Though the cross-media is wide open with opportunity, I think it’s important for aspiring crosswriters to study and grow an intimate understanding of basic screenwriting before venturing into such a large undertaking as cross-media storytelling. The obvious reason is reflected in indy film; because independent film has become so accessible, filmmakers aren’t taking the time to learn how to tell a great story on the page, and therefore the sea of independent film has become watered down with mediocrity.

Here’s an amplification: Writing a feature-length screenplay as an amateur screenwriter is what designing and drafting a skyscraper more impressive than the Empire State Building is to an aspiring architect, and Writing a cross-media project as an aspiring crosswriter is what designing and drafting an entire city more impressive than New York City is to an aspiring architect.

So it all comes down to the second step. Read up. Study screenwriting in its basic form, and grow an understanding of what makes a great story before setting out for with a cross-media project … screenwriting, after all, is just one of the many parts that can make up a cross-media project.