Member Spotlight: Mark Wakely

I started out as a novelist. Both of my award-winning published novels have “big screen” potential (so I was told), so over time I decided to cut right to the chase and start writing screenplays. Here are links to both novels:

http://www.anaudienceforeinstein.com/

https://booklife.com/project/a-friend-like-filby-57407

My most recently completed screenplay, EF-5, is currently my favorite because it’s a contained script. It’s also a taut psychological thriller- one of the biggest genres out there- and aimed at the Gen Z/Millennial audience, the largest group of movie goers and streamers by far, with three of the four characters in that age range. As most screenwriters know, contained scripts can be produced on a micro budget due to their having minimal locations, whereas my two comedy features with their dozen locations would cost nearly a million dollars depending on the talent attached. With so many independent producers and directors out there looking for good scripts that can be made inexpensively and yet have wide appeal, having a contained script in your portfolio gives you the best chance of having a movie made. And if it does well, that can open doors for your other scripts that otherwise would have remained shut. My next screenplay will also be a contained script.

The list of button choices on the right-hand side of the script I’m writing (Action, Character, Location, etc.) not only serve to easily add those elements as needed but remind me to pay close attention to those elements so nothing’s glossed over or unclear.

I keep a journal of plot ideas, characters, scraps of dialogue, anything that springs to mind that seems intriguing. I also have two envelope boxes full of abandoned or less-than-satisfactory stories and novels. Those I’ve go through occasionally like an auto graveyard, looking for parts I can salvage or repurpose. Sometimes they suggest whole new stories that I probably should have written in the first place.

I start with a barely-there outline and work from start to finish, expanding on the outline as the story moves forward. One thing, though, that I must have clear in mind before I start writing are the characters. Rounding them out helps move the plot forward, since what they say and do is entirely dependent on who they are. Once rounded, they provide unexpected plot twists and story nuances that flat characters never could. They’re the essential key to successful stories no matter what kind of script you’re writing. While it’s fine and dandy to focus on structure, acts, story arcs, “saving the cat” and all that, without believable characters your audience cares about it’s all for nothing.

I have so many projects lined up I don’t really suffer from lack of inspiration. At worst, if I’m stymied on a script, I’ll set it aside and dive into a different one. Usually when I return to the stubborn script, I’ll find the solution to moving it forward.

It’s so intuitive and straight forward, it frees me up to focus on the story rather than the formatting.

Yes. Many. Most are from smaller festivals and screenplay contests, but the awards have been consistent and continuous. Here’s a list of awards (so far) for three of my screenplays that have been making the festival circuit the past year:

Winning the contests mentioned above has been validation of my ability to write award-worthy screenplays.

I would like to see at least a few of my screenplays produced. With indie production booming in places like Atlanta, Chicago, New York, Austin and elsewhere, chances are good that if you have a marketable script that can be made for a reasonable budget, you can have your script produced or optioned. That’s why writing contained scripts with few locations and actors is perhaps the best way to break in nowadays.

There’s the old saying “fiction is folks”. Truer words were never spoken. You can have the most action-packed, amazing plot with all kinds of twists and turns, but if no one really cares about the fate of your characters because they’re paper thin and generic, you’ve got nothing. Can’t stress that enough.

I grew up in a Chicago six-flat in the Ukrainian neighborhood on Iowa Street near Western Avenue, although I’m not Ukrainian. We had multiple, vibrant cultures there, all on display. Eventually we moved to a far western suburb in pursuit of my father’s American dream of home ownership, where I felt something was lost. That early urban setting still influences who I am and my world view, which is reflected in some of my writings.