The Soul of Screenwriting: On Writing, Dramatic Truth, and Knowing Yourself

I used to swear by McKee's Story till I discovered the low-profile Keith Cunningham's Soul of Screenwriting. 'Story' is a book, or almost another bible that looks into various elements of screenwriting and comes up with great insight into what life is and what a story on screen is. 'SoS' takes it even forward by coming-in with a critical angle - the screenwriter himself - how his own life is manifested within a screenplay. I enjoy reading thick books that have a lot of meat and SoS maybe by far the thickest book, with more words than any other and...it's full of terrific insight. Cunningham and his partner actually hooked-up with the legend, Joseph Campbell, the 'mythology man' and expand his work for screen. Their Mode-Need Model is the core for creating effective stories that even McKee mentions in Story. (A protag wants something, goes for it...but eventually the story is about him getting or not-getting the inner need that lies within unconscious.) Like an in-depth text book it looks at various aspects - character webs, emotional network, point-of-views and critically the journey of a character a la Campbell's theory. Plus it analyzes certain films throughout and in detail, which shows the principles in action. I strongly recommend this book for all screenwriters and folks interested in story-telling.

Keith Cunningham's THE SOUL OF SCREENWRITING: ON WRITING, DRAMATIC TRUTH, AND KNOWING YOURSELF offers an unusual survey inspired by the mythic approach of Joseph Campbell and tinged by the psychology background of Jean Jouston, providing a survey of the act of screenwriting and how the writer's brain and experience juxtaposes to influence technique, character development, scene dynamics and results. It's a scholarly analysis recommended for any film or drama collection.