Ask yourself, what is the significance of Friday the 13th to you, and to your main character? This can be a powerful secret to give a hero or heroine to create more conflict. If a character regards Friday the 13th as a bad day, then everything they do will be fraught with hazard.
Our beliefs about what we are, or what we are not capable of, can be like superstitions — like the Russell Crowe character in L.A Confidential who believed he is too stupid to be a detective until the Kim Bassinger character shows him that it’s just not true.
What if the film, Run, Lola Run, had also been set on Friday the 13th? Would this have added even more tension?
I’m working on a book with a talented writer about a Olympic skater who believes that unless she has a special piece of jewelry that once belonged to a world champion, she won’t win.
Exercise: Is your character superstitious? What beliefs or superstitions are keeping your characters from achieving their goals in your screenplay?
