Writing a movie script that sells is challenging for most writers. Tinsel is a highly competitive world, which is growing daily in large part of professional writing courses, which churn out thousands of amateur writers who make a beeline toward the glamor of Hollywood. In the bustle to get to the top, most of the best writers commit errors to push their hours of toil and sweat into the darkest recess and never make it big. Writing a movie script should be carried out methodically and enjoyed as it moves towards successful completion that is, to see the script take a visual form. Movies are expensive to make and only the very best scripts see daylight.

Writing a movie script has become a lot simpler since the days when writers sat hunched over a typewriter, tapping away amidst heaps of discarded pages strewn all around. Computers heralded a revolution in script writing, and today we have been blessed with the availability of dedicated software that have eased the burden of movie script writing. Yet, a more personal touch brought by human intervention can never be replicated. It is best for an aspiring writer to acquaint himself with the some helpful tips to offset all probable obstacles on the way:

* Attend formal coaching classes to learn the basics of writing, formatting, editing, selling and safeguarding your work.
* Select a genre. Know where you are headed. A sturdy foundation alone can guarantee a stable structure.
* Understand the conventions and the expected protocols to be followed in your chosen genre.
* Break up your story into three broad sections – introduction of the hero and his problem, the supporting cast, the hurdles faced and finally how the problem is resolved.
* Conduct research for relevant information, the ideal location and realistic events.
* Write using the rules of the game, sticking to the formatting style that has been laid down.
* Begin with FADE IN and sum up with FADE OUT.
* Type following the predefined methods – of describing the scene or stating the dialogues.
* Keep to the present tense while narrating any action or location.
* Use suitable labels for each scene – what time of the day, whether the shot is inside or out and the characters involved.
* Have every character tied up to the main story or its moral to enhance the overall effect.
* Leave the description of action to the director or the actors.
* Keep your ideas from being ‘stolen’ while they taking shape or getting spruced up.

Writing a Movie Script