how do i write shorts

Writing can be a challenge, especially if you're one of those people who find that their creativity well dries up easily or they aren't easily inspired. I'm one of those people who can come up with a full length story inspired by a song or news article; having come up with a certain death scene before I ever wrote a plot for the script after listening to a Starship song.

Here's some advice I can give to the best of my abilities:

1) Write what you know: Incorporate what you know into your work. Do you know a lot about cameras? Maybe there can be gag bit centered around a mishap at a camera shop. How about baking or 80s pop culture? The possibilities are pretty much endless with what you can do. For me, I'm a sucker for 80s slasher movies and true crime; so I generally write horror and center on what I've learned while I was in high school.

2) Think about what you'd like to see: If you were going to see a comedy show, what's something you'd love to see happen? Is there a certain style of comedy you'd hope to see (ex: dark comedy, deadpan, surreal, satricial, word play etc..)? Also think about the comedians, shows, and movies that inspire you the most and who you'd like to channel.

3) Brainstorm: It sounds easier than done, but if it helps, try coming up with ideas while you watch or listen to your influences. While I write, I generally have a playlist of stuff going that help me get into the head space of my characters so I can get a better understanding of what they're feeling or how they'd handle a certain situation. If sketch comedies from the 90s like In Living Color or Mad TV inspire you, maybe watch some episodes to help get the creative juices flowing.

4) Always keep a notepad with you: Inspiration can pop up at any time, so if you have an idea for something, write it down. Even if it sounds silly or over the top, jot it down and save it for later. Once you've given yourself time to sit and think it over, you can decide if it's something you'd like to add or omit. There's a saying I've heard and it's that you can edit a bad page, but not a blank one. So it's best to let the ideas pour out and worry about letting your inner critic come out later.

5) Look at other scripts and make character trees: Even though I've been writing stories for over ten years, I sometimes find myself stumped with how to go about actually writing my ideas. Even now, I've been stuck on a script now for about eight months and it can get tricky sometimes to get the ball rolling.

If, for you, the hard part is figuring out how to write a script, look into scripts other people have written. This can give you a good idea as to how things are formatted and how proper set ups are. There's a lot of videos on Youtube (such as from Rocket Jump Film School) that talk about the different parts of a script and what makes good dialogue "good".

However, if the hard part is figuring out how characters interact with each other or writing dialogue, I recommend referring to #3. Watch movies, shows, improv performances and others that inspire or resonate with you and take note of how the characters interact with each other and their surroundings.

Another thing that can help immensely is building character trees for each of your characters. These help build the general frame work for your character; from their personality, desires, and methodology. While (in my opinion) it's not needed for very minor characters, it can help give them more dimension. With my first short script, I have several minor characters that only have a few lines, but I did what I could to make a character tree for them to help give them more flesh and personality--even if it was going to be for my eyes only.

For more on that, I'll include a link to a video Rocket Jump Film School did on this as a reference. I know it helped me a lot, and I'm sure it can for you too. I hope this helps out in any way, and if you have more questions, ask away!

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Character Trees: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FoH82EuXfjg&list=PLbPt1OtsiPBAdjhx74tx3fBgNPAi7VfmI&index=1

Our songs will all be silenced, but what of it? Go on singing. -- Orson Welles