Don't let McKee read this, he'll plotz!

Seriously, very inspirational. I'd like to take a swing at writing this way myself.

I can't stand outlining either. I never do it. "Half-imagining" something, I call it. How can you half-imagine something? You either see it or you don't.

I think outlining has its purpose, but it also has its limitations, as Howie alluded to. It helps prevent you from wandering down dead-end streets, but it also stifles the spontaneity of creating a story. Of course, maybe some people can get inspiration when ticking off bullet points, but I can't. I need to be in the story itself, where the characters are speaking and acting and coming into conflict with each other, to find real inspiration. Sometimes we need to be surprised by the characters and what they do in order to surprise the audience, I think.

@Edward, Howie and CJ: As you may have read one or more times on this site, one of my mantras is this:

"There is no right way to write."

In theory, a screenwriter does not need an outline. However I can tell you from practical experience based on years of working in Hollywood and knowing many writers there, most screenwriters do some type of extensive prep work before typing FADE IN and all TV writers do.

It's called 'breaking your story' and when approached with a proper frame of mind, it embraces both the spontaneous as you work out the story in prep AND allows you room to be spontaneous in the page-writing part of the process, too.

I strongly encourage new and aspiring screenwriters to prep their stories. I figure 90% of the scripts that never get finished are those where the writer didn't break it beforehand. Moreover I'll bet half the bad scripts out there derive from the same lack of preparation.

The fact is breaking a story is hard work. You either do it in prep or do it in pages, but you're going to do it no matter what. If a writer thinks they can avoid it by not doing prep, I strongly suspect they're just fooling themselves.

But as I said up top, there's no right way to write. So if you're really dead-set against outlines, may the Muses be with you, and I wish you the best of luck in nailing that script!

I'm not understanding why you can't have both order and spontaneity within the writing process.

Writing a traditionally structured screenplay requires at least *SOME* knowledge of the route the writer intends to use to reach Fade Out.

The focus of scene sequences...
The relationships of a given character web...
Act climaxes...
Thematic images to be strewn about...

Structure, as I see it, is not intended (nor does it) stifle creativity, it merely focuses it. I've written my fair share of scripts, and have also written my fair share of HALF scripts.

Those lonely, incomplete documents that collect dust under my bed or in the closet were all products of poor premise planning.

There is something very freeing about putting pen to pad knowing exactly where you need to go.

And surprisingly, it's in those moments that I find the most spontaneous strokes of inspiration as a writer.

MC

OOps... Scott typed the same comment only moments before I did. :) Good to know I wasn't far off base.

@michael: You were watching my back with your comment! I had thought about saying this earlier, decided not to, but now with your comment, I just have to as it's one of my favorites.

Stravinsky, one of the greatest creative minds of the last century, noted for pushing the envelope of classical music in so many ways, was working with some students. One of them asked, "Don't you feel restricted by being forced to use the piano to compose, limited by those 88 keys?"

He replied, "Absolutely not. This gives me my framework, my universe. Within that universe, I have total freedom to write what I want."

That's how I prefer to look at prep work: It creates a structure within which I am free to write the hell out of my characters, scenes, etc, because I don't have to worry if this follows that and leads to that: I've already worked that out.

Great quote, Scott! Love it.

Thanks Scott and Michaela. I think we agree more than disagree. I didn't mean to come off as denigrating outlines, as I definitely find them useful as blazes on the trail ahead of you. An outline/treatment definitely makes the writing easier, since you know where you've got to go. I think I just have to work harder in breaking the story in prep as Scott mentioned, so the writing phase doesn't keep surprising me with new themes, ideas for scenes that are better than the ones on my outline, etc.
Again, thanks for the input and I must say that I appreciate all the work you put into the site, Scott, as well as all your thoughtful advice.