Christmas Movie Writer Starter Kit

Mmmm.

Yes indeed, the Christmas season is delish.

Because the Christmas season means it’s time to fill reindeer-style mugs with peppermint mochas.

It’s also time to fill your watchlist with Christmas movies…

…that put you into a festive spirit (perhaps making you feel as warm and cozy as if you were sipping a peppermint mocha *wink*).

Now, everyone has their own flavor of Christmas classic…

Maybe, for you, it’s:

• The Sound of Music
• The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
• Miracle on 34th Street
• Home Alone
• Elf
• Die Hard (yes, it IS a Christmas movie)

But if you’re like me, the kind of Christmas movie that really gives you the warm and fuzzies…

…is the cute & cozy Christmas romances you find on TV channels like Hallmark, Lifetime, and Great American Family.

Yep, you and your family—whether it’s your mother, sister, daughter, niece, or granddaughter—all agree: the time when new Christmas TV movies are released is one of the most wonderful times of the year.

For instance, you hear about Great American Family’s A Paris Christmas Waltz, which:

• is set in Paris
• features ballroom dancing
• stars Jen Lilley and Matthew Morrison (of Glee fame)

And your first response is, Can’t wait!

I mean, really. Is there anything better than…

…slipping on a pair of cozy socks (stamped with cute messages on the soles)

…curling up with a mug of hot cocoa piled high with cloud-soft marshmallows

…and relaxing with a charming Christmas romance movie, where everything is merry & bright, and a happy ending is guaranteed?

Well, there’s at least one thing better than that.

To write a Christmas TV movie of your very own.

By writing a Christmas TV movie of your very own…

…you could create a movie like the ones you love so much, a movie with heartwarming moments that bring you—and your family—joy.

This dream isn’t just about you, though.

Because the world needs stories like the one you’d love to write.

Stories that aren’t vulgar, threatening, or provocative…but are rather like a bowl of chicken noodle soup.

Cozy.

Comforting.

Uplifting.

While this has always been true, the coronavirus crisis highlighted that.

Now, more than ever, people need a cozy world to retreat into, a world where it doesn’t feel like the sky’s falling down.

How wonderful it would be if you were the one to create an experience like that!

You know what’s cooler still?

At the same time that you’re bringing more joy to the world, you’d also be making side income from the comfort of your own home.

How much can you make, exactly?

It depends on how your script gets made.

As a new writer, you might make something along the lines of $10,000 (or less). But as you develop a track record, you might make closer to $40,000.

Think of that.

Making money…to experience the magic of Christmas all year (not just in December…or in July *wink*).

Talk about dream come true for a stay-at-home mom…or a retiree looking for a fun project to work on.

So. To quickly recap, by writing a Christmas TV movie of your own, you’d:

• bring more joy to the world
• transform from entertainment consumer to creator
• be able to linger in the warm & cozy Christmas vibe year-round
• all while making some side income from home

Sounds as delicious as a snowball cookie, right?

Right now, you might even already have an idea for the Christmas TV movie you’d love to write.

Maybe you don’t have an idea yet, just the dream to write a Christmas TV movie of your very own.

Regardless, you don’t know what to do next, to bring your dream to life.

Maybe you’ve never read an entire screenplay. Maybe, you’ve never even seen one.

You have zero screenwriting experience.

And you have no clue where to start.

What you would really love is a roadmap.

That is, the rules of screenwriting and the rules of Christmas TV movies explained to you, step by step—in an encouraging way by someone who enjoys Christmas TV movies as much as you do.

That’s where the Christmas Movie Writer Starter Kit comes in!

That’s because, after you treat yourself to the Christmas Kit, you will get:

• a step-by-step roadmap to write a Christmas TV movie of your very own
• a variety of resources to make it easier to take action on each step (even if you have zero screenwriting experience)

Note: The roadmap and resources can be adapted to write a charming Christmas romance novel, instead of a movie.

You will enjoy…

• a step-by-step roadmap for how to write a Christmas romance movie (like the ones you see on Hallmark)
• 12 bite-sized lessons (so you can embark on this exciting writing adventure (a) without feeling overwhelmed and (b) while staying on top of your kids’ play dates as well as your grocery-shopping runs, church meetings, and other commitments)
• the Christmas Movie Creator worksheet (which will help you come up with a cute and cozy story idea that’ll fit right in with the Christmas movies on channels like Hallmark)
• a super-simple title hack (with it, you can quickly generate the perfect title that will boost the sales potential of your story)
• a plotting template/checklist (this way, you’ll know you’re hitting all the beats you’re supposed to)
• a casting yearbook (this will help you get to know your characters in a fun and easy way)
• a Christmas cheat sheet with 5 staple + 17 additional Christmas/wintery activities (so fulfilling your Christmas quotient is easy, breezy)
• a variety of progress trackers (so you can maintain your writing momentum)
• videos on screenplay format, including the “Write a Scene with Me” feature (learning the formatting rules doesn’t have to be scary or intimidating)
• an editing checklist with 38 common screenplay-writing mistakes (so you can identify and zap them from your script in a flash)
• a query template (so you’ll know exactly what to say when it comes time to sell your script)
• confidence and clarity about how to turn your cute movie idea into a real screenplay
• freedom to decide when you want to complete each lesson (once you buy, you get immediate access to all the content in the kit, which you can review at your own pace)

My personal fave is the casting yearbook (entitled “Alums of North Pole High”), while the plotting template and “Write a Scene with Me” feature are student faves :)

If you want a peek into the Christmas Kit, I can be your Santa Clause :)

Simply scroll down, until you reach the “Curriculum” heading.

There, you’ll find a list of all the lessons (+ printable goodies as well as other resources) that come with the Christmas Kit.

By the way, the resources that accompany each step in the roadmap are designed so you can take focused, practical action as quickly as possible.

