How To Collaborate With a Writing Partner

Tips On Writing With Another Screenwriter

Jan 13, 2009

Writer & Director Ray Griggs shares his experience working with Oscar winning screenwriter David S. Ward.

Suite101 sat down with Director Ray Griggs and asked about his experience with writing partners, how he compromises his vision, and what advice he has for new screenwriters.

Griggs: My first experience with a writing partner was with Oscar winner David S. Ward. I mean who am I to deny, this guy has talent and has done many films. I showed him my first script that I wrote called Lucifer and he liked it. So we collaborated on a lot of things and I actually found it really beneficial to work with someone else in that regards. In the end we got a really great product. In Super Capers, I ventured on my own and the writing partner I brought in was more for a proofing of technical things like spelling and grammar.

As for my third script, The Wind In The Willows, Kenneth Grahame was the original writer of the book so I’m just doing an adaptation. In essence, I feel like I’m a writing partner with him. I’m just putting my little spin on it, trying to hold true to what he was trying to say with his messages.

Suite101: Do you feel you have to compromise a lot when you're with a writing partner?

I believe that when making a film, you’re captain of the ship and there are a lot of people involved to get you that direction to make that ship move. Your only job is to keep behind that wheel to make sure you stay on the same course of what you envisioned. But you want these collaborative efforts because at the end of the day if you listen to them, it can benefit your project. But you do have to choose and pick, because some of those aren’t great ideas.

Ultimately I like working with people and seeing their vision too because sometimes you get a closed mind and don’t see what someone else sees. Sometimes if you put in what someone else sees it could make the movie a whole lot better.

Griggs: For your first script, you want to be passionate about your project. That goes without saying. But if you do have that artistic ability, try it a little bit. Try to draw something. If you don’t have that artistic ability, then find a quiet place and take some time to visual it. Then put those notes on paper. It helps because when I was writing Lucifer, I had this quiet little room in my house away from everything and I would just sit in bed and visualize. I'd think of scenes, stories, and any great idea I would just write it down. It didn’t matter if it wasn’t the right place in the script, I just put it down and would find a place for it later.

Write anything that inspires you even if you’re not going to make it into a feature film. Before I got into feature films I had kinds of little stories that I’d write just for the sake of writing to create a fun little story. So always use that ability. Don’t think that you have to write a whole feature film.

Ray Griggs is the Director of Super Capers, which stars Justin Whalin, Tom Sizemore, Adam West, and Clint Howard. Ray is also the Award-Winning Director of the short film Lucifer. He is CEO of RG Entertainment, a film production company in Beverly Hills, CA.

The copyright of the article How To Collaborate With a Writing Partner in Writing for Stage/Screen is owned by Joe Lam. Permission to republish How To Collaborate With a Writing Partner in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.