FLMC 2335 / Screenwriting

Fall ‘18
​ Tuesday​ 11/6/18

MAKING A GOOD WRITER GREAT (Tully Notes)

CHAPTER 8: “Why Your Shadow Is Essential To Your Success As A Writer”:

- pg. 128 Great characters have a dark and a light side. “You can’t write great
characters any other way.”
- pg. 129 “If you’re unable and unwilling to recognize and articulate human flaws, your
characters will be one-dimensional.”
- pg. 129 “Like the too-good images, the too-bad images have no shading or insight.
Both fail to acknowledge what psychologists call ‘the shadow.’”
- pg. 131 “Although the horror film is created from the hidden, frightening—even
evil—part of the shadow, the shadow is not just awakened for the making of great horror
films. The shadow is more than the ugly and horrible and harmful. It’s also the
unexpressed, secret, and disowned parts of ourselves that are unacceptable to family,
friends, or our culture. They may, or may not, be bad.”
- For all of the “Shadow Exercising” going on, a more direct challenge: PICK THE
THING YOU ARE MOST PIERCINGLY AND VISCERALLY 1) AFRAID OF; 2)
EMBARRASSED BY; or 3) ASHAMED OF, and dive headfirst into writing about THAT!
- pg. 150 “Some writers are afraid that if they examine their shadow, they’ll lose their
creativity. In fact, shadow work will enhance your creativity by expanding your ability to
work with ambivalence and opposition.”
- pg. 150 “Adding flaws to your characters humanizes them. Audiences identify with
imperfect characters who are like them. Through your understanding of the shadow,
your characters can become real, truthful, and unforgettable.”