062I – Screenwriting Tips From the Experts: An Interview with Lee and Janet Scott Batchler

Lee Batchler and Janet Scott Batchler are the writers of POMPEII, SMOKE AND MIRRORS, and BATMAN FOREVER, among many other projects. They have recently moved into producing, with Executive Producer credits on a movie to be released in 2018. In addition, Janet is a writing professor at the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts.

If you're interested in screenwriting, or even just another perspective on story, you'll love this interview! Among some of the tips they offer:

• When co-writing, you're looking for the third writer, creating a product that neither of you could have written on your own
• It's nice to map something out, but writing is also a process of discovery
• You have to have a story that's worth telling
• Writing a pilot for TV isn't about writing one great hour of television, it's about having such a great idea that you can write one hundred great hours of television
• Write something that is emotionally authentic
• Respect the nature of what you're writing – a screenplay isn't a novel in another form
• and so much more!

I hope you enjoy the episode! 😀