About the Book:

Everyone loves a good "rom-com". Writing the Romantic Comedy is an easy-to-understand guide, which teaches that making a romantic comedy work is about much more than mastering the boy-gets-loses-gets-girl formula. It shows how all the best "rom-coms" follow a finely tuned seven-point plot structure and share elements that keep viewers watching and surprised even though the ending is usually clear.

From the slapstick shenanigans of Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant in Bringing Up Baby to the sexy repartee of Shakespeare in Love, romantic comedies have delighted filmgoers – and challenged screenwriters – since Hollywood's Golden Age. Whether you're a first-time screenwriter, an intermediate marooned in the rewriting process, or a professional wanting to explore the latest genre trends, this thoroughly charming and insightful guide to the basics of crafting a winning and innovative script will take you step by step through the "seven essential plot beats" from the infamous "meet cute" (the unique way you get them together) all the way to "joyous defeat" (the sexy complication turning point). You'll learn the screenwriting secrets behind some of the funniest scenes ever written; setting up an interesting and inventive story concept; how to create characters that get sparks flying, laughs that go deep, and dialogue that gets right to the heart; why some bedroom scenes sizzle and others fall flat; and much more.

When Billy Mernit proposed teaching a course on romantic comedy at the UCLA Extension Writers' Program, he was surprised to find that no textbook existed that specifically spoke to the mechanics of writing Hollywood's most enduring genre. So after teaching the course for a few semesters, he wrote one. Writing the Romantic Comedy was published in 2000 and it's been the definitive "rom-com" screenwriting text ever since. While the book is written with screenwriters in mind, Billy Mernit has also published twenty romance novels for Harlequin and Berkeley/Jove under a female nom de plume, so the elements work for any type of romantic comedy story, whether that is a novel, novella, or short story.

Written in a refreshingly accessible style and updated and expanded with 100+ pages of new material (including interviews with industry pros) to recognize the contributions of a fresh generation of romantic comedies, this 20th Anniversary edition of Writing the Romantic Comedy features case studies drawn from beloved romantic classics such as When Harry Met Sally, Annie Hall, Tootsie, and The Lady Eve to modern-day favourites including Hitch, (500) Days of Summer, Bridesmaids, and Silver Linings Playbook. Field-tested writing exercises are also included, guaranteed to short-circuit potential mistakes and ensure inspiration.

What people say:

"I had the story, but I was really struggling with the cinematic structure of it ... Then my friend said you should read this book Writing the Romantic Comedy by Billy Mernit, and it just unlocked the whole of the romcom structure for me. I had a moment of sudden understanding that I needed the seven beats within a romantic comedy that Billy has come up with. It's actually a book all screenwriters should read." — Tess Morris, writer: Man Up

"Writing the Romantic Comedy is so much fun to read it could pop a champagne cork." — Alexa Junge, writer-producer: Friends

"Moving well beyond generic pronouncements and 'rules', Billy Mernit's specific, well-tested exercises guide writers to create real, personal, credible characters and plots that speak to the romantic in all of us." — Linda Venis, Director, UCLA Extension Writers' Program

"Insightful, thorough, and easy to use, this step-by-step guide expertly balances the craft and the art of writing the romantic comedy. Billy Mernit really knows his stuff, and after reading this book, you will too." — Stephen Mazur, Co-Writer: Liar, Liar and The Little Rascals

About the Author:

Billy Mernit is known as "the guru of rom-com" for his best-selling screenwriting textbook, Writing the Romantic Comedy. He was a Distinguished Instructor at the UCLA Extension Writers' Program, and is a frequent guest speaker at writing conferences. During his many years in the entertainment industry, he has worked as a script consultant and served as a story analyst for Universal Studios, Sony, and Paramount; written for NBC's Santa Barbara.