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In my book, The Screenwriter Within, there's a chapter heading entitled "If You Don't Know Where You Are Going, You Will Wind Up Somewhere Else" which was inspired by a quote by Dr. Lawrence Peter, author of "The Peter Principle." (One of my all time favorite books which I highly recommend).
A competent pilot pretty much lives by the same rule. Before he takes off he wants to know certain things: He needs his checklist. His data. The weather conditions at the beginning and end of his destination--etc.
It's another way of looking at we all should do as screenwriters. Know your market. Know your genre. Maybe you should re-think that wacky teen comedy set against the backdrop of the Bubonic Plague. Are your protagonists too old? Should you really write that love story about the two sweet old people in the nursing home?
And then there's the steps you take before you start the script? Are you a Treatment person or an Outline person? To me a Treatment is 15 pages and over. To me an Outline is 3-10 pages. Or do you just start writing (which is something I don't recommend)? Maybe that works for you. But for most people it doesn't. Most of the people I've encountered do some form of pre-thinking before they begin the writing.
Sort of like a pilot: they have a pretty good idea of how it's gonna end, they know the Act breaks, especially the end of Act One. They know most of the complications and obsticles their hero will face. They know a subplot.
Point is: before they take off, they have a workable flight plan.
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