Story: Substance, Structure, Style and The Principles of Screenwriting | 
 enlarge | Author: Robert Mckee
Publisher: HarperEntertainment
Category: Book
List Price: $35.00
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Rating:  174 reviews
Sales Rank: 1043
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 1
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 480
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.6
Dimensions (in): 9.5 x 6.5 x 1.4
ISBN: 0060391685
Dewey Decimal Number: 808.23
EAN: 9780060391683
ASIN: 0060391685
Publication Date: December 17, 1997
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| Also Available In:
| • | Audio Cassette - Story: Substance, Structure, Style and The Principles of Screenwriting | | • | Paperback - Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting | | • | Audio CD - Story CD: Style, Structure, Substance, and the Principles of Screenwriting | | • | Audio Download - Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
Writing for the screen is quirky business. A writer must labor meticulously over his or her prose, yet very little of that prose is ever heard by filmgoers. The few words that do reach the audience, in the form of the characters' dialogue, are, according to Robert McKee, best left to last in the writing process. ("As Alfred Hitchcock once remarked, 'When the screenplay has been written and the dialogue has been added, we're ready to shoot.' ") In Story, McKee puts into book form what he has been teaching screenwriters for years in his seminar on story structure, which is considered by many to be a prerequisite to the film biz. (The long list of film and television projects that McKee's students have written, directed, or produced includes Air Force One, The Deer Hunter, E.R., A Fish Called Wanda, Forrest Gump, NYPD Blue, and Sleepless in Seattle.) Legions of writers flock to Hollywood in search of easy money, calculating the best way to get rich quick. This book is not for them. McKee is passionate about the art of screenwriting. "No one needs yet another recipe book on how to reheat Hollywood leftovers," he writes. "We need a rediscovery of the underlying tenets of our art, the guiding principles that liberate talent." Story is a true path to just such a rediscovery. In it, McKee offers so much sound advice, drawing from sources as wide ranging as Aristotle and Casablanca, Stanislavski and Chinatown, that it is impossible not to come away feeling immeasurably better equipped to write a screenplay and infinitely more inspired to write a brilliant one.--Jane Steinberg
Product Description
Robert McKee's screenwriting workshops have earned him an international reputation for inspiring novices, refining works in progress and putting major screenwriting careers back on track. Quincy Jones, Diane Keaton, Gloria Steinem, Julia Roberts, John Cleese and David Bowie are just a few of his celebrity alumni. Writers, producers, development executives and agents all flock to his lecture series, praising it as a mesmerizing and intense learning experience. In Story, McKee expands on the concepts he teaches in his $450 seminars (considered a must by industry insiders), providing readers with the most comprehensive, integrated explanation of the craft of writing for the screen. No one better understands how all the elements of a screenplay fit together, and no one is better qualified to explain the "magic" of story construction and the relationship between structure and character than Robert McKee.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 169 more reviews...
 Essential reading for any writer July 22, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I've read a lot of fiction help books, but most of them are geared at the mechanics and tricks of fiction. None of them, in my opinion, philosophically tackles the concept of story telling and how stories work. Instead, they give tips and techniques like "put in rising conflict" or "make your characters likeable"
In STORY, Rob McKee tells us, from a conceptual, historical & technical view, what story is, how it works and how to make it work. He writes with authority and depth. It is clear that the man has put a tremendous amount of thought into the subject and that he genuinely cares about good story telling.
I have gained a lot of insight from this book. Almost every paragraph has something to take away from it. I'd definitely recommend this book, to both prose and screen writers.
Invaluable Resource July 7, 2008
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
This is the only book on screenwriting I have read thus far, and, frankly, it would take a lot for me to read another. I have gained invaluable understanding of the screenwriting process with this book. I reference it continuously and am not disappointed. I find McKee's advice to be straight forward, easy to understand, and adapt.
 Beware of the Snake Oil Salesman June 16, 2008
2 out of 13 found this review helpful
I'm sorry but I find it almost insulting that someone would stand up on an orange box and preach about a subject that he knows NOTHING about. To me that's the definition of a scam artist.
I have dozens upon dozens of screenwriting books and most of them are mediocre at best. The problem: Most are also written by people who haven't sold anything! How do these publishing companies keep allowing these non-screenwriters to publish books about screenwriting?
Ask yourself this: If you are trying to put together a model airplane, would you read the instructions by someone who has never done it before? If you were trying to rebuild a carburetor, would you read the book by the dude who knows nothing about cars or carburetors?
No, you wouldn't! (I hope.)
After wasting so much money on these wannabe snakeoil salesmen who are selling books about writing and yet have never sold anything, I've learned to stick with ONLY those who have been successful. After all, many of us who are aspiring to make it as writers don't want to read about other wannabe's 'theories' on how to make it as a writer, do we?
I've found two successful screenwriters who are worth reading: Blake Snyder and Cynthia Whitcomb. Their books are exceptional and worth reading several times over.
My advice: Instead of wasting your time reading books by people who TEACH and DON'T DO, find books only by people who have actually done it and are successful. Why read anything else? Doesn't make sense, does it?
Regarding Robert McKee, the guy hasn't 'done it' so why bother with him to begin with? If his 'theories' are so fabulous then why hasn't he been successful? Theories sound nice on paper but unless they are workable and something you can actually be successful with, they're worthless.
I just feel sorry for all the people who have been duped by McKee and who think the guy knows what he's talking about. Being that blinded could easily set your career back a decade or more. Beware of the snakeoil salesman. He can make you believe you are on the right track when really you are wasting a ton of time.
Let me tell you a Story April 6, 2008
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Fantastic content and narrative! McGee's book is awesome however the Audio CD really brings it all to life. Candidly, I'm surprised Robert is also so talented narrating the audio - this is a must-have purchase, even if you've already bought is book "Story".
 Bible for screenwriting February 10, 2008
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Mckee's book is famous and hardly needs someone like me to review it. This is the bible of screenwriting. With that said, there are a lot of basics in here that advanced screenwriters always follow, but are beyond. It is a quick and interesting read that you will benefit from. After reading it, pick up the film Adaptation and laugh out loud.
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