David Koepp’s Golden Rule: Why Thick Blocks of Action Text Are Killing Your Screenplay

Screenwriting is incredibly hard. I am sure you know that, but there are times it's worth acknowledging so you don't go crazy.

But really, what you're doing is both telling a story and writing a blueprint for a medium that relies entirely on sights and sounds and imagination. And all that has ot be translated by people, cameras, and editors later.

No one knows this better than industry legend David Koepp (Jurassic Park , Mission: Impossible), who discussed this exact phenomenon in a Screenwriting In LA interview clip.

Let's dive in.

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The Cognitive Load of the Page

I like talking about the actual work of screenwriting because it's where the pros and joes get separated.

Writing a script takes thinking about storytelling in a way that's so different than if you were raised on. Most people grow up reading books, but screenplays are not like them at all.

Koepp points out that, unlike a traditional novel, where the author spells out every interior emotional state and environmental detail, a script forces the reader to co-direct the film inside their own head.

For me, I actually feel like scripts are close to comic books, because you're kind of directing imagination with your words, trying to get people to picture the panels in their minds.

So, when a writer throws massive, chunky paragraphs of prose at the page, that process grinds to a halt.

As Koepp says:

"Reading a screenplay is really difficult. It's not like a book where everything's spelled out for you... When you get big chunky descriptive paragraphs, you're killing a reader. You're making it too hard."

If you force a manager, agent, or script reader to plow through blocky paragraphs, you destroy the momentum of the story.

The reader stops experiencing the movie and starts performing manual labor.

You want them to read with speed and get it right away.

Writing at the "Speed of Cinema"

Koepp’s personal solution to this problem is a commitment to a terse writing style. If you look at his work on an iconic thriller like Jurassic Park , the pages are sparse, sharp, and lean.

Take a look at the first page of the Jurassic Park script and see how he drips you into a world.

Jurassic Park Credit: David Koepp's Website

By breaking up the action text into single lines and short fragments, Koepp forces the reader's eyes to dart down the page and to keep reading.

You don't want to step because you're so invested.

Learning how to manipulate this layout is a massive part of mastering screenplay formatting rules, and it helps you find your unique voice.

Terse vs. Dense: Finding Your Style

Not everyone has to write the same way. Koepp talks about Andrew Kevin Walker and lauds his more dense prose, which you can read in the Se7en screenplay.

In that, Walker uses a different kind of prose style to build a suffocating, atmospheric world. It's totally unique and represents who he is and works for that story.

Typically, for newer writers, I would always advise that when figuring out how to write a scene that lands with impact, you prioritize visuals over excess verbiage.

Look at your current draft. If a sequence takes ten seconds on screen, it shouldn't take a full page of dense words to explain it.

Summing It All Up

This short video is a good reminder to keep your paragraphs lean, clear the clutter, and let the white space do the heavy lifting.

This will help your voice shine through and get everyone excited by your projects.

Let me know what you think in the comments.