Debbie Moon at 2013-08-06 16:53:25:
Any way I can, I think! Reading screenwriting books, reading scripts, watching movies...
JoniB22 at 2013-08-07 17:28:31:
I think the better question is: "how are you learning..." because it feels like an ultra-marathon continual process. I reads LOTS of scripts -- some several times over, some several times each year. I read certain scripts for certain reasons -- whether that moment I'm trying to study brevity and economy; or adaptation of a novel; or great dialogue; or the "tone" and rhythm of a certain writer or within a certain genre; or the nuance of accepted subtext within narrative description, which is a rare and beautiful art form in and of itself. I love reading scripts where I can also see notes/commentary/interviews with the screenwriters or see their original notebooks and hand-scrawled notes. I have a bunch of Newmarket Press screenplays and several old Scenario magazines -- both of which are great for that. But that's "someone else's style" -- and I read others' scripts for the appreciative moans and a-ha moments. Maybe a smattering of green-eyed envy. Learning my own style is a whole 'nother beast, the result of scribbling and typing away and amassing piles of mostly-awful pages in order to find a few that "sing". I tend to "write like I talk" -- or at least, that's what I try to do, if I had to describe my style. As tempting as it is sometimes to begin by typing "Once upon a time...", I don't. But I still feel like I work from that standpoint -- of verbal storytelling. I pretend someone's seated beside me or hunkered down over coffee across the table and I just "tell" a story .. and write down what I'm saying. It's tough learning to write succinctly, but worth the toil! Haven't mastered it!! But I'm learning...
lisakothari42 at 2013-08-15 14:57:00:
Reading books, reading scripts, watching movies, classes, reading more scripts, watching more movies - Then, I try to make it my own - which is the most challenging and rewarding part. By writing spec after spec I am slowly learning my style. Also, receiving feedback from multiple people has also shown me my style - and whether or not I'm consistent with it. That is also helpful.