Screenwriting - Have something to say

What does it mean to have something to say?

When writing a story, you will invariably be putting stuff in there that presents an opinion.

Now the opinion revolves around a behavior.

A behavior in a specific situation.

Here's the wrong way to "say something"

you might say "Drinking alcohol is bad."

Now this opinion would be "messagey" "preachy" "propaganda".  Why?  Because it's general.

here's the right way to "Say something"  and to say it through multiple connected scenes.

"drinking Alcohol at your pals party is bad when your wife is at home alone and there is a killer on the loose in your neighborhood."
"drinking alcohol is bad when your driving."
"Drinking alcohol is bad when your supposed to be helping your kid with his homework"

Throw in a scene where drinking alcohol is good to balance it out.
A single guy, drinking alcohol, stops a man from beating up his girlfriend.
A single guy saying "thank god i was drinking or i wouldn't have found the courage to stop that asshole"


There is a time and a place for every behavior.  Your job is to show that balance.

An interesting aspect of writing is that you don't need to know what you want to say before you start.

As you show a character going after their goal, that character should be showing you his/her consistent behaviors.

Everytime he's takes another action toward reaching his goal he does what behavior?