Write Now!
Saturday, April 30
The McKimmon Conference & Training Center, Raleigh
For aspiring and established screenwriters alike, Scott Myers is an invaluable resource for storytelling tips and film-industry insight. On Saturday, April 30, the UNC instructor joins other Triangle storytellers to dispense advice live.
Myers is a presenter at Write Now!, the annual writing conference held by the Triangle Association of Freelancers, which includes sessions on self-editing, running a freelance “business,” and how to get published. Myers’s session is on “Character Development for Screenwriters,” though, as he’s quick to point out, “It’s actually for all writers.”
“We’ll be talking about theoretical tropes developed over the years and working with five character archetypes—protagonist, nemesis, attractor, mentor, trickster,” Myers says. “We’ll also be exploring about half a dozen character-development tools and techniques I’ve used, both as a writer and as a teacher.”
Myers, a veteran screenwriter whose credits include K-9 with Jim Belushi and Alaska with future Mad Men star Vincent Kartheiser, might be best known for Go Into the Story, his screenwriting blog. It enjoys a large audience (its Twitter account has more than 37,000 followers), and it also serves as the official screenwriting blog of the Black List, an annual compilation of the best unproduced screenplays as chosen by agents, studio readers, and other insiders.
For the past twelve years, Myers has lived in the Triangle, where he initially moved to work in the TV development division of Raleigh’s Trailblazer Studios for his old classmate, Rick Duffield, creator of the PBS children’s series Wishbone. Myers currently teaches two courses at UNC, a screenwriting master class in the fall and a history-of-screenwriting course in the spring.
Myers also offers a number of online classes and workshops through Screenwriting Master Class. But, he says, in-person experiences like Write Now! offer a unique outlet.
“Honestly, I just love talking about story—what makes it work, how can we explore it in different ways, the different iterations we put down on the paper,” he says. “I’ll talk about it voluntarily at the drop of a hat. So sessions like these are great because they give me a chance to organize my thoughts, convey them to people, and dig deeper into the subject matter.”
Write Now! takes place at N.C. State University’s McKimmon Center starting at 8 a.m. on Saturday, April 30. Tickets are $70 in advance and $80 at the door. For more information, visit the Triangle Association of Freelancers’ website.
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