After all the books on storytelling, fiction writing, and screenwriting I've read I wondered if this would really add anything new. But O'Bannon has written the scripts for two of my favorite movies so I couldn't exactly ignore this when I saw it was coming out.

What you get here is not so much anything "new" (as if you could expect that with storytelling anyway), but rather O'Bannon's own formulation of the traditional three-act dramatic narrative. As is often the case when an insightful practitioner recasts "standard wisdom" with a pragmatic bent, there are plenty of gems to be found that help to clarify and lock into place many time-tested bits of orthodoxy.

The book itself is written in a way that doesn't take itself too seriously, but at the same time conveys interesting lessons (complete with do-it-yourself exercises) and practical how-to advice on constructing a gripping story. Recommended if you're interested in screenwriting or storytelling. ( )