Blake Snyder (1957–2009)

I've heard authors recommend this book, and say that it's helpful for writing/structuring your novel. While I do see some helpful points in here, I also see a lot that doesn't pertain to novelists, so I'm confused as to why this book is recommended so much. World building is such an important part of a novel, especially a high fantasy novel. The "bad guy" doesn't necessarily have to stay bad, they can grow and change too. You don't have to avoid complexity with your characters or plot. Overall, I didn't see this one being as helpful as some people claim. I noticed there is another Save the Cat book, but that one is Save the Cat Writes a Novel, and it looks like it's written specifically for authors/novelists, so I'll probably check that one out and hopefully it's more helpful than this one.… (meer)

Wow, oh, wow! I learned SO much about story structure from this book. I devoured it on the beach in Mexico, then read it a second time on the plane home, highlighting and furiously taking notes. I've never had so many "aha!" moments when reading anything before. I don't think I'll ever watch movies without trying to break them down into Snyder's "beats" -- and that's a good thing! There's so much here I can apply to structuring my work. A truly inspirational book that I'll be reading again and again. (A )… (meer)

Is it helpful? Yeah, it's helpful. And at times, it's even enjoyably clever. But for the most part, Snyder is a misogynistic asshat whose mouth I want to shove a very stinky sock inside. And then use duct tape. And then put on ear muffs just in case he can still talk. And then maybe break his fingers or something so he cant' write any more self-help books.

This is a Harvey Weinstein sort of DIY on screenwriting. The obvious misogyny is just way too blatant to ignore or move past, if you're a female writer (a notion that apparently never crosses Snyder's mind).

I would not recommend this book. To anyone. For any reason - even if it was the last book on screenwriting on the planet.… (meer)