Adapting Your Novel for Film

by Pauline Baird Jones

  The best scripts have both a subject and a structure. As I mentioned before, structure is very important in Hollywood. If you’re targeting an independent producer, you can play with structure some. If you’re adapting your novel for film, you should know what genre you’re targeting already. If you don’t, now would be a good time to figure that out.

  To summarize:

  You need subject.

  You need a structure.

  You need to know what genre you will be pitching.

  Your novel should already have a theme, but it is possible you’ll have to change this as you move into the visual medium. Theme is important. Even the lamest movies have some kind of theme, though it may just be man against Godzilla. If you’ve been writing long, you may have already discovered that there are common themes or ideas that you explore in your writing. Examine your writing for these patterns, and make sure you can find it in your script.

  I grew up during a time when women’s roles were sometimes in a state of violent transition. When I look at my books I can see that I write quite a bit about identity, sometimes in obvious ways, sometimes more subtly. When you know what themes engage you, you are more able to write with what the late Sally Merlin of The Complete Screenplay, calls your “authentic voice.”

  You can write with honesty and passion, even if your desire is to write a frothy romantic comedy. If you think about the movies that truly engaged you, they are ones that speak to you. Even as they make you laugh, something in them strikes a chord in you that feels real and authentic.

  Sally Merlin gave me permission to share some of the techniques that she uses in this process. Since I’m not her, I can’t help you in the same way she did, but I can share with you her method for finding your authentic voice in your writing.

  First, ask yourself why you want to write. It is not to justify your choice to write, but to explore it. There is no right or wrong way to do this exercise. If you do it your way, you are doing it right. This is a stream of consciousness exercise and is for your eyes only. It should be personal and you shouldn’t worry about spelling, grammar or punctuation. You may feel some resistance at first, but try to push through it. Write until you can’t write anymore.

  After you’ve done this exercise, set it aside for 24 hours (at minimum), then take a yellow highlighter and look for words that jump out of the page at you. You’ll probably find the important ones later in your writing, when your defenses start to come down. Don’t try to think about them too much. Just note what words you find important.

  Now, write an autobiography, starting with your first clear memory through to your early 20s. Write as much as you can. Sally points out that your own personal experiences are your best source of information in creating fictional characters and bringing authenticity to them, whether it’s on the page or in a script. It will also bring you a step closer to the themes and ideas that you are interested in. It should run about 7-10 pages.

  Again, set it aside for a time, and then get out that highlighter. Now look for emotion words, feelings, and ideas, and highlight them. You should begin to see some themes that reoccur in your life, ideas you want or need to explore and traits that you can use in your characters to give them that all-important authenticity. (Note: you can do this again in a month and you’ll probably write about different experiences. You’ll find that your past is a rich mine of information that you can go to again and again.)

  Once you have an idea of what or who is important to you, you can get more specific. Saying you’re going to write about good and evil is a good start, but it’s a long way from bringing authenticity to your script. Obviously the genre you choose to portray this broad theme will have a huge impact on how you tell your story.

  When Sally calls her method the “process,” she isn’t kidding. You’ll find that you’ll be moving forward on a variety of fronts, but before you can have movement at all, you need to know the basic premise of your story—which brings us back to that logline you need to market your script.

  If this process is working for you, it is possible that you’ll have a clearer idea of what your logline needs to be. Don’t worry if it still isn’t clear. Again, this is a process.

  As you begin to bring your characters to the page, keep in mind that, just like in a novel, if we tell too much, rather than show, our characters won’t make a smooth transition from novel to big screen.

  Linda Segar suggests as you work through your script, watch for characters making long speeches that explain what they are doing. Be careful that your flashbacks are dramatic, not expositions or explanations. Can you see what motivates your characters without explanation? So you have enough showing? Does your main character have a clearly expressed goal? Do we know when the story is finished? Is my character active or passive? Does s/he drive the story or is driven by it? Are my story goals compelling enough to move the story from beginning to end without all the subplots of my novel?

  If you’ve done your job, your character will propel the plot in a seamless integration that appears to be entirely natural and can be seen or expressed through the medium of film. No problem, right?

  Marketing Tips

  If you haven’t completed at least one script, then you shouldn’t begin any marketing efforts. The script market is NOT like the book market. You can’t market unfinished ideas UNTIL you are a selling scriptwriter. There are a couple of good reasons for not working on the proposal method that is the goal of the novel writer.

