Here's What I Learned From Writing a Film and Novel Simultaneously
Comparing the Process of Novel Writing to Writing a Screenplay
Have you heard? Our novel “The Sound of Southside” is officially available to preorder (Or perhaps available to order, depending on when you read this article). We’re also presenting the feature film version of the story in a couple of months. In promotion of the book and film, we’re sharing some exclusive articles, interviews and more on the site. Check it out below and please consider grabbing the novel here.
Novel writing vs writing a screenplayI’ve seen a lot of debate about this, so I decided to give my two cents. Novel writing is way harder than writing a movie. Like it’s not even close. The answer to me is simple – the screenwriter is just one of many puzzle pieces that ultimately make up a good film. Your script is much like a roadmap that the director, actors and everyone else use to do their job. It’s up to them to flesh out the work and make it great.For novel writers, all you have is a blank page and it’s up to you and you alone to build that world. It’s up to you to detail how the location and characters look etc. Your words serve as cinematography. It often takes pages to describe a scene, whereas the same scene could be described with a simple establishing shot in film.With that being said – and this may sound contradictory – making a film is a helluva lot harder than writing a novel. This is because making a film means fundraising, casting, location scouting, organizing, editing and so much more. It’s an expensive, tedious process vs simply sitting at your laptop.Both novel writing and screenwriting have unique challenges and triumphs and I recommend both for budding writers.
The book is often better than the movie (And here’s why)Whenever folks watch movies based on books, the general consensus is often that the book was better. (Even with classics like The Shining and Fight Club). While writing The Sound of Southside, I realized why that was. When you’re writing a novel, the world is your oyster, yo. If you want there to be a huge explosion, you just write it and it comes to be. But when it comes to film, you have to think about logistics, execution, personnel and all of that boring stuff.Oftentimes – especially with low budget filmmaking – I find myself scaling down from the initial idea in the novel, so that I could afford to execute it in film. This might not be a problem for some major studios, but indie filmmakers definitely have to think execution.Lastly, books written in first person give readers an all access look at the thoughts and observations of the character, which just can’t be replicated well in film (Not even with voiceover). This is why books like The Catcher in the Rye would never make good movies.
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The film is often better than the book (And here’s why)In my opinion, film is the ultimate art form, because to be a serviceable filmmaker, you have to possess at least a basic understanding of pretty much every other art form. Photography, music, writing, movement — everything comes into play. So what you might lose in intricate details in the novel, you can gain with beautiful cinematography, powerful performances by the actors and great music.When making the film and book for the Sound of Southside, the music was one of the main advantages for the film. It doesn’t matter how good you can describe music in a novel, it will never top actually hearing a well composed score.
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How sweet it isTo me at least, there is nothing more artistically rewarding than watching your finished film on screen, or holding your completed novel in hand. Lots of people speak in hushed tones about their ideas, or vow to do them someday. But actually doing it deserves applause, even if you’re still learning along the way. I’d encourage every writer to just go for it. At the end of the day, our time on this planet is finite. Think about what you have to say – the ideas and stories that you want to outlive you – crack open your laptop, take out that camera…..and go do it.
Keep an eye on our site for tips on novel writing, filmmaking, writing a screenplay and creating!