Following up on the previous post re The Help, as I’ve noted before, studios think in terms of genres, story concepts, and target demos, which means they reduce your stories to that.

Does it ever occur to you to think of your story in those terms?

When you sort through story concepts to write, do you ever consider its genre? Target demo? How a studio might market a movie based on the concept?

I know the default answer to the question about what you should write is, “Something you’re passionate about.”

Yes. You should have some emotional connection to the material you choose to write. But it also pays to be smart about it. With every story concept you consider, you should make a list: On one side are the positives in terms of its marketability. On the other side the challenges.

That should not necessarily determine if you choose to write a spec script based on the concept or not, but that process can help you filter out weak ideas from strong ones. And if you decide to write a script based on a concept that has more challenges than positives, at least you will know what you are up against.

I’m reminded of my interview with screenwriter John Swetnam, who sold the spec script “Evidence” back in January:

How much time do you spend in prep-writing (i.e., brainstorming, character development, plotting, research, outlining)? Which of the aspects of prep do you tend to devote the most time and focus to?

My process works like this. I come up with an idea and then I put on my “producer” hat. What’s the budget, genre, tone? Where does it fit in the market place? Who would I cast in it? Who would direct? What’s the trailer, poster? Who’s my audience, etc, etc, etc? If I can answer all these questions clearly and I’m still pumped then I know I have something that I can dig into. That’s when I put on my “writer” hat and forget the rest and start exploring the story and the characters. I have put myself inside a box and now I can really get creative. I constantly ask myself if I think what I’m doing is cool. Do I love this? Am I excited to see it on screen? The ball usually just starts rolling and I put together a pretty fast beat sheet. Then I do a treatment and get feedback on it asap. I love feedback. If I’m still feeling good, then I rewrite the treatment a few times before I go into a really detailed outline. Then I set it aside for a while and work on other stuff. If I come back to it after a week, read it, and still love it, I do some more rewrites and then kill the first draft. I do tend to write and rewrite as I go along, but I can pump out a first draft in under a week. Then I put on my “director” hat and really dig into the tiny details and make sure I know the answer to everypossible question that might come up. What if an actor asked me this? What if the production design wanted to know about this, etc, etc? Only after I’ve worn all three hats, which means at least three drafts on my own, I get more feedback, take more time away and rewrite and rewrite and get more feedback until I honestly think it’s as good as I can get it. Then I send it to the manager, get more feedback and rewrite. Then send it to the agent, get more feedback and rewrite. And then… I drink… and then we take it out. Easy, right?

Three hats: Writer, Producer, Director. That’s the attitude and awareness of a professional screenwriter. And thinking like a producer involves considering genres, story concepts, and target demos.