Category Archives: Techniques

Feb 03 0 comments
Techniques

Index Cards

Saw the following on the site of screenwriter John August (Go, Corpse Bride, and others).  I’m a regular practitioner of index cards/post-its when breaking a story, and he makes some good points.

  1. Keep it short. Maximum seven words per card.
  2. A card represents a story point, be it a scene or a sequence. You don’t need a card for every little thing.
  3. Keep cards general enough that they can be rearranged. (“Battle in swamp” rather than “Final showdown”)
  4. Horizontal (a table or counter) often works better than a vertical (a corkboard).
  5. Post-It notes make good alternative index cards.
  6. Consider a letter code for which characters are featured in the sequence. Helpful for figuring out who’s missing.
  7. Most movies can be summarized in less than 50 cards.
  8. Cards are cheap. Don’t hesitate to rework them.
  9. Consider a second color for action sequences. Helps show the pacing.
  10. Write big. You want to be able to read them from a distance.
Jun 17 0 comments
Reference, Techniques

Equivalent of Synonym

Warren Ellis gave me a fantastic idea today.  On what he has admitted is nothing more than a “notebook”, he has posted an extensive list of synonyms for “bureau”.  Such a simple notion, yet I’m sure it will save him oodles of time when he’s trying to think up the name for his next organization, tribunal, or Authority.

I reproduce it here to remind me that I should do the same with various terms for my own benefit.  Further reminder to me:  Do so in the wiki.

bureau
Part of Speech: noun
Definition: branch of an organization

Synonyms: agency, authority, board, commission, committee, department, division, front office*, office, salt mines, service, setup, shop, store board, bureau, cabinet, chamber, commission, consultants, convocation, council, investigators, jury, panel, representatives, task force, trustees board, bureau, cabinet, commission, consultants, council, forum, group, jury, representatives, task force, tribunal

annex, arm, bureau, category, chapter, classification, connection, dependency, derivative, division, extension, local, member, office, outpost, part, portion, section, subdivision, subsection, subsidiary, tributary, wing administration, agency, area, arena, beat, board, branch, bureau, canton, circuit, commission, commune, constituency, division, force, office, parish, precinct, quarter, range, staff, station, subdivision, territory, tract, unit, ward activity

administration, assignment, avocation, bailiwick, berth, bureau, business, capacity, class, classification, domain, dominion, duty, field, function, incumbency, jurisdiction, line, niche, occupation, office, province, realm, responsibility, slot, specialty, sphere, spot, station, vocation, walk of life, wing