Write a Book this Year!

The writing workbooks Stealing Hollywood and Writing Love came out of the Screenwriting Tricks for Authors workshops I’ve taught for almost twenty years, now! throughout the US and internationally, and the film story structure class I taught in the film department of Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles.

I developed the workbooks as a full course in writing to help authors of any level write and sell books and level up their careers, all in the most fun way possible: by using the structure techniques and storytelling tricks of their favorite movies.

And yeah - it all works for screenwriters, too!

This Screenwriting Tricks for Authors Substack is a place for me to go further — to do an even deeper dive into the concepts and material of the workbooks, to analyze new movies and TV that I think are great examples of these concepts and storytelling techniques, and to interact with other writers in person (kind of!) - something we just don’t do enough of since the pandemic.

This page of links follows the format of the workbooks, chapter by chapter, in order, with links to expanded posts and videos. You can use it with one of the workbooks or without the books.

If you start from the beginning and work through to the end, there is a good chance that you will have written a book at the end of the year. Hundreds of writers I’ve worked with have done it.

Commit to just fifteen minutes a day. Seriously —

15 minutes of writing per day equals a book in a year.

I post new material on this Substack just about every week (with exceptions lately for ongoing world cataclysms).

And I’m always here to answer any questions you have, and happy to take suggestions of movies and TV that will help you write your book or script - just leave it in the Comments!

I know the world feels perilous right now. But we’re all readers and we know what a refuge a book can be.

It’s a million times more true when your refuge is the book you’re actually writing.

I hope this year is the year you write that book!

—Alex

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Introduction:

PART ONE: STORY STRUCTURE

1. The Master List and Master Lists Book

2. What's Your Premise?

3. First, You Need an Idea

4. What KIND of Story is It?

5. The Three-Act, Eight-Sequence Structure

6. The Index Card Method and Structure Grid

Get access to full archives with a paid subscription, or sign up for free weekly story structure posts

7. Act One

8. Hero/ine, Protagonist, Main Character

10. What Makes a Great Villain?

11. Villains, Part 2: The Forces of Antagonism

12. Act Two: What’s the PLAN?

13. Elements of Act Two, First Half

Midpoint

14. Elements of Act Two, Second Half

15. Elements of Act Three

16. What Makes A Great Climax?

17. Story Elements Checklist

18. Narrative Structure Beat Sheet

19. Act Climaxes: Breakdowns and Examples

20. Story Elements: Questions and Prompts

Act I questions and prompts

Act II: Part 1 Questions & Prompts

Act II: Part 2 - Questions and Prompts

Act III: Essential Elements & Useful Tricks

22. What is "High Concept"?

All material ©Alexandra Sokoloff, Screenwriting Tricks for Authors.

Why subscribe?

Screenwriting Tricks for Authors is a reader-supported publication. Please consider contributing to this work by becoming a free or paid subscriber!

Get the workbooks!

The Screenwriting Tricks for Authors workbooks will help you work through your book or script, starting with your Premise, working Act by Act, Story Element by Story Element, with hundreds of examples from your favorite movies. Each includes ten full movie breakdowns from different genres.

Stealing Hollywood has all the material of the workshops, with story examples and elements from all genres.

Writing Love has all the material of the workshops, with more story examples and elements specific to romance and love stories.

Need some help? The Screenwriting Tricks for Authors workshop is available online, as a self-paced course with all the videos, assignments, movie breakdowns and personalized feedback you need to get that book written this year, 15 minutes at time.

In three parts, and you only pay for what you use.

Online Class

  • If you have a first draft of a book or script already, or need more feedback, get targeted help getting you over the finish line in The Writers’ Room.

The Writers' Room

What authors say:

“Believe it or not, story-telling is an art as well as a craft, and Alex Sokoloff’s Stealing Hollywood is the owner’s manual that belongs in every writer’s toolkit. Alex dissects the elements of story-telling with clarity, wit and wisdom. Don’t thank me—buy the damn book!”

—Mary Kay Andrews, New York Times bestselling author of Ladies’ Night and Summer Rental

“I’d already written fifteen novels by the time I met Alex and discovered her unique approach to structuring fiction. She changed my entire writing process for the better. I couldn’t live without my three-act storyboard! Alex is a gifted and generous teacher and author, and Stealing Hollywood is a must-have book for new and seasoned writers alike.”

—International bestselling author Diane Chamberlain

“Stealing Hollywood has transformed the way I write my books. Whenever another author is struggling with their plot, I tell them to buy a copy. I can’t recommend it enough.”

—Cally Taylor, bestselling author of Sleep, The Island, The Missing, The Lie

There is no one better at story analysis than Sokoloff. 

—Steve Cavanagh, bestselling author of Fifty/Fifty and Thirteen.

‘The best book on writing I’ve ever read. It made me think about story and structure in a whole new way, and it has been invaluable to me ever since I found it.”

—Doug Johnstone, bestselling author of Fault Lines, A Dark Matter, The Big Chill

“Sokoloff’s advice is spot-on, and her teaching style is direct and effective. A must-have book for authors and screenwriters.”

—JA Konrath, bestselling author of A Newbie’s Guide To Publishing