I love this quote. I'd never come across it before. In my current project after a short audio it starts with 'Fade up to boots pressing through the snow. A long line of footprints behind.' And yes the plot has already happened. The P task is to work out what happened - because of its impact on him - and why. That quote is going on my wall! Nice one Ray. Nice one Scott.

Thanks, Michael. What I love about it is reinforces my obsession with character-based writing. Plot IS nothing more than the choices and actions of CHARACTERS. So if we FOLLOW them, their tracks in the snow, we discover the plot. It's a great antidote to plot-by-number formulas which seem to permeate much of what emerges from the screenwriting 'guru' set. And it's a much more likely route to crafting a story with vitality and surprise.