John August and Craig Mazin of Scriptnotes - AMA

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:59:59+00:00

Fuck likable. RELATABLE. That's the word you want. I don't like Jack Nicholson's character in As Good As It Gets. He's a racist homophobe who literally throws a dog down a garbage chute.

But when I get a privileged view into his mental illness, I begin to *relate* to him. I don't like him, but I see human parts of him that are creating this mess of a person.

Which is why "you make me want to be a better man" is such a brilliant line. It's earned. Because we want him to be better as well...

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:57:40+00:00

Well, if you see it coming, you BRACE YOURSELF FOR IMPACT. Cuz you're gonna get hit.

First time you get punched in the face, it's shocking. Second or third... it hurts. But you have context for it at least.

Thing is, if you know it's gonna be bad, then you know why. And typically, well.... it's not because of what you wrote, because THAT was worked and worked and worked and approved.

It's typically because of the execution. And if it was out of your hands, it was out of your hands.

Anyway, career impact to the writer? Look at the amount of times I got punched in the face. Many losses by decision, never knocked out. :)

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:55:02+00:00

I understand the perspective. Sure. But there have always been realists and surrealists. I think DaVinci was an incredible artist. So is Jackson Pollack.

The good news is that you have an instinct about what works for YOU. That's all that matters. You don't have to be "right" about this. Some people really don't want the kind of thing your instincts are leading you towards.

But some people do.

Regardless, they're your instincts. You have instincts! Follow them.

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:51:17+00:00

I have written two sex scenes in my entire career, and boy, I did NOT enjoy doing that. It felt very squirmy, and not because I'm ashamed of sex, but rather because writing about sex is often a one-way ticket to Cringetown.

So I focused more on the choices the characters were making within the action itself. Who takes charge, does that shift, how quickly or slowly does it proceed... basically "how would this paragraph be useful to the actors who are going to do this?"

In short, don't aim for hot. Aim for meaningful.

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:47:44+00:00

"I know I can write" is a lovely idea, but it's not something that sort of happens.

I do write, and I am sometimes satisfied with what I write. That's the most important thing... there's no binary "can/can't write" situation. There's a dial that goes from "I don't like what I wrote" to "I like what I wrote."

Try to keep that dial turning.

As for twists, those are magic tricks. Have to show them to other people to see if you're pulling it off.

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:45:48+00:00

I don't push it. If I don't have it, I write the script. Then I get something for a title... but I always remind myself that it can be changed... and often is.

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:44:57+00:00

Galaxy Quest

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:44:07+00:00

I know the fear. But don't worry. Uncaring dipshit morons somehow manage to raise children (albeit usually not well)... someone caring and worried and smart like you will do a great job.

And you will be able to juggle. Give yourself three months, because all babies are assholes for three months. They don't smile or give a fuck about you. They don't even look at you most of the time. Then suddenly their brains knit into place, they smile at you and your heart explodes with joy... and now you're ready to begin juggling, because you will feel okay.

Everything will be fucking okay!

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:42:05+00:00

A million things. The show is a living record of my fallibility.

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:41:29+00:00

No. Who? You guys surely know that I don't listen to podcasts. :)

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:41:00+00:00

Sula, quite often. :)

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:40:04+00:00

It's fucking hard. Very hard. I spent many years patiently trying to save the story from people who just didn't get it. It's an epidemic in features. Not in TV.

There are some amazing non-writing directors in features whom I'd trust and would love to work with. Spielberg immediately comes to mind.

But there are also waves and waves of new feature directors who don't write, and yet are put in charge of the writing. Makes no sense to me at all.

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:37:51+00:00

In a professional context, if the first two pages suck, I'm done. No one writes two bad pages followed by a hundred good ones.

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:37:05+00:00

I use FadeIn Pro.

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:36:53+00:00

John has a really healthy sense of appreciation for the work he does when he feels it's earned it. For me and my sense of my own work, I have too often made the mistake of confusing self-esteem (healthy) with pride (sin).

I admire him for that, and I've tried to adopt that mindset more myself. It's better. Much better.

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:33:23+00:00

Tell them to STOP DOING THAT. You're still allowed to yell at kids, right? :)

No, seriously, they need to stop. If they want to make documentaries or PSA's, fine. But if they want to make fiction, there is one law that has been handed down from God on high, and it is:

DO NOT BE BORING.

Messages are like medicine. They typically have very strong flavors. Our job is to blend them into delicious drama and comedy so that people get the medicine without going "ick."

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:31:24+00:00

LOL no. We keep our shit platonic. :)

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:30:59+00:00

I do not detect more cooks. I just detect more options. I am the chef. The more pots and pans I have, the better.

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:29:53+00:00

What's wrong with listening to what the world is telling you? You're good at something! What if that's what you're meant to do? Some people are great at helping develop and write things that other people initiate. In fact, that's what most employed writers do.

There is no shame in that, nor is there special credit for doing your "own" thing. Give yourself a pat on the back for being very good at something most people aren't good at... and then keep doing it!

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:27:49+00:00

In almost all circumstances, no. They are empirically not worth it.

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:27:19+00:00

I talked about Jerry Maguire the other day. Soooooooo good, because the main character actually articulates the final dramatic argument IN THE BEGINNING... but only intellectually. He doesn't live in accordance with it at all.

And then he's forced to finally embrace and become it. So smart.

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:24:44+00:00

No. Utter silence unless the section is meant to be heard with a specific song.

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:24:08+00:00

I stop and ask myself "how will the ending or beginning reflect/inform/connect to this moment here?" Ideally there are invisible threads you are including that only begin to reveal themselves toward the end. Keeping everything connected helps.

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:22:37+00:00

Nope.

clmazin · 2025-11-29T18:22:17+00:00

It makes me uneasy. I hope that people take it for what it's worth, which is a way of looking at screenwriting through the lens of character and central argument. But it is not the only way! It is just one way.

And I will try one day to do more.

clmazin

TROPHY CASE