The blog

Why Your Characters Need a Common Enemy

Conflict is the engine. Every writer knows it. Drama and comedy both come out of friction, because friction is where the heat is. Nobody wants a scene where everyone politely agrees. But there is a trap here, and tele…

Bob Schultz · 29 October 2026 · 2 min

Three killer vehicle films for Halloween

A car with nobody driving it. That's the whole premise, and it is enough for a movie. It's spooky season and I've done the classics. Halloween. A Nightmare on Elm Street. Psycho. All good. But lately I've slid into a…

Bob Schultz · 28 October 2026 · 2 min

What is in a course?

I’m a course person. I’m a quilter, sewer and wannabe novelist, and have participated in (and taught) courses on all of these. During Covid I did an online Sashiko (Japanese sewing) course with my mum, who lives in Ma…

Eleanor Greene · 16 October 2026 · 2 min

Is Your Idea Perfect? Or Beautifully Messy?

Perfect? Or Beautifully Messy? A script is not a pomegranate. Last week I peeled a pomegranate. Its a fiddly job, time consuming, the white skin clinging stubbornly to the red seeds. You have to pull the whole thing a…

Eleanor Greene · 13 October 2026 · 2 min

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What's in a name?

Earlier this year Chris Jones from The London Screenwriters'​ Festival and I ran a weekend course for new and emerging writers. We called it 'The Plot Thickens with Eleanor Greene'. I thought it was terribly clever. B…

Eleanor Greene · 12 October 2026 · 2 min

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Say Hello to Twisted50 Volume Five!

Twisted50 is back. Chris Jones, founder of Create50 and the London Screenwriters' Festival, is joined by Amy Livingstone to launch Volume Five of the horror anthology: 50 short, terrifying stories, written and shaped…

Chris Jones · 1 October 2026 · 2 min

You have to jump off the cliff and build your wings on the way down: my time at LSF by Ellie Rofe

Photo by Annabel Vere A few days before this year’s London Screenwriters’ Festival I left my degree at Cambridge. It was a tough decision: a degree from Cambridge can be a very handy thing after all. But while I enjoy…

Chris Jones · 25 September 2026 · 5 min

Is Your Plot Thickening?

This (photo) is of me and my friend Chris Jones, writer and director of award winning features – long and short, and Oscar shortlisted writer and director for the short film, ‘Gone Fishing’. Chris is also the co-autho…

Eleanor Greene · 21 September 2026 · 2 min

Three Tricks of the Trade for Getting Ideas by Linda Aronson

I’ve been writing scripts since the late Iron Age and have judged many script competitions, so here are a few tricks of the trade that just might help you come up with some ideas. I can’t think of screenplay competiti…

Linda Aronson · 30 August 2026 · 4 min

People like me don’t go to events like LSF by Elkie Yates

LSF is a professional event, full of professional writers and the like. People getting paid actual money for scripts, they probably speak using big words and have diaries full of very important meetings. Whereas I’m,…

Chris Jones · 22 August 2026 · 4 min

Welcome, Beta Testers! 🎉

Thanks for helping us shape LSFConnect. You're among the first to get hands-on, and your feedback will directly influence what we build next. What we'd love you to do: Set up your profile - update your bio, photo, and…

Chris Jones · 23 July 2026 · 1 min

Why Does Everything Take So Long in Screenwriting? (And What Successful Writers Do While They Wait)

Waiting is part of every screenwriting career. The trick is learning how to use that time to build momentum, develop your craft, and be ready when the next opportunity arrives. Vol 1 | Issue 13 | ISSN 2979-8744 (onlin…

Helen Tompson · 22 July 2026 · 6 min

How LondonSWF changed my life and career and why I am coming all the way from Australia again by Sally Pitts

I was fresh off the boat from Australia, when I came across the London Screenwriters’ Festival. It was already 97% sold out. I didn’t have a job yet and with the Aussie dollar being a bit meh I was a little apprehensi…

