I want to share one more tip from the most excellent book, "Notes on Directing," by Frank Hauser and Russell Reich, which I highly recommend for writers. They advise:
"Realize that the end is in the beginning. In all the best material, the outcome is inevitable and inherent in the opening moment and in every moment in between. From the audience's perspective, this can only be understood and appreciated backwards, after the play has run its course."
I would add that from the author's perspective, usually this can be understood only backwards, after the script or book has been written and rewritten--very few writers, if any, are so good that there isn't anything extraneous in a first draft!
Often the first five minutes of a movie will include a clue regarding the core of the story but we won't recognize it as such until we see it for a second time.
For instance, early in the classic comedy, "Tootsie," the main character, Michael Dorsey, is talking to his friend. His friend says, "Why don't you stop worrying about being the best waiter or the best actor, and just concentrate on being the best Michael Dorsey?" (I've paraphrased). That question encapsulates the theme of the whole film, and almost every scene in the film reflects it in some way.
Having this idea in mind really helpful when I start on a second draft--give it a try!
(Additional helpful information about writing scripts and books is in my book, "Your Writing Coach," published by Nicholas Brealey and the associated site, www.yourwritingcoach.com)
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