Story Elements, which brilliantly add up to the acronym PROBLEM. Some of them are well-known, like the fact that we need a relatable character facing a problem that's really, really hard. Others are genuinely new, like the idea of shooting for a specific entertainment, which in all my study of screenwriting I've never seen anyone break down as well as Bork does here. And whether they're old hat or new insights, they're all absolutely, 100% on-point, and will make you see your writing far more clearly.I can't stress this last part enough. This is truly 200 pages of just the good stuff, the stuff that matters to us writers and can help us understand what we need to do to improve our work. A huge reason for this, counter-intuitively, is that Bork only tells us how things should work, and why they often don't—he doesn't spend a lot of time on "how to fix it." I'd have thought I'd want more of this, but in retrospect, I realized these have been some of the least helpful parts of other books. Everyone has they're own process; I don't want to be told to change the way I think, or even how I approach my writing, for the most part. What I want is clarity on my overall goals—what I should be shooting for in trying to develop solid, viable script ideas. And this book is nothing less than a bible on what we as aspiring professional writers should be looking for in our concepts.I also hugely, hugely appreciate how this book is written. It's incredibly clear and simple, distilling each of the seven points down to their most basic and fundamental tennants. Bork, more than any other screenwriting author I've read, has a great sense of just how specific to get without crossing over into his own personal tastes or proprietary theories of drama. He's also the only screenwriting author I've found who writes with real humility and empathy. I could barely get through Story and Save the Cat, because these writers came off as such jerks—unlike them, Bork doesn't make you feel like he's better than you, or that you're stupid for not already knowing what he's telling you. He just shares his insights, accumulated through years of experience, about "what audiences tend to want." And he acknowledges at multiple points how hard it is to do what he's telling you to do, sometimes even for him. This tone made it easy, even pleasurable, to absorb all the brilliant wisdom he had to offer.If you're on this page for any reason, buy this book now! I personally guarantee it will be some of the best $8 you ever spend.

I am inspired and re-energized after reading The Idea. It’s by far the most valuable book on screenwriting I have ever read. What Erik Bork has created is an essential tool that you can lay any idea against to truly weigh its ability to be a solid, entertaining story. If you have an idea for a movie or series, while reading this book you will know immediately if it will work successfully or not. Or you will come to understand how to adapt it to make it better.Most other screenwriting books (I’ve read dozens) simply explain that a script contains three parts with two plot points dividing them. Both of these plot points turn the story in a different direction at the beginning of acts two and three. What Bork proves in The Idea, is that there are so many more crucial details and nuances than just that. A film, series, or live show can be about anything. Nothing is really off limits as an idea. But whether it’s a comedy, spy thriller, family drama, or character study, specific fundamentals and devices are the same across all genres in order for the reader or viewer to truly stay entertained and engaged.As I was reading it, I kept applying the concepts to any good movie I could think of and its principles always held true. It also helped me determine some of the specific reasons why bad movies suffer. Before you dive in deep in the business of writing your next screenplay, I highly recommend reading The Idea. It will potentially save you hundreds of hours where you might be moving in the wrong direction creatively. It’s truly an indispensable writing asset.