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Thirty Days to Fade Out: A Practical Guide to Finding a Story, Building Characters, and Writing the First Draft of a Screenplay in One Month
Paperback
Publisher: Independently Published
Published: May 21 2026
Pages: 86
Weight: 0.28
Height: 0.18 Width: 6.00 Depth: 9.00
Language: English
You do not need a film degree to write your first screenplay. You need a plan.
Thirty Days to Fade Out is a practical, encouraging guide for anyone who has wanted to write a screenplay but did not know where to begin.
Built around a clear 30-day process, this manual walks writers step by step through finding a story, developing characters, understanding structure, outlining scenes, and finishing a complete first draft. The goal is not perfection. The goal is completion.
Inside, you will learn how to:
- Turn a rough idea into a workable screenplay concept
- Build a protagonist with a clear want, need, flaw, and arc
- Create supporting characters who serve the story
- Understand why three-act structure still matters
- Develop a logline, beat sheet, and scene list
- Prepare to draft using WriterDuet
- Write your first screenplay draft without getting lost in Act Two
- Troubleshoot common first-draft problems
- Prepare your script for feedback and revision
Author Joseph Nichols came to screenwriting and filmmaking later in life, after years in counseling, teaching, and business. After fumbling through his own first screenplay and taking nearly nine months to reach a first draft, he began asking whether the process could be made clearer, faster, and less intimidating.
This book is the result.
Whether you are writing your very first script or returning to the story you have always meant to finish, Thirty Days to Fade Out gives you a practical path from blank page to FADE OUT.
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