John August

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Plot holes, and the myth of perseveraversity

Episode - 59

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QandA, Scriptnotes, Story and Plot, Three Page Challenge, Transcribed

John and Craig discuss Frankenweenie and Superhero! before cracking open the mailbox to answer listener questions: What advice would they give to their younger selves? Is a spec with a similar high-concept premise doomed? Should Australian screenwriters use U.S. spelling conventions?

Then, a discussion of what constitutes a plot hole and to what degree screenwriters are to blame.

After that, two new Three Page Challenge entries. We’ve received more than 500 of these, which is crazy.

All this and what to name an Amanda Peet character in this week’s Scriptnotes. Next week, join us for the the first-ever Scriptnotes Live podcast from the Austin Film Festival.

LINKS:

* John’s [Frankenweenie thoughts](http://johnaugust.com/2012/some-first-thoughts-on-fifth)
* Craig’s [Superhero!](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superhero_Movie) movie
* [Movie Plot Holes](http://www.movieplotholes.com)
* John on [the perils of coincidence](http://johnaugust.com/2007/perils-of-coincidence)
* Three pages by [Greg from Liechtenstein](http://johnaugust.com/Assets/greg_l.pdf)
* Three pages by [Vance Kotrla](http://johnaugust.com/Assets/vance_kotrla.pdf)
* [Kindle Paperwhite](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007OZNZG0/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B007OZNZG0&linkCode=as2&tag=johnaugustcom-20)
* [Nogales, Arizona](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nogales,_Arizona) on Wikipedia
* INTRO: [PBS Intro](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCuqlLq1k7o)
* OUTRO: [There is No Arizona](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUSN3_3vhYs) covered by Mishavonna

You can download the episode here: [AAC](http://traffic.libsyn.com/scriptnotes/scriptnotes_ep_59.m4a).

**UPDATE** 10-19-12: The transcript of this episode can be found [here](http://johnaugust.com/2012/scriptnotes-ep-59-plot-holes-and-the-myth-of-perseveraversity-transcript).

Writing your very first screenplay

Scriptnotes, Three Page Challenge, Transcribed

In the spirit of Looper, Craig and John take a journey back in time, looking at the first scripts they read, the first scripts they wrote, and the common pitfalls of many first screenplays.

Not only that: they share and critique the first three pages from the very first scripts they wrote.

Does John’s romantic tragedy from 1994 show potential? Would Craig keep reading his high-concept comedy from 1995? You can be the judge, because both samples are linked below.

LINKS:

* [Here and Now](http://johnaugust.com/Assets/here_and_now.pdf), three pages from John August’s very first script
* [The Stunt Family](http://johnaugust.com/Assets/stunt_family.pdf), three pages from Craig Mazin’s very first script, co-written with Greg Erb
* [The Room](http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/the-room/id552039496?mt=8) for iOS
* [Moom](http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/moom/id419330170?mt=12) for Mac
* [Austin Film Festival](http://www.austinfilmfestival.com/)
* INTRO: [Perfect Strangers (intro)](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vbnLYROCj8&feature=related)
* OUTRO: [Feels Like the First Time (Acoustic)](http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/feels-like-the-first-time/id456321874?i=456322392) by Foreigner

You can download the episode here: [AAC](http://traffic.libsyn.com/scriptnotes/scriptnotes_ep_58.m4a).

**UPDATE** 10-11-12: The transcript of this episode can be found [here](http://johnaugust.com/2012/scriptnotes-ep-58-writing-your-very-first-screenplay-transcript).

Frankenanswers

Frankenweenie

On Thursday, I promised I’d answer questions on YouTube from people who saw Frankenweenie over the weekend. [Here you go.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kT_jquBc_Hk&feature=youtu.be)

Ask me anything about Frankenweenie

Frankenweenie

Frankenweenie opens this weekend — there are midnight shows tonight in the U.S. — so I’ve spent the past few weeks answering questions about the movie from bloggers and journalists. These writers have the advantage of access: they get advance screenings, scheduled interviews and roundtables.

But now that the movie is opening wide, I’d love to answer questions from folks who bought a ticket.

If you have a question after seeing Frankenweenie this weekend, there are two good ways to ask:

1. **Tweet me.** I’m [@johnaugust](https://twitter.com/johnaugust). Simple answers might get an immediate reply. Longer answers will go here on the blog.

2. **Ask on YouTube.** On Monday, I’ll reply on video to questions that come in. It’ll be like a post-screening Q&A, but without that one annoying guy who rambles on without actually asking a question.

To ask a video question, you can reply to [this video](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hptE54dEyoU):

(To leave a video reply, begin as if you’re leaving a text comment, then use the ‘Create a video response’ link. Or just [click here](http://www.youtube.com/video_response_upload?v=hptE54dEyoU).)

Hope you like the movie.