ANIMATION WORLD MAGAZINE - ISSUE 5.11 - FEBRUARY 2001

Animation Scriptwriting: The Writer's Road Map

book review by Rick DeMott

There is one major problem with books on screenwriting -- they can't teach creativity and originality. These two factors are the top tools a writer needs to scribe scripts that sell. In regards to Animation Scriptwriting: The Writer's Road Map, truly humorous writers might find it quite amusing to read a chapter trying to teach scribes how to be funny. While the text is definitely for the inexperienced scribe, a high school student, an underclassman in college or someone just arriving to the animation writing scene could glean some helpful tips from reading it though.

Good Stuff!
For students who want to write for television, the beginning and the end of the book could prove invaluable. Chapters 1 through 6 outline the creation of a series and its cartooniverse. Author Marilyn Webber goes into solid detail on how to develop an original series, i.e. its world and characters for given genres. The exercises she creates to break down a series and understand its characters and style are very in depth and informative. Those writers dreaming of penning the next episode of Rugrats or The Powerpuff Girls, but who have no idea where to start, will find the first six chapters helpful.

Students and aspiring writers might find the tips in the last chapter well worth the price of the book. As a paid screenwriter, the author outlines the industry standards for submission and pitching. Her pointers are very useful and she uses great examples from her own work on how to create springboards, premises, treatments and beat outlines. She even gives advice on how to locate script editors, who might read your work. In addition, the end of the book contains a full script for a seven-minute What-A-Mess episode.

One highlight of the book is Webber's use of examples. I've read a lot of screenwriting books that don't explain what is going on in the example well enough to drive home the author's point. Webber does a good job, so that even if you have never seen the series, you are not totally lost.

A Bit Dodgy...
Earlier I criticized the chapter on how to be funny, but it does serve as a good list of standard gags that have proven successful in toons for years. Writers in a bind could use it to discover a way to reinterpret one of the scenes that they feel isn't working. However, if the writer can't think of a way to make these examples seem fresh and new, a list of tired old routines isn't going to put them on the staff of The Simpsons.

The real problems arise when Webber delves into explaining the process of drafting sample episodes. She uses a car/road metaphor throughout the text, which gets bogged down in unfamiliar terms. If she just called an anti-hero an anti-hero, it would have been easier to follow.

Overall the book is a good text for novice and aspiring writers. It contains good industry tips and guidelines, plus helpful exercises. However, I warn teachers about using it as a classroom text. Misspellings (including Looney Tunes spelled Looney Toons), grammar mistakes, missing words and inconsistent formatting really hurt its overall credibility.

Your Own Voice
The best advice I can give on which scriptwriting book to read, is to read them all. Most of the authors are paid screenwriters, so each will offer something regarding the craft. One key to penning a great script is discovering the process that best suits you; the process that unleashes your natural talent and ability. While some texts will help one more than others, each book can give the reader new insight into the writing process, which can be helpful in finding one's own path. Webber's book will definitely clue in the uninformed or ignite the imagination of a writer in a rut, but probably won't inspire the next break through in animation.

Animation Scriptwriting: The Writer's Road Map, by Marilyn Webber. Fairfax, Virgina: GGC Inc./Publishing, 2000. 208 pages. ISBN: 0-9661075-9-4 ($24.95)

Rick DeMott is the associate editor of Animation World Network. He is the writer of AWN's Animation Flash Newsletter and the weekly Web Animation Guide.