Oh no! Another lawyer trying to be a screenwriter.

Movies, television, novels, and comic books—among other media—are popular because human beings are hardwired to consume and digest stories with clear beginnings, middles, and ends.

The same process occurs when a lawyer meets a client – the job is to assess the ‘story’ – its beginning, middle and end – and analyze the risks to your client, or in screenwriting, the risks (and rewards) your characters face. What are the stakes for your client/character?

A lawyer generally then lays out the case through due diligence and research which, for a screenwriter, becomes an outline and plot design.

Finally, a lawyer will provide his or her client with a deal structure, trial plan or some other general strategy – the full beginning, middle and end that defines the relationship, like the narrative structure of a screenplay.

And all along, a lawyer has to choose words wisely, just as a screenwriter has to be ever mindful of creating compelling dialogue.

There are certainly more than a few lawyers who have become screenwriters, directors, producers, and other creators, and I would argue (always a lawyer) that this has more to do with an appreciation of the power of words on paper than a disenchantment with the practice of law.

I could be wrong, of course—but I believe I’m right, because I have that appreciation.

Keep writing!