Formatting and structure are vital to every screenplay because they instantly announce your readiness to be taken seriously as a screenwriter. Whether you’re writing a feature, short, or TV pilot, nailing these crucial elements dramatically increases your chances of getting your script read and sold.

In “Professional Screenplay Formatting & Structure,” Timothy Cooper will walk you through everything he wishes he’d known when he started: the principles behind why formatting matters, his tried-and-true steps to building your story from logline to outline to script, and exactly what differentiates professional pages from amateur ones.

You’ll learn:

• The 5 vital templates you need to outline every film or TV show 
• Write an unforgettable introduction to your protagonist 
• Top new formatting conventions and changes you need to know 
• 7 first-page red flags to avoid at all costs 
• Surprising pitfalls of using flashbacks, flash-forwards, and V.O. 
• The simple naming trick to make any character stick in our minds 
• Why the emotional journey is all-important—and how formatting can take us there 

After this class, you’ll understand what you can and can’t mess with when it comes to professional script formatting, solid structure for pilots and features, writing clear yet subtextual dialogue, and creating propulsively powerful scenes that'll get you past the gatekeepers.

Professional screenwriter Tom Vaughan (Winchester, starring Academy Award-winner Helen Mirren) shares critical advice to elevate your writing to a more pro level.

It’s called “A good read.”

It’s when a reader’s eyes glide down the page of a screenplay in an easy, emotional flow.

It’s when a reader sits down to read a screenplay and doesn’t get up until they’re finished.

It’s when the screenplay focuses on the emotional experience rather than the technical one.

And it’s the difference between a good story being easier to identify and one that gets buried in an avalanche of text.

Every screenwriter makes two choices. First, what actually happens in the story. And next, how to transfer those sounds and images to the reader through text.

"Improving The Read" focuses on that second one.

This presentation will cover:

• The actual goal of today’s spec screenplay.
• How to evoke shots without ever mentioning the camera.
• What writing “vertically” means and how to do it.
• What bad habits are strangling your reader’s experience.
• A rewrite of a scene in real-time.
• Q&A

What attendees have said ...

"It's given me a new way of thinking about how to write my action lines now I can see what I'm doing wrong and how I can improve. I'm energized!"

"This is such great screenwriting teaching! I just graduated from an MFA Creative Writing/Screenwriting program. What Tom is teaches is so much more than what I received in some of my classes."

"This was an amazing webinar. I learned so much. I need to really work on this to get rid of some of the bad habits that I've picked up over the years. Very sound advice. Thank you!"

"Excellent discussion and great examples.  It became so clear and obvious after Tom explained and gave examples."

"Chock full of actionable advice. Presentation well organized."

"I really enjoyed and got a lot out of this. One of the better sessions I’ve attended."

Comedy writers make a lot of mistakes. Like, they start writing before their lives are messed up just enough to begin. Or not using comedy writing for what it’s really intended—revenge. Or … heaven forbid, they start dating comedians.

This isn’t about that. We can talk about that over beer afterwards.

This session’s about the craft. The biggest mistakes in comedy scripts and how YOU can avoid them. For new and seasoned writers.

Some of the mistakes we’ll talk about…

1. Underdeveloped storyworld: Weak storyworld = weak jokes. We’ll learn to build a solid world that’ll cradle your characters, theme, and storylines.

2. Not character-led: Ignore your characters at your peril. We’ll go through the evil ways you can squeeze out all the juicy goodness and belly laughs from them.

3. They stop before it gets funny—Ouch. Yeah, this one hurts. But it’s true. We'll help you make your scripts one-jillion* percent funnier.

Want to know more? And hear the rest of the list? Come to the session.

You'll be able to avoid the mistakes that drive competition readers, development producers, script editors, and directors batshit crazy. And you'll make your writing a lot stronger. 

*One jillion is not a guarantee. 

Loglines and outlines are the foundation of every screenplay—yet they can feel tougher to write than the script itself! Sure, they may be summaries of a more complex story, but they’re often what stand between your idea and the executives, producers, and decision makers that could jumpstart your career.

In "The Foundation: Crafting Brilliant Loglines & Outlines,” Timothy Michael Cooper dives into the vital craft of creating a logline and outline that give your screenplay a powerful foundation. He’ll help you create loglines that capture the full potential of your concept, followed by an outline that sets your script up for success by maximizing your story’s character arcs, unique attractors, and emotional impact. 

You’ll learn:

• Why loglines matter, and who actually reads them
• How pitching to reps, executives, and stars in Hollywood nearly always starts with the logline
• Conveying an idea that feels “big enough” for a feature or TV series
• Identifying and exploiting your unique hook
• Developing solid external AND parallel internal conflicts
• Brainstorming exercises that amplify your concept’s impact
• Why all storytelling follows one single template (and why that’s a good thing!)
• Timothy’s comprehensive method to expand your idea from a logline to outline, synopsis, treatment, and ultimately script form

After taking this class, you’ll have all the templates you need to write a logline and outline that capture the full potential of your idea, get executives excited about your hook, and convey your genuine passion and voice.