Stupid Writer Tricks

"I was a successful writer before I met Dan, but what I learned from him, especially about visual story-telling, elevated my craft, as it will yours." ~ WILLIAM SCHMIDT award-winning writer of over a dozen TV drama series, including YELLOWSTONE, CARNIVALE, CHARMED, and creator of PREY.

In Stupid Writer Tricks, award-winning and internationally acclaimed dramatist, producer and show-runner Daniel Knauf, creator of HBO seminal cult series, CARNIVÀLE and writer-executive producer on the hit NBC series, The Blacklist, offers a rare window into his methods as an artist, his personal working style and his professional experiences. A rollicking, firsthand look at why and how television series get made and what elements make for a good show.

In brief chapters, Knauf describes the experience of "breaking in" to the crazy, fulfilling and sometimes chaotic world of television with a refreshing, no-holds-barred, self-deprecating candor. He also delivers hard-won screenwriting advice that will benefit beginners and veterans alike.

In a breezy, humorous style, Knauf details the development of his ideas and how he translates them into produceable scripts that attract actors, directors and key crew and inspires them to bring their best game.

There are a lot of books out there offering advice on how to write screenplays and most of them are garbage. Usually, the people who write them are wannabes or also-rans—spec script writers whose work has never been produced. Stupid Writer Tricks by Dan Knauf is decidedly not one of those books because Dan Knauf actually is a writer—a professional, produced, successful, working television and film writer. And, in my opinion, one of the best. This breezy little writer’s companion is thoughtful and thorough without being pedantic or long-winded. provocative—exactly what you need to know to write a successful teleplay, concisely, meticulously, and with a sense of humor. It’s unusual to describe one of these books this way, but Stupid Writer Tricks is, as the title suggests, a fun read. I highly recommend it. ~ DAVE THOMAS - Emmy Award winning actor, writer, and director for SCTV, STRANGE BREW, SPIES LIKE US, CONEHEADS, RAT RACE, ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT, BONES and THE BLACKLIST.