Chris Jones · 22 July 2026 · 4 min

Courage, Friendships and Pitching! How one weekend can change you by Dorothee Kuepers

Having attended the London Screenwriter’s Festival on a few occasions in the past, I thought I knew what to expect. In many ways I was right. I knew I would learn a lot from the amazing speakers. I knew I would reconn…

Dorothee Kuepers · 8 July 2026 · 7 min

Your Characters are the Key: Unexpected Lessons in Worldbuilding with Genre Legends Frank Spotnitz and Peter Harness

I always enjoy a good discussion about worldbuilding. That’s even after I’ve already written quite a lot of speculative fiction (AKA science fiction, fantasy, horror, and the things between) and hosted a series of int…

Alison Weaverdyck · 8 July 2026 · 7 min

Behind The Scenes at the Online London Screenwriters Festival

This weekend we ran the third online London Screenwriters Festival Launch and it was AWESOME! I asked our team, Heather and Max, to make a BTS video the experience and here’s the result, capturing some of the energy,…

Chris Jones · 7 July 2026 · 1 min

Yesterday I heard nearly 60 pitches at the London Screenwriters Festival by Eleanor Greene

Setting aside the constrained nature of the sessions, (each writer has either 5 minutes or 45 seconds to pitch, depending on which session they attend) here are some things I noticed. What worked: smiley people. Peopl…

Eleanor Greene · 25 June 2026 · 2 min

From Cold Reads to Creative Breakthroughs: Lessons from Directing 10 Actors Table Reads at LondonSWF by Gabriel Oliver

If you want to run better table reads and unlock stronger performances from your actors, it starts with how you direct the room. After leading 10+ actor table reads ahead of LSWF 2026, here are the key lessons every d…

Gabriel Oliver · 8 June 2026 · 4 min

Why I booked next year before I even left by Helen Tompson

Last year, I partnered with Chris Jones to add to the official LSF podcast . It’s now up and running, and it’s opened doors I didn’t even know were there. So I came back this year already knowing just being at LSF cou…

Helen Tompson · 25 May 2026 · 4 min

Four Minutes of Horror at LondonSWF by Suzy Miller

An email flew in from London Screenwriters’ Festival, calling out for maximum four minute horror audio scripts. To be recorded live with actors and mixed during the session with the legend that is Dirk Maggs. I happen…

Suzy Miller · 17 April 2026 · 4 min

What I learned reading the Twisted50 Audio Drama Scripts by Heather Sutton

I read every script submitted for the Twisted50 Audio Drama competition and learnt some very interesting things. Across dozens of scripts I began to notice some patterns, both strengths and missed opportunities. This…

Chris Jones · 24 March 2026 · 4 min

Get Your Four Page Twisted50 Screenplay Recorded As An Audio Drama At LondonSWF

OK, we are running a last minute competition. At the London Screenwriters Festival this year, Audio Drama LEGEND Dirk Maggs is returning to deliver a session on Audio Drama. But we have a twist! And a Twisted twist at…

Chris Jones · 10 March 2026 · 2 min

What REALLY Happened At The Twisted50 Awards? Watch The Sizzle Reel

I am thrilled to share with you the video from the Twisted50 Awards, capturing the tone of the event, and the horror of the book. Do leave comments below and watch out for Twisted50 vol V… There’s no keeping a good co…

Chris Jones · 18 February 2026 · 1 min

Photos From the Twisted50 Vol IV Awards

WHAT. A. NIGHT! The Awards for Twisted50 Vol IV took place last night and what an evening we had. Much more will follow soon but I just wanted to share the amazing photos taken by the super talents @_heather_06 . Plea…

Chris Jones · 17 February 2026 · 1 min

Watch The Entire Twisted50 Vol IV Awards Ceremony

After posting the photos from the Twisted50 awards last night, I now have the video of the whole event. Filmed on an iPhone tucked away, with the sound recorded from the mixing desk, it will give you a complete and un…

Chris Jones · 17 February 2026 · 1 min