Screen-Teen Writers

With ageism sweeping Hollywood recently, and executives apparently desperately looking for the "next genius 18-year-old screenwriter," it was only a matter of time before someone wrote a screenwriting manual "just for kids."Still, Christina Hamlett does not fall into the trap of dumbing down the material. Though aimed at high school students, she treats every aspect of the screenwriting process with the same sérieux one would use for a book aimed at the adult market. Indeed, it covers all the same topics (finding ideas, writing dialogue, structure, character, formatting etc.).Differences are noticeable in the tone of the examples used, which are a bit more fanciful than usual, and in the exercises in each chapter, which are really designed for the classroom. As such, the book is probably even more valuable to teachers of a beginning screenwriting class for young adults than for the teen screenwriter himself.The advice is good, with an interesting take on structure. There is a lot of information on getting an agent (perhaps a tad too optimistic here), as well as interviews with industry professionals to conclude each chapter (and the ageism issue gets referred to a lot, strangely enough). For those who remain cynical about the whole thing: the one 14-year-old writer interviewed here prefers Rashomon and Citizen Kane. So there may be hope yet.

I fully endorse all the previous reviews of this book. ScreenteenWriters is excellently structured, full of everything a budding playwright would need to know (and not only a budding writer!) This book is extremely user friendly, and simple in its explanations of complex concepts. Definitely, A MUST BUY. Thank you, Christina Hamlett!

As a film student, I learned more from this book than I did taking screenwriting in college! A must have for anyone interested in screenwriting whether they be a teen or teen at heart!

This book is absolutely amazing, so pleased I found it. It's given me so many good tips on my screenwriting and has told me all about the world of film and TV. It may be a little out-dated but it's just perfect for what I needed to know! :) Great buy.