  First, only rarely can an unproduced screenwriter sell an undeveloped idea. And if they do, they usually don’t get to be the one who develops it. Second, ideas can’t be copyrighted. You run the very real risk of having your idea stolen and developed without your involvement and without compensation. Even a completed script can have the ideas within it ripped off. Prior to marketing your script, it is essential that you register your script to protect it and yourself. It does help that your novel is copyrighted, but it doesn’t hurt to protect your script, too.

  You can do this one of two ways. You can copyright it with the U.S. Copyright Office or you can register the script through the Writer’s Guild. If you get a request to read your script from a producer, it is likely that they will ask you to sign a release of some kind and require that you post a copyright or WGA registration number on your script. If you enter any contests, they also require some proof the material is protected.

  There’s a lot of chat on the links about the “poor man’s copyright” (mailing a copy to yourself), but most producers don’t consider that enough protection for THEM and will require a more formal registration through the WGA or Copyright Office.

  The general guideline about registering your script is that your registration is valid as long as you don’t substantially change the script. Working with a production company can result in substantial change to your script. This would require you to re-register it IF the script doesn’t continue on into production (which happens a LOT).

  You can register your script online at http://www.wga.org/ It’s a fairly simple process. Here’s their FAQ page:

  Purpose and Coverage

  The WGA Registration Service has been set up to assist writers in establishing the completion dates of material written for the fields of radio, film, television, video cassettes/discs, and interactive media.

  Registration provides a dated record of the writer's claim to authorship of a particular literary material. If necessary a WGA employee may produce the material as evidence if legal or official Guild action is initiated.

  The Intellectual Property Registry does not make comparisons of registration deposits, bestow any statutory protections, or give legal advice. Submitted material is not read by the Intellectual Property Registry or WGAw staff.

  Please be aware registration with the Guild does not protect titles.

  Registerable Material

  Registerable material includes scripts, treatments, synopses, outlines, written ideas specifically intended for radio, tel
evision and film, video cassettes/discs, and interactive media.

  The WGA Registration Office also accepts stageplays, novels and other books, short stories, poems, commercials, lyrics, and drawings.

  Procedure for Deposit by Mail or In Person

  The Registration Office must receive:

  1) One (1) unbound loose-leaf copy of material on standard, 8 1/2" x 11" paper.

  2) Cover sheet with title of material and all writers’ full legal names.

  3) Social security number (or foreign equivalent), return address, and phone numbers of authors.

  4) Registration fee(s): WGAw and WGAE members in good standing - $10, non-members - $20.

  Click for a convenient title page to use when registering by mail or in person.

  When the material is received, it is sealed in an envelope and the date and time are recorded. A numbered certificate is returned which serves as the official documentation of registration. Because the certificate is your proof of registration, it should be kept in a safe place.

  Notice of registration may consist of the following wording on the title page:

  "REGISTERED WGAw No.____."

  Duration and Expiration

  Registration is valid for a term of five (5) years. Upon expiration registration may be renewed for an additional five-year period at the current registration rate. Renewals will be accepted up to three (3) months prior to the expiration of the original registration. A grace period will be extended allowing renewals as late as three (3) months following the expiration of the original registration.

  At the time of registration, or renewal, you authorize the WGA to destroy the material without further notice to you on the expiration of the first term of registration or any renewal period.

  Access to Registration Information

  Only the writers listed on the registration receipt may request confirmation of registration, the registration number, date of deposit, or any other information.

  The WGA will honor such written requests from writers regarding the registration of their own work(s) only if accompanied by photo identification. All verification or confirmation requests from a writer should contain as much specific information as possible, such as registration number, title of material, effective date, and social security number of writer, and may be submitted by facsimile, mail, or in person. The fax number for the Intellectual Property Registry is (323) 782-4803.

  Access to Copies of Deposited Material

  Because the deposited material cannot be returned to the writer without defeating the purpose of registration, registered material may not be withdrawn. It is therefore important to always retain a separate copy of the material being registered.

  If a writer finds it necessary to obtain a copy of deposited material, duplicates may be purchased for the price of registration upon written request by one or more of the listed authors, identified by photo identification. In the event an author is deceased, proof of death and consent of the representative of the heirs and/or estate must be presented in order to obtain a copy of the material.

  Requests for duplication of deposited material must be submitted by 5 p.m. Thursday of any week. Duplicates will be available Wednesday of the following week.

  In no event, except under these provisions, shall any deposited material, copies of deposited material, or information regarding deposited material be provided unless an official guild action, court order, or other legal process has been served.

