Writing Tips from Edgar Allan Poe , Ari Aster's AMA, & Cutting for Adventure

🖌️ Screenwriting

5 Writing Tips from the Master of Macabre: Edgar Allan Poe

Edgar Allan Poe made a career out of doom and despair, yet today, even a century after his death, he remains one of the most prolific writers the world has ever known. He might not be a textbook role model, but he knew the taste of failure, living a life that was pure chaos (some of it, definitely due to his own choices).

There is a lot to learn about writing from Poe. In this article, we’ve compiled the best writing tips from the man who won the world with his flaws.

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🗞️ Quick Reads for Screenwriting

• The 10 Commandments of Detective Fiction by Ronald Knox - How these sacred rules of whodunnits still shape great mystery writing.

• 8 Writing Tips from Octavia Butler That Transcend Genre - How the sci-fi legend turned routine and imagination into literary mastery.

• 7 Screenwriting Tips from Richard Linklater - This filmmaker understands the essence of the journey and celebrates it.

🎬 Directing

Everything We Learned From Ari Aster's AMA

In an era saturated with franchise horror and reboots or remakes, Ari Aster has emerged as a powerful, singular voice, redefining the genre's boundaries. The guy just knows how to write and direct a movie, and how to bend genre to his will.

Aster's films are dense, layered, and relentlessly bleak, challenging audiences to confront uncomfortable truths about humanity. His most recent film, Eddington, is a masterpiece, and it is the film that will come to define our decade.

That's why we were so pumped to see Aster doing an AMA on Reddit. Let's dive into what he talked about and look at some key quotes.

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✂️ Editing & Post-Production

The 'Dora and the Search for Sol Dorado' Editor Talks Cutting For Adventure

This new Dora film from Nickelodeon may have been made with younger audiences in mind, but editor Evan Ahlgren took inspiration from one of the most iconic adult adventurers in film history: Indiana Jones.

Raiders of the Lost Ark played on loop in Ahlgren's head as he set the pacing and tone of this spectacular live-action Dora adaptation, which marks Ahlgren's second collaboration with director Alberto Belli.

We sit down with Ahlgren to talk about his approach to post, namely how he infuses excitement and adventure in every cut.

Continue Reading - The 'Dora and the Search for Sol Dorado' Editor Talks Cutting For Adventure

🗞️ Quick Reads for Editing & Post-Production

• How to Edit a Documentary About a Strip Club - Editor Dylan Young takes us through his work on Magic City: An American Fantasy.

📚 Recommended Reads:

• Take This FREE 15-Week Screenwriting Course
  Writer Nathan Graham Davis created a very useful class for people trying to learn screenwriting.

• When Movies Talk Back: What Breaking the Third Wall Really Means
  What happens when the camera becomes part of the story?

• Read Some of the Best Francis Ford Coppola Screenplays
  See how this auteur gets his ideas out onto the page.

• Jaws’ Most Famous Line Was Actually an Inside Joke on Set
  The iconic “You’re gonna need a bigger boat” line wasn’t in the script—it was a crew catchphrase that made movie history.

• Deconstructing a Masterpiece: How Vince Gilligan Wrote 'Breaking Bad'
  Unpacking one of the greatest TV shows of all time.

• Explore more articles → Visit No Film School