3 Big Myths Script Consultants Love to Perpetuate

Script consultants are miffed. Some of them, at least. Because script coverage exists. And because screenwriters not only have a plethora of free feedback options (writers groups, online forums, etc.), they also have paid script coverage services like mine as a low-cost alternative to high-priced script consultant services. So many of those script consultants turn … Read more

How to carry your screenplays with you, wherever

Carrying a printed screenplay around is not an option anymore. Of course, you can do it, but what a pain! Imagine you’re at a backyard barbecue in Encino, visiting with some old friends and having some vegan ribs. Then your friends’ other friends show up. And the wife is one of the small handful of … Read more

7 Must-Have Screenwriting iPhone Apps for Screenwriters

A short list of essential screenwriting iPhone apps (and some for iPads as well) – apps which I believe should be a part of any discerning, elitist iPhone screenwriter’s library, if he or she hopes to continues to remain the better of, and more educated than, the peasants using all of those knuckle-dragging non-Apple devices.

How to get your screenplay under 120 pages

“I loved the movie Django Unchained, but the script was too long…” “The Dark Knight made us millions, but the script was 167 pages, so let’s not do that ever again…” …Said no one ever. Yet, if you’re lucky enough to get your script into the hands of someone who can make or break your … Read more

Persistence: How to make it as a screenwriter

Screenwriters are often malnourished. No, not in the food sense, but in the department of career orientation. Some ask “Can I make it as a screenwriter if I don’t live in LA?” (a question I answer in my article here). And some ask “What are the best day jobs for screenwriters? (which I offer some suggestions … Read more

How screenwriters can write more and write faster

Out of the 500 or so friends and family I have in my life, approximately 498 of them are screenwriters. And of those 498, exactly one of them actually writes screenplays.  The rest just want to.  Real hard.  Yet they don’t, because they  let everything else become more important, more distracting. Wait! SQUIRREL! Me on the other hand, … Read more

How to fail as a screenwriter

When asked what was the best way for an aspiring starlet to get into Hollywood, the legendary Bette Davis once famously replied “Take Fountain.” Her advice remains evergreen today, only now there are also a myriad other ways for starlets and screenwriters like us to “get into Hollywood,” so speak — that is, to make it … Read more

Why Introvert Screenwriters Need To Collaborate

Ever since I started writing, I’ve been an introvert writer. At first, out of necessity, then out of pure mimicry of the supposed lone, struggling artist banging away on his typewriter, then, as I got older, and time grew shorter, out of the desperate pursuit pure chronological efficacy. I’ve never been an introvert socially; just … Read more

Set Etiquette for Screenwriters

If you’re lucky/skilled/badass enough to have one of your screenplays optioned/bought and kicked into production, and if they’ve invited you to be a part of the experience of filming it, you might want to keep in mind, matey, the fact that thar be only a few things an on-set screenwriter is expected to actually, well, do.

Writers groups — the pros and cons for screenwriters

I’m a huge fan of writers groups. Screenwriting, like all writing, is mostly a very lonely endeavor.  One woman.  One word processor.  Or two, if you’re collaborating.  But ironically, the end goal of all screenwriting has traditionally been a stack of pages that get turned into a film that’s projected in front of a room … Read more

8 Great Characters All Screenwriters Should Emulate

The “ideal” screenwriter.  Is it an impossible thing to aspire to?  I argue such aspiration is not only possible, but mandatory. Being great as a screen scribe isn’t easy, but the path has been clearly illuminated by not only the words and worlds of the great screenwriters who came before us, but by their living … Read more

Is your ego keeping you from being a great screenwriter?

A screenwriter’s ego can be her greatest asset or her greatest liability. But are most screenwriters thinking about their screenplay, and how it will entertain an audience, or how it will provide jobs for hundreds of film industry folks, or how it will make money for the studio, or how it will leave a mark … Read more

Why Screenwriters Need to Move to LA

Yeah, the world is shrinking, and yeah you can use Zoom or whatever,  to communicate across the globe, but if you’re serious about screenwriting, you straight up need to move to Los Angeles. I hate to say it.  As it is, me and my wife sometimes can’t get to the beach, or over to a museum, or … Read more

Beware of companies selling “Hollywood access”

A friend I’ve known for 30 years stopped in for a few days, visiting from the UK. We’ve always been close, so he knew I ran a company that did something with screenplays, but didn’t know exactly what that meant.  So he asked, and I showed him how Screenplay Readers worked: Agents, writers, and producers … Read more

Screenwriters That Agents Love

If you’re a screenwriter looking to sign with a literary agent, you’ve probably got the basics down: you can tell a reasonably-entertaining story on paper, you’re a hard worker, and you’re a nice gal.  But, alas, it takes more than that to win the affections of an agent. Here are five things lit agents look for when … Read more

How to react to critical feedback on your screenplay

How you react to critical feedback on your script defines you as a screenwriter. It’s that simple. To be fair, there is such a thing as good critical feedback and such a thing as bad critical feedback, but a smart screenwriter will be ready to use either variety of feedback to their advantage. My company … Read more

How to get a recommend in your script coverage

Has your screenplay ever received a RECOMMEND when getting script coverage?  As a script analyst running my own script coverage company, Screenplay Readers, I’m constantly bombarded with questions from screenwriters and producers, but perhaps no question is asked more than: “What do I have to do to get my script rated as a RECOMMEND?” (As opposed … Read more

Screenwriter Day Jobs – What are the best ones?

There are screenwriters who write one script, mail it off to Hollywood, and sell it for $500k. And then there is the rest of us screenwriters with day jobs: working our butts off in the trenches, slogging through bills, slaving away at some soul-sucking day job so we can pay the rent and keep writing … Read more

The Top 5 Reasons Why Screenwriters Quit

As the owner of Screenplay Readers, interacting with dozens of writers on a daily basis, I’ve seen it time and time again – screenwriters simply giving up, and getting out of the business. It’s always a bit discouraging to see talented folks, and folks with potential, simply throwing in the towel when it comes to … Read more

Agency Script Coverage – Do agents even read the coverage?

So you’ve gone to all the trouble of writing a script, which you happen to think is the greatest little romantic comedy since they invented Romantic Comedies in 2018.  And you’ve gone to all the trouble of getting feedback on that script from friends, writers groups, and even paid for script coverage from a script … Read more

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