Do I need to have a Paypal account to send payment?

Nope. You can use your credit card. We use Paypal's services for our credit card processor. That means you can pay with your regular credit card OR with a Paypal account if you have one. There is no need to signup with Paypal. Re: INVOICES FOR LARGER ORDERS, we can invoice your company via Paypal, and you can pay that invoice online using your credit card or Paypal account. If for some reason you must pay by a regular check, we can send a regular invoice via email or snail mail. Unfortunately, no work will begin until the check has cleared.

Is my script safe? Will you steal my ideas?

We keep our writers' scripts and ideas 100% safe and secure, and we don't pass on your script or its ideas to anyone. Your script will be read by our reader and that's it. Nobody else will lay eyes on it. Our readers are screened for prior experience and trustworthiness, so your script and your ideas are absolutely, positively 100% safe in our hands. Lots of other coverage companies demand that you fill out a SCRIPT RELEASE FORM before they read and cover your script, but that's just to PROTECT THEMSELVES. NOT YOU. We've been in business since the late 1990's reading scripts and providing coverage. If we were in the business of stealing screenwriters' scripts and ideas, there's no way we would've stayed in business this long.

Can I request or re-request a specific reader?

How do I know if my script is under 120 pages?

I sent in a new draft of the same script for new coverage, but the second coverage is essentially the same as the first!

We warn all our writers who resubmit their scripts that if your script hasn't changed significantly, DO NOT RESUBMIT IT FOR COVERAGE. It's a waste of everybody's time. Changing some character names and revamping a scene or two doesn't mean your script is any different, nor that our synopsis and comments should be either. If you feel this is too harsh, try submitting the same script over and over again to an agency, actor, or production house and see what kind of response you get there.

I can't handle criticism. Should I order service from Screenplay Readers?

It's been a few days and I HAVEN'T RECEIVED MY COVERAGE!  What do I do?

Please make sure that your email program or webmail is not blocking or filtering out our email address screenplayreaders@gmail.com. If our email is being blocked by your spam filters, and you haven't left us a telephone number, we can't get through to you.  As a very last resort, if it's been a few days and despite our best efforts, we're still unable to get a hold of you, we may try to get your coverage to you by either snail mail (if you've provided an address) or by posting your coverage on a private folder on our website with the address of http://screenplayreaders.com/yourlastname  This page will have your coverage, as well as a reminder to unblock our email address from your spam filters and our office telephone number.

I have follow up questions about my coverage. What do I do?

We unfortunately don't pay our readers for follow-up questions, because, as you can imagine, we'd be rather inundated with such questions if we did, and would never get scripts read.

What are your credentials?

Our script analysts have worked for agencies such as ICM, CAA, Samuel Goldwyn Company, Roger Corman, Steve Oedekerk ("Ace Ventura," "Bruce Almighty"), Media Artists Agency and festivals such as the Silver Lake Film Festival and the Sundance Film Festival. Screenplay Readers consists of a solid team of extremely talented, experienced screenwriters, story analysts, script doctors, and filmmakers -- REAL PEOPLE who have REAL WORLD experience in dealing on both ends of the screenwriting angle.

Do your script readers rush?

Never. We may have an awesome general turnaround time (24-72 hours) but the readers DO NOT RUSH your coverage. And our turnaround time is only a general rule of thumb anyhow. We don't guarantee that your script will be covered within 72 hours, even though 99.99% of the time, it is!

We screen our script readers heavily, and pay them well. And we have a large team, so no script reader has more than one or two (max!) scripts on his or her plate at a time. Which means they're not just rushing through it just to make a quick buck and get to the next script.

Why should I have my script covered before I submit it to agencies / studios?

As a writer, you already know this - the competition for screenplay sales is huge. If your script is not up to professional industry standards, you simply cannot even compete. A spec script from an unknown writer is an almost impossible sell. You're up against writers that are already entrenched and making millions of dollars, why should any studio or production company or agent go with an unknown? When your script is submitted to an agency or a studio, it gets covered and likely entered into their tracking database. That means the details and quality of your script could be forever logged into a permanent database for the studio or agency to refer back to. If your script isn't the best it can be, and it's submitted, then your script is likely to be dead in the water at that particular agency or production house.

