Writers Guild Of America’s Interview With Melissa Rosenberg!

The Writers Guild Of America recently sat down with Twilight Saga screenwriter, Melissa Rosenberg.
In the interview they discuss the script for Eclipse and what she finds most difficult when it comes to writing a script -

You’ve said you thought this current film, Eclipse, would be easy at first. Was that partially because you knew Breaking Dawn, your two-part adaptation of the final films of the Twilight series, was coming?
That was actually from the outset, separate from Breaking Dawn. Looking at the first three books, it seemed like it would be easier just because it had all this action. Of course, that was wrong. Thinking anything in writing is going to be easy is always…
A mistake?
Always a mistake. It is never easy. Writing is hard. If it wasn’t, everyone would do it, right?
True. So Eclipse has a lot of action, but it’s mainly in the third act.
Exactly.

Tell me what you had to do with those first two acts to lead up to that big conflict.
It was about taking that threat and building on it to the third act conflict. The entire book is from Bella’s point of view, so anything that happens in the book, she hears about after the fact, [when] she’s not actually present. With the script, I don’t have that restriction. I could actually go away from her point of view occasionally, so I was able to build a few of those scenes that she hears about after the fact and invent a few to help build to this conflict, which, hopefully, helps to keep that sense of threat impending and growing throughout [the first two acts].
This Twilight phenomenon has happened really fast, but it’s also been, what, three and half years now that you’ve been ensconced in this?
Yeah. It was about two months before the strike.
In all that time, has your process for breaking down these books remained the same?
I’ve used the same system that I’ve had from the beginning. The only thing that’s changed a little is that I’ve involved Stephenie Meyer a little more in my process. I’ve used her as a resource more and more as I’ve gone along… and our relationship has developed over that time.

Melissa also briefly speaks about Breaking Dawn, and talks about the hit show she writes for Dexter! Read the rest here!