If you want to become a better screenwriter and get positive responses from Hollywood executives, there’s one habit you absolutely need to adopt: reading multiple scripts a day. But not for the reasons you might think.
You’ve probably been told that reading scripts will teach you how other writers write—how they structure their stories, format their pages, and craft their dialogue. While that’s true and valuable, it’s not the ultimate reason you should be reading scripts. The real purpose is far deeper and more transformative: to understand the psychology of the reader.
Imagine being a Hollywood executive or assistant who’s tasked with reading scripts day in and day out. They’re not just reading your script in a vacuum; they’re reading it after already plowing through three or four others that day—maybe more. They’re tired. They’re juggling deadlines. They’re distracted by emails and phone calls. By the time they get to your script, their patience is thin, and their expectations are low.
Your job as a screenwriter is to write something that not only grabs their attention but keeps it. And to do that, you need to understand what it feels like to be in their shoes. The only way to truly get there is by reading multiple scripts yourself, back-to-back, until you begin to feel what they feel. That exhaustion, that frustration, that need for something—anything—to stand out.
When you start to read scripts the way an executive does, you’ll quickly notice patterns. You’ll see what works and what doesn’t. You’ll feel the drag of overwrought descriptions, the irritation of clunky dialogue, and the monotony of predictable stories. You’ll also feel the excitement of a script that leaps off the page, where every word serves a purpose, and the pacing is electric.
This process will teach you to be ruthless with your own writing. You’ll learn to cut unnecessary words, streamline your scenes, and make your dialogue sing. You’ll start to think about your reader’s experience on every page. Are they engaged? Are they intrigued? Are they getting tired?
Understanding the psychology of a tired reader will influence how you craft your script. You’ll learn to:
Many successful screenwriters got their start as Hollywood assistants. Why? Because they spent years reading scripts. They know how a reader thinks because they’ve lived it. They’ve seen what scripts get passed up the chain and what scripts get tossed aside. They’ve internalized what makes a script work—and what doesn’t.
But you don’t have to work in Hollywood to gain that same insight. You can replicate the experience by making script reading a regular part of your routine.
Here’s what you should do: Wait until the end of the day, after dinner, after you’ve put the kids to bed (if you have kids). Pour yourself a glass of wine or a cup of tea, settle into a comfortable chair, and start reading. The more scripts you can read in one sitting, the better. Push yourself to read as much as you can until you start to feel the fatigue. That’s when the real learning begins.
Over time, you’ll develop an intuitive sense of what works and what doesn’t. You’ll start to anticipate how a reader might react to your own script. You’ll write with their psychology in mind, tailoring your work to captivate even the most jaded, tired, and overworked reader.
Of course, as you read more scripts, you’ll also pick up great techniques and ideas that can inform your writing. You’ll see how masterful writers handle structure, character development, and dialogue. You’ll absorb lessons on theme and tone. But these are secondary benefits. The primary goal is to train yourself to think like a reader.
Hollywood is a tough industry, and breaking in as a screenwriter requires more than just talent. It requires an understanding of your audience—not just the audience who will watch your movie, but the audience who will decide whether your script gets made in the first place. By reading scripts the way executives and assistants do, you’ll gain a critical edge. You’ll write scripts that stand out, even when your reader is having a bad day.
So start tonight. Grab a script, pour that drink, and dive in. The more you read, the better you’ll write. And who knows? The next great script that lands on an executive’s desk might just be yours.