  Frequently Asked Questions

  Does registration take the place of copyright?

  No. Any questions regarding copyright should be directed to the U.S. Copyright Office in Washington, D.C. at 1-800-688-9889 or to an attorney specializing in that area of law. Copyright application forms are available to walk-in customers only. Or click for more information www.loc.gov.

  Does registration with the Writers Guild protect titles?

  No. For more information, go to www.uspto.gov.

  Does registration help a writer become a member?

  No. Questions concerning the rules for admission to membership in the guild should be referred to the WGA’s Membership department at (323) 782-4532. Or click for more information: www.wga.org/manuals/admission.html.

  Does registration help in determining writing credits?

  Generally, no. If there is a dispute as to authorship or sequencing of material by date, then registration may be relevant. Questions concerning the WGA credit determination procedures should be directed to the Credits department at (323) 782-4528. Or click here for more information www.wga.org/credits/index.html.

  For questions and answers about online registration, visit our FAQ page or contact the Intellectual Property Registry at (323) 782-4500.

  Another reality that you need to face is that the odds of getting your script produced are phenomenal. Typically producers see your script as a sample of your writing ability. They may love it and even option it, but you may also be asked to write a script for their idea. Or to rewrite someone else’s idea. As hard as it may seem, these are often the steps it takes for you to get where you want to go: getting your own scripts produced. Some writers never get their scripts produced. Some rewrite others’ scripts. Others make their money off options—always the bridesmaid, never the bride.

  There are those rare cases, the ones that make it in the news, where a new screenwriter gets their own idea optioned and produced, the “overnight success” that everyone loves to hear about and gets their hope from. But behind most overnight successes are usually years of writing scripts. If you truly want to write for Hollywood, you need to write and write and write. To even approach Hollywood, you really need to have at least FOUR scripts under your belt to be taken seriously, well, slightly seriously.

  I do not say these things to depress or discourage you, but if you’re going to take on Hollywood, you need to be tough, you need to be determined, you need to not give up and you need to keep writing against great odds.

  If you only have one script to market, it is going to hurt you. The only exception to this might be a producer who has asked you to adapt your novel for film.

  That doesn’t mean you can’t begin entering that script in contests or doing some preliminary testing of the waters. It just means that you run the risk of losing any opening you get into Hollywood if you don’t have additional scripts to fall back on.

  One of the interesting things I’ve found in my dealings with producers is that they will call you to reject you. While this isn’t that fun, it does have its upside, as they will also usually tell you why they rejected you AND give you the opportunity to pitch another script—if you have it.

  What’s disconcerting about it, besides the whole rejection aspect, is that they will sometimes tell you what they are looking for, then pause expectantly. Usually what they are looking for isn’t remotely like what you’ve written or ever intend to write, such as: “I'm looking for an island caper movie with all African-American cast that can be done for $100,000 dollars.” Or “I can only work with Canadian writers. Are you one?”

  You can learn a lot from the bumping-heads process of submitting, but you have to be teachable…and you also have to be able to tell when you’re getting good “notes” from a producer and when they are full of crap. (If you do option or sell a script and you’re asked to rewrite it, you’ll get notes from everyone, up to and including the janitorial staff. By the time they are through, you won’t remember what story you were trying to tell.)

  Let’s get down and dirty with marketing. David Trottier has some good tips in his The Screenwriter’s Bible for the neophyte screenwriter getting ready to dip a toe into marketing. He identifies the following tools for marketing a script:

  1. a showcase script

  2. a pitch hook

  3. a brief story summary

  4. a synopsis

  5. a treatment or outline (there is some disagreement in the industry on whether treatments are relevant anymore)

  1. A Showcase
Script

  Okay, this is obvious. You have to write the best script you can. For example, if you want to write for television, then you need at least one feature script sample and one television script sample.

  It’s a good idea to find people to read your work prior to submitting. If you can hook up with a good writer’s group, you can sometimes get reads of your script by making contacts that way. The other way is to hire a consultant. Unlike the book market, the script market operates on the assumption that unless someone perceived as important likes your work, they won’t risk it. (That’s why contests can be a good way to get attention, but they can end up being as expensive as hiring a consultant.)

  There are tons of consultants out there. As in anything having to do with Hollywood, do your research. Often but not always it is the case of, “those who can’t, teach.” You also need to find someone who fits with your personal style and understands your vision of your story and wants to help you bring that out, not just put their name on a project.