Elements of Rules

I think the book Elements of Style is inappropriately titled. It should be Elements of Structure or Rules. It's mostly a boring reference book to make sure you're following the rules of English sentence structure. When you want to make sure you have the right conjugate adverb with the correct subjugate noun, etc. Sure, it's handy...when you're writing a thesis! Actually, it probably won't have to do much with the screenwriting process, but other writing you may have to do. For example, a letter to a lawyer or a studio executive.

It better not apply to the screenplay or it'll contradict with one of the other books we got -- The Screenwriter's Workbook by Syd Field, which I'm 3/4 of the way through (good book). A movie script is mostly dialogue. In Syd Field's book he says "people don't talk in clear and elegant prose. People talk in fragments, run-on sentences...dialogue is not elegant prose or iambic pentameter." I can't wait for the class!