Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1921-07-12
HERE is PRECIOUS
LIST OF DONTS
FOR SCRIPT WRITER
by LOIS WEBER

LIVERY great studio is deluged with
~ scenarios from amateur and pro-
fcssional photoplnywrights. Ono studio
receives two thousand a week.
For thirteen years I have written
and directed my own photoplays but
! am always glad to consider photo.
play plots and ideas and to nay we'll for
them IL they are original.
The pity Of IL Is, however. that orig
inality is at premium. so far as new
plots are concerned. For years the
scenario departments of the various
studios have culled over the novels of
every generation since Chaucer. The
book and magazine markets are watched
these days as they never were before
in the hope that they may contain the
work Of new and promising author.
Some of the best stories used By
photoplay directors, however, never
have been printed. Indeed, although
many great authors are now writing
directly for the screen, the market for
originals was never so good as It is
today.
Some one has written that there are
only thirty-si different situations in
the drama, but have found that there
are n million variations Of those thirty
six situations. | am always keenly on
the lookout for these variations, and no
matter how illiterately written n see
mario is when it comes into my Office, /
give it careful attention.
However. the frequency with which
certain plots are sent in to me gives me
occasion to remark that the scenario
writer would save himself much time IL
he were to put on his taboo list" Ger
, tain types Of plays.
LNOR instance, there is the brother
and sister situation which I find
constantly recurring. A brother and
sister, separated by circumstances. meet
again and marry or are about to marry.
Don't use it.
Don't use the illcgitimacy theme.
either. The public does not like it.
Avoid it as you would pestilcnce.
DO not send the studios war stories.
They have been deluged with them. Per-
haps ten or fifteen years from now the
theme may win favor, but not just at
present.
And, by the way, don't make your
villains either Mexicans or Japanese.
There arc good reasons why these ma
tionalitics should not be used in un
pleasant parts.
Don't read o. Henry, DC Maupas.
SAINT, Poe. Kipling or other popular
authors before writing your scenario.
With those masters in mind you will
have difficulty in not unconsciously pla-
giarizing them. This unconscious pla-
giarism is familiar to scenario readers
Tin every studio.
Don't write photoplays calling for
expensive settings. Stick to American,
everyday themes. Don't go too far
nGcld for your plots. Write of the
people around you. They can be made
interesting. Keep your cast of char
acters small.
Don't have long time lapses in your
story. That is. don't introduce Mary
as a child. marry her off and then carry
her on to middle age Confine your
action to rs brief period as possible.
An effective play was written some
years ago in which all the theoretical
action took place in half an hour.
Tn ORDER to sell your story, form
L connection with some good literary
or playofoking agency. Such agencies
keep in close touch with the rnotoulay
market and will see that your play
reaches the right people.
When you want to eliminate n char
acter in your photorlay don't kill him
or her off. Use your brains to get rid
Of the character. By a little ingenuity
it can be done.
Put yourself in the place Of you
characters. Get ''under the skim sc
70 speak. Make them act aS you woult
. act il you were placed in similar cir
cumStanCes.
Always avoid the improbable. Coinci
, dences are never convincing. Build you
play around central character, mall
! or female. and make that characte'
sympathetic. that is to say, with al
| appeal to the audience.
Don't send in stories which woul
! not appeal to play -gocrs in tho Southern
r States. We constantly receive the tar
e brush plot" as the black and whit
mcSalliancc theme is fnmiliarly called.
Don't hang lockct on the baby
$ neck which will identify it in late
years.
t Avoid the "Corsican brother theme,
that is to say. the dual role of twi
, Brothers and sisters. And the charac
@ ter who runs off while suffering frOl
4 loss of memory.
: Steer clear of "EnOch Arden stuff
| in which the husband who has gon
o away comes back to find his wife mnr
I ried again I'VE get dozens of after
O war stories on this theme these days
! DON'T get your characters into i'm
i - possible situations and then explai
= it all by dream.
y Just now scenarios with "fnith heal
or" themes based on George Loan
'' fuckers The Miracle Man" are flood
i ing the studios Life After Death
y double exposure dramas run clos
second. Try to be original Don't fol
low the herd.
Some one may have suggested tha
! there are dozens of plots III the news
papers. To the amateur writer ! woul
say: Don't lift" newspaper plots.
You can depend upon it that ever
unusual newspaper story will be mac
INTO scenarios by hundreds of writers
II you have comedy vein in you
makeup don't waste yonr time writin
slapstCk farce. That type of cOmed
is easy TO write but difficult to sell. Mo-
of the studios write their own. Ratht
y try TO write situation comedy of a re-
fined type. Domestic drama with hl
Inorous touch and amusing but not t.
broad situations is much III demand.
Above all. don't try to write tc
many photcplavs. Rather write OF
good one and incorporate in it all yol
good situations, your pet ideas and 70,
Il. .l,u. .In g,fI