In other words, you’ll learn—fast—what you need to do, and you’ll have a resource on-hand to help you do it.

However, it may take you longer to review the videos on screenplay format.

That’s because, to help you get a handle on that, there are:

• 3 videos (approx. 33 min. total) on the main elements of screenplay format
• 3 videos (approx. 35 min. total) from the “Write a Scene with Me” feature (where I show you how to put everything together by playing clips from a real Hallmark movie and explaining how the scene would look in screenplay format)

I spend time here so that, after you watch these videos, you’ll feel a lot more comfortable with screenplay format.

One more thing to know: you can treat yourself to the Christmas Kit without any risk.

If you decide the kit’s not for you, just let me know within 10 days of purchase. And I’ll process the refund without any hassle.

Hi. I’m H. R. D’Costa from scribemeetsworld.com (*waves hello*), and at the end of 2019, I was in a similar position as you.

Having just recovered from being sick, I didn’t want to watch anything stressful or taxing.

I wanted to relax with movies that were cozy and comforting. So I binged on Christmas TV movies. They were just what I needed at the time.

Since I enjoyed watching them so much, I wanted to try my hand at writing one.

Now here, I was at an advantage because I did have prior screenwriting experience.

Plus, after attending the “Winter Wonderland” panel at the Austin Film Festival, I had picked up a few tips from Karen Schaler (screenwriter of Hallmark’s Christmas Camp and Netflix’s A Christmas Prince).

But it wasn’t enough.

Because although I knew that Christmas TV movies played by a specific set of rules, I didn’t know what all those rules were. And I wanted them explained to me in a step-by-step fashion.

So I went looking for help.

Do you know what I found when I searched online for “how to write a Hallmark Christmas movie”?

Sarcastic, mocking articles written by people who didn’t share my love for the genre.

Talk about bait and switch!

Since I couldn’t find exactly what I was looking for, I realized I’d have to create it myself—and do the work of discovering the rules on my own.

So I applied the same strategy I had before.

You see, many years ago, I said good-bye to my full-tuition scholarship to law school, and instead, applied my analytical skills to another purpose—the art of storytelling.

Essentially, I embarked on a multi-year quest where I analyzed 100s of movies, screenplays, and novels in order to understand how great stories work (great as in audiences remain captivated from first scene until THE END).

I shared my discoveries on my website, Scribe Meets World; in my Ultimate Story Structure Worksheet (downloaded over 37,000 times by writers from around the world); and in 10 writing guides, including:

• Sizzling Story Outlines (voted #1 Plotting Tool by WritesWithTools.com)
• Story Stakes (which is a “must-have in your top 10 books on writing” according to one Amazon reviewer)
• Sparkling Story Drafts (which was praised as being “an essential roadmap for both new and veteran writers” by Elizabeth Spann Craig, award-winning blogger and bestselling author of 25+ cozy mysteries)

Deep-Dive Writing Guides by H. R. D’Costa

Of course, this time…it was a little different.

Because, this time, I applied those analytical skills to Christmas TV movies in order to uncover their hidden rules.

Additionally, I scoured the internet for articles (and obscure forum posts) on the making of Christmas TV movies.

And thus, the Christmas Movie Writer Starter Kit was born.

And that’s why I’m so excited to share the Christmas Kit with you.

I know it will make it easier for you to go from dreaming about writing a Christmas movie…to actually doing it!

Because, with the Christmas Kit…

…you won’t have to go through all the effort of hunting around, trying to find every insight possible into how to write a Christmas TV movie from scratch.

Instead, you’ll have a step-by-step roadmap for how to write a Christmas TV movie—plus resources that make it easier to take action on each step.

Imagine what your Christmas could be like next year, after you treat yourself to the Christmas Kit…

Next year, you won’t just be wearing cozy pajamas (or your Christmas Movie Watching sweatshirt) and sipping hot cocoa while watching Christmas movies on TV.

Next year, you could have written a Christmas TV movie of your very own!

Writers of all skill levels love H. R. D’Costa’s deep dives into craft, and have regularly praised her for her insight and clarity.

Writers such as Louis Schlesinger, Winner of the Thomas Wolfe Fiction Prize (2021), who said this about H. R. D’Costa’s writing expertise:

H. R. D’Costa’s writing tips are concrete and practical. Yet, they go deep—like the 90% of the iceberg that is below the surface.

More Praise for H. R. D’Costa

I just wanted to say thank you, H. R. D’Costa, for your amazing books on writing. They are a very important part of my writing process. Plus, I recommend them often to members of the Phoenix Screenwriters Association, especially when they need help with story structure, stakes, or outlining.

~ JESSICA BROWN, screenwriter and Board Member of the Phoenix Screenwriters Association (+ moderator of the Writers’ Insights Workshop and the Writers Lounge)

I’ve literally read a tall stack of “how to write” books and none of them really worked or helped me figure out the process. Fortunately, H. R. D’Costa’s books have been a tremendous resource. They’ve actually clarified everything for me. So helpful and easy to understand, too!

Now, with her writing guides, I feel more hopeful that I can write what I always wanted: a book that I can’t find in a bookstore, and that I would enjoy reading if I discovered it on the shelves.

~ DARIO SALCIDO; aspiring novelist, part-time TV and film actor, full-time Dog Dad

I have read all of H. R. D’Costa’s books, and I continue to re-read them, and they are the first screenwriting books I recommend to my fellow UCLA students and anyone wanting to master basic to complex story structure. H. R. D’Costa’s books have imparted such screenwriting knowledge to the depths of no other. I have 365 screenwriting books in my library, and while I learn from everyone, H. R. D’Costa, for me, is the BEST!

~ TJ FREEMAN; film & television writer, songwriter, actor, musician