Will getting my script covered by Screenplay Readers improve my script?

No. That's up to you. What we offer is our honest, and sometimes brutal insight, which can sometimes be painful for you to hear. You may disagree with our coverage and analysis, but we will never just tell you what you want to hear. We believe the only way writers grow and become better writers is if they're willing to take a good hard look at what can be improved and be honest with themselves.

What exactly is a "coverage report?"

A film industry-standard coverage report is usually 1-3 pages and consists of three parts: (a) the basic information about the script (author, genre, page count, logline) and a brief ratings area for different categories of quality (plot, characters, setting, theme), etc. (b) a synopsis of the film usually up to a page in length, and (c) an analysis page, containing the reader's comments and opinions on the script's strengths and weaknesses.  Similar to coverages, but more comprehensive, script notes are much more detailed notes. SAMPLE SCREENPLAY READERS COVERAGE

Are you fair to the screenwriter in your coverage?

"Fair" to us means not sugar-coating our comments and notes. Yet, we try to be positive and keep our criticisms in the constructive realm at all times.  However, our notes can be brutal as well.  Remember - we love scripts and know what makes them work, but we're just people with opinions, just like you. 

My script received a RECOMMEND, CONSIDER, or PASS. What do these ratings mean?

Like most agencies or production studios, Screenplay Readers only RARELY gives a RECOMMEND rating to a script. Scripts which receive a RECOMMEND rating are exemplary in all categories. We've given out only a handful of RECOMMEND ratings the entire time we've been in business.

We give CONSIDER ratings to scripts which have great potential, but which need a bit more work to really shine and become worthy of a producer or agent's attention. This may mean the script needs stronger dialogue, a more clear plot structure, or simply just better formatting and spelling.

When we rate a script with a PASS, it doesn't necessarily mean we think the script is no good. It simply means our reader felt that the script needs a lot more work to make it marketable and sellable. For example, some scripts which receive a PASS may have a great concept and strong dialogue, but their plot structure may need a lot of work; others which receive a PASS may simply have a fabulous script, but an extremely over-used concept.

The reasons for a PASS run the gamut. But keep in mind three things if you've received a PASS rating on your script: 1) It's just our opinion. Feel free to get your script read at one of the other great coverage companies out there, 2) We give out more PASS ratings than any other type of rating, because we're very, very critical in general, and 3) We've given out only a handful of RECOMMEND ratings the entire time we've been in business.

Should I keep submitting my script to Screenplay Readers until I receive a RECOMMEND rating?

Absolutely not. Because it's not likely to happen. If we suspect you're resubmitting your script to us too soon, based on the scope of our comments and suggested fixes, we will let you know, and ask you to resubmit once you've really taken the time to make your script better, rather than just encouraging you to resubmit time and time again just so we can make a buck. We're here to build long-term relationships with our writer customers; not to make a quick buck.

If my script gets a CONSIDER or a RECOMMEND, will you pass it along to an agent or producer and/or help me sell it?

All we do here at Screenplay Readers is read screenplays and provide coverage. If you'd like to take a chance on one of the companies out there promising to read and cover your script and get it in the hands of agents or producers, PLEASE BE OUR GUEST. And let us know how it works out.

Can I just send an actual printed script via the regular US mail? I don't trust the internet for payments.

No. We no longer offer this service.

What is WGA Registration?

WGA Registration is an official way of letting the people who come into contact with your script know that there's a copy on file with the WGA. To register your script with the WGA, you send a copy of it to the WGA along with their requested fee, and they keep the script on file for a certain amount of time. This offers some minimal, basic protection in case of a dispute over your script, but not much. For more information, contact the WGA directly at http://www.wga.org

What are your office hours?  Do you work weekends?

We're a regular office with regular hours and we're in Mon-Fri, 9-5PM Pacific Time (Los Angeles, California). We're closed on all major holidays, and any minor ones we feel we can get away with.