Blake Snyder (October 3, 1957 – August 4, 2009) was an American screenwriter, consultant, author and educator based in Los Angeles who, through his Save the Cat trilogy of books on screenwriting and story structures, became one of the most popular writing mentors in the film industry. Snyder led international seminars and workshops for writers in various disciplines, as well as consultation sessions for some of Hollywood's largest studios. Snyder died unexpectedly August 4, 2009, of what was characterized as either a pulmonary embolism or cardiac arrest. A public memorial was held at the Writers Guild of America, West on September 29, 2009.