Jana Williams's Page

Writing screenplays is one of the easiest jobs you’ll ever do; and one of the HARDEST. It’s easy, because you get fired up by this fantastic idea that you know will be killer on the screen, and that enthusiasm makes you just jump right in and start typing.

And it’s hard because you run out of that ‘start up’ energy often long before you get to those famous words - The End. That ‘sticking point’ is the exact spot where real writers show their mettle. But they don’t survive on pure grit alone; re… Continue

The overall verdict was that I was a smart writer and the script had real promise but no heart. What does that mean? First of all, congratulations are in order. #1 - You finished a script. #2 - You risked submitting it to a ‘cold read’. Wow, that’s fabulous.

For those unfamiliar with the term, a COLD READING is a gathering where a group of actors meet, are handed a script and within about 30 minutes start acting it out. Often it’s just the opening act of a feature script that’s read. And it’s o… Continue

Adaptations are to screenplays as unicycles are to bicycling. The vehicles have similar characteristics, but it also takes a rare set of skills to master the unicycle with any panache. Ditto, adaptations. A couple of great adaptations you should READ and then watch is WIT, (Emma Thompson writer) and The HOURS (Michael Cunningham).

Here’s some quick pros & cons. PRO: You don’t have to make up the story - it’s ALL there. CON: In fact, that’s the rub with adaptations, especially from novels. T… Continue

Write what you know is probably the oldest piece of advice there is for aspiring writers. But just because it's old doesn't mean it's BAD... or necessarily good, either. It depends on what you think it means! Here's my take on it.

Writing what you know doesn't mean that if you janitor at night to pay the bills while you learn the craft of writing that you only ever get to write movies about janitors. What I do believe 'writing what you know' refers to is emotional honesty.

Screenplays are driv… Continue

One of the first things I tell all my students is to BE CAREFUL about who you let affect your writing. Not all advice is created equal. As for the guys on your chat group, I guess they're the only people in the world who never saw, 'Amadeus, Brave Heart, Gladiator or Shakespeare in Love'. All historical dramas might I point out and ALL major, major cinema hits.

That said, the writers of these screenplays did beat the odds though, or the prejudice, if you will. Producers are the people who find… Continue