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Save The Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever Need Paperback – May 25, 2005

by Blake Snyder (Author)
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 7,600 ratings
#1 Best Seller in Screenplays
See all formats and editions
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Here’s what started the phenomenon: the best seller, for over 15 years, that’s been used by screenwriters around the world! Blake Snyder tells all in this fast, funny and candid look inside the movie business. “Save the Cat” is just one of many ironclad rules for making your ideas more marketable and your script more satisfying, including: The four elements of every winning logline The seven immutable laws of screenplay physics The 10 genres that every movie ever made can be categorized by ― and why they’re important to your script Why your Hero must serve your Idea Mastering the 15 Beats Creating the “Perfect Beast” by using The Board to map 40 scenes with conflict and emotional change How to get back on track with proven rules for script repair This ultimate insider’s guide reveals the secrets that none dare admit, told by a showbiz veteran who’s proven that you can sell your script if you can save the cat.
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Previous page
  1. Part of series
    Save the Cat!
  2. Print length
    195 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Michael Wiese Productions
  5. Publication date
    May 25, 2005
  6. Dimensions
    6.26 x 0.53 x 8.9 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    1932907009
  8. ISBN-13
    978-1932907001
  9. See all details
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Popular Highlights in this book
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Previous page
  1. The number one thing a good logline must have, the single most important element, is: irony.
    Highlighted by 8,132 Kindle readers
  2. The second most important element that a good logline has is that you must be able to see a whole movie in it.
    Highlighted by 6,932 Kindle readers
  3. Because liking the person we go on a journey with is the single most important element in drawing us into the story.
    Highlighted by 5,690 Kindle readers
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“One of the most comprehensive and insightful how-to's out there. Save the Cat! is a must-read for both the novice and the professional screenwriter.” – Todd Black, Producer, Hope Springs, The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3, The Pursuit of Happyness, The Weather Man, Antwone Fisher “Want to know how to be a successful writer in Hollywood? The answers are here. Blake Snyder has written an insider's book that's informative ― and funny, too.” – David Hoberman, Producer, Muppets Most Wanted (2014), The Muppets, The Shaggy Dog , Raising Helen, Walking Tall, Monk (TV) "You'd have to look far and wide to find a better book to help you achieve your goals. Quite simply one of the most practical guides to writing mainstream spec scripts on the market." – Screentalk Magazine

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Michael Wiese Productions (May 25, 2005)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 195 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1932907009
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1932907001
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12.5 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.26 x 0.53 x 8.9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 7,600 ratings

About the author

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Blake Snyder

Blake Snyder

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In his 20-year career as a screenwriter and producer, Blake Snyder sold dozens of scripts, including co-writing Blank Check, which became a hit for Disney, and Nuclear Family for Steven Spielberg. His book, "Save the Cat!® The Last Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever Need," was published in May 2005, and is now in its 33rd printing. The sequels, "Save the Cat!® Goes to the Movies: The Screenwriter's Guide to Every Story Ever Told," "Save the Cat!® Strikes Back: More Trouble for Screenwriters to Get Into... And Out Of," and software, "Save the Cat!® The Last Story Structure Software You'll Ever Need," are also bestsellers. Along with guiding screenwriters, novelists, and other creative thinkers, Blake's method has become the secret weapon of many development executives, managers, and producers for its precise, easy, and honest appraisal of what it takes to write and develop stories in any media. Blake was a proud member of the Writers Guild of America, west. He passed away suddenly on August 4, 2009, but he lives on in his films and his books, in the advice that will never grow old, with the spirit that will continue to thrive and inspire. His story resonates with all who loved him, and your stories will resonate thanks to his love for you. Blake's vision continues on his website and in "Save the Cat!® Goes to the Indies: The Screenwriter's Guide to 50 Films from the Masters," written by Salva Rubio and published in April, 2017.

Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
7,600 global ratings
Amazing book
5 Stars
Amazing book
This book is going to change your life one of the best Book easy to digest. I highly recommend you to read this book if you want to change everything and get better and feel better.
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Top reviews from the United States

ROY LANGSDON
5.0 out of 5 stars Use This Book to Unleash the Creative Power of Your Screenwriting and Free You from 'Formula'
Reviewed in the United States on January 31, 2022
Verified Purchase
Are you a screenwriter? Me, too.

If you have ever wished that you had a good friend in the movie and TV business who could show you how to write your best possible screenplay – someone with a well-established track record of writing, selling, and seeing their screenplays produced, not someone who just talks about screenwriting to sell courses, lectures, seminars, and books – well, so did I.

I never found that person: a mentor who could explain a screenwriting ‘how-to’ that would work for me, not just for them. Someone respected by their professional peers and colleagues, someone with confidence earned over a successful career – yet free of arrogance.

Good humor and a congenial approach to their work and method seemed too much to ask. But, what would a screenwriting education at the elbow of such a person be worth?

Sadly, I never met – or even discovered – Blake Snyder before his untimely death, but, judging by his legacy, Blake Snyder was that person.

In Save the Cat! – a brief book with an unlikely title – Blake Snyder provides instruction, yes, but also encouragement and inspiration, laced with smiles and chuckles.

It’s fun to read, easy to understand, and challenging to master.

No matter where you might be along your pursuit of screenwriting achievement and success, Save the Cat! has so much between its covers that it makes an unsurpassed starting point, yet remains an incomparable finishing point. I plan to return to it over and over again.

I also recommend Save the Cat! to actors, directors, producers, and fans who want to understand what makes a successful screenplay work.

Rest assured that I have no connection to the Blake Snyder estate, Michael Wiese Productions, or the Save the Cat! organization. I just like the book. It’s a screenwriting education in paperback.
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Steve
5.0 out of 5 stars Filled with useful information, very helpful!
Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2021
Verified Purchase
I bought this book cause I've had some ideas floating around in my head that I wanted to see if I could perhaps make into a screen play. I have no formal education in screenwriting and the information I do know about writing a movie, I learned from online resources. So for a beginner like me this book was filled with TONS of useful information how I could turn a basic idea in my head into a fully fledged movie script. I was debating on which book to buy to help me get started and bought this one because every online resource I looked at, all of them mentioned this book. Some people bashed it but I think that's cause they're more advanced writers and have their own formula for coming up with the structure for a movie.
What I like about this book is that it takes out the guess work for you. It lays out a structured outline for you to follow. Snyder created what he calls the Blake Synder Beat Sheet and literally every movie I could think of follows its formula. He tells you "you should introduce your main character by this page, set the theme of the movie by this page, create a conflict by this page, etc..." Snyder also uses movies as examples, showing how they followed this tempo. He has good ideas on how to create meaningful, 3 dimensional characters and even how to create a B story that helps the main story flow better. I wouldn't have thought of any of this had I not read this book.
What I don't like is how Snyder is sometimes a little too "by the numbers" when it comes to writing a script. He literally says the break from act 1 to act 2 HAS to happen on page 25. Not page 24, not page 26 but on page 25. I don't agree with that. While you obviously don't want it to come too early or too soon, I don't see a need for it to happen on exactly page 25 of every single script ever written. He goes to make it sound like the big wigs at studios reading your script will toss it in the garbage if they don't find it on page 25. That's simply not true and I feel like it's forcing people to pace THEIR story at HIS speed.
He also goes on to bash other great movies cause they didn't follow HIS pace. This guys claim to fame is writing Disneys "Blank Check" mind you. I don't believe in making others look bad to make yourself look good and that's kind of what he does for a bit in the book. He disses movies like Dantes Peak, Memento, Along Came Polly, etc.. but raves about other mediocre movies like 4 Christmases and miss congeniality cause they followed his cookie cutter methods.
So to sum it up, I'm glad I bought this book because I did learn a lot by reading it. I definitely feel more confident in writing my script now and figuring out how to fill in the blanks when I wasn't sure in what direction the story should go in. While I don't think his "by the numbers" method is ideal for every script, it does help me know how to set my own pace for my own movie so I don't get carried away with one act of the story over the other. If your a beginner like me and are looking for a little guidance on how to create a story, this book is a great help!
28 people found this helpful
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Ropati H.
5.0 out of 5 stars Nice breakdown
Reviewed in the United States on March 9, 2024
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A simple and helpful book on the process of writing a screenplay.
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Karine
5.0 out of 5 stars Uma excelente dica para qualquer tipo de roteirista ou escritor
Reviewed in Brazil on January 4, 2023
Verified Purchase
Enquanto o foco de Save the Cat! são os roteiros de cinema, Blake Snyder dá muitas dicas importantíssimas sobre a estrutura e elementos de um bom enredo que podem ser aplicadas em qualquer área com ênfase em criação de histórias e personagens. Seja você escritor de livros, roteirista de quadrinhos, teatro ou qualquer outra coisa, encontrará um verdadeiro baú do tesouro a cada página lida!
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Greywolf2001ca
5.0 out of 5 stars Size does not matter
Reviewed in Canada on June 1, 2023
Verified Purchase
For its size, this is a superb book on screenwriting and general creative writing. There is so much information in this little book, from your first words right down to the presentation of your work to studios and editors.

There is so much good to say on this little book that I do not know where to start. Maybe with the writing style? The writing flows like water. You will read this little book very quickly. If you do not mind writing in your books or putting stickers or bookmarks on your books, make sure you have what you need as you read because you go through it quite fast.

As for the help to screenwriters and other creative writers, the book hits the bullseye. It covers pretty much everything you need to know and the author does not lose himself in undending examples like in some other books (even though the examples are relevant in those other books, they make the reading tedious and long). In Save the Cat, you do not have that problem. The examples are few but supports strongly the chapter's subject or what is currently explained.

Also, if you want to encourage your young teenagers initiative in creativewriting, buy them this book. As I said, it is readable in a very short time and brings alot of information. No stretching or long boring parts in it.

Big thumbs up for this tiny book. :)
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Johan
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book... just not for beginners
Reviewed in Mexico on October 16, 2021
Verified Purchase
Save the cat is an amazing book if you're looking for some amazing "Add on" to your existent repertoire of tools and screenwriting insight, specially if you are looking to sell your script... or just write something that not only you and your friends want to watch.
I loved this book... but if you're looking for a guide that tells you step by step how to write... you'd better look somewhere else. Come back for this one later tho!
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Emiliano
5.0 out of 5 stars Grande libro!
Reviewed in Italy on April 12, 2024
Verified Purchase
Scritto in modo assolutamente piacevole, chiaro ed estremamente utile. Veramente pratico e preciso. Per me, un "must".
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Allan
5.0 out of 5 stars Sehr geiles Buch!
Reviewed in Germany on September 15, 2023
Verified Purchase
Ich habe dieses Buch in zwei Wochen gelesen und jetzt lese ich nochmal jeden Punkt. Ich schreibe sehr gern und habe mit diesem Buch super viel gelernt! Ich empfehle es sehr!
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