Happy new beer

Hi Everyone,

I just wanted to post a little thank you to you guys and to wish you all the best for the year ahead. Personally my biggest goal is to make writing my sole source of income and by that I mean that I really hope that this time next year I don't have a crappy "real" job like I do now.

Whatever your goals for the year ahead and however you try to make them happen please bare in mind that you have to work hard and keep going no matter what, that is how you get there.

HAPPY NEW YEAR.

Write on

Dave The Screenwriter

Making it in the year 2012

Hi guys,

Thanks for coming to read my end of year blog spectacular. I have missed my blogging activities this year, mostly I just didn't have time (see the story of my six scripts in a year below) but now I'm back and not only that but I'm inspired to blog like a mofo. Basically if you do anything like a mofo then that's good, I think.

It has come to that time of the year where I take stock of the time that has passed and of course make plans and goals for the next 12 months. Some are personal, some are professional, some are desires more than goals, what I'm about to share are my film/writing and sporting goals for 2012, I hope you enjoy this glimpse into my mind at this particular time in my life.

WRITING GOALS
Writing is the biggest part of my life, it's not a job, a chore or a pain in the ass, it's also not a hobby. I love writing and the goal is to make it my career, to make cash from writing, just a little cash, enough to survive and live on... and drink beer with my friends with. Here are my 2012 writing goals.

I want to land a manager at very least in 2012, my writing is up to a very good level right now and I think I can be a valuable client to a manager, not least because I want to work more than anything else, so I'll churn out the projects (and collect lots of pay checks!).

Goal number 2: I have a crazy idea that I'm going to write a book that sell a million copies ... but if I make selling a million copies my goal then I'd be disappointed with 100,000 sales so my target is 1,000 book sales in 2012. The book isn't written yet so I am targeting a release in February (I know, I'm fucking crazy. Heard it all before dudes).

Goal 3: The oblig I'm going to write X amount of scripts this year goal. Last year I set my goal at three and wrote six, this year I have a book to write too and movies to make and a desire to travel more than I have this year, so with that being said my goal for the number of scripts (spec) I will write this year is THREE. THATS RIGHT MOFO, THREE. I am also open to 45 writing assignments!

Goal 4: Kinda crazy and totally out of my control in many ways BUT I'm going to make winning an award a goal for 2012. Now I'll be an author in 2012 as well as a screenwriter so that opens me up to lots of awards. Obviously I'd love to win the PAGE awards or something pretty big like that but any old award will do ... as long as it comes with a statue and a lot of hot chicks.

Goal 5: Purely from writing, various kinds of writing I'm going to make a financial goal for the first time ever... that goal is $10,000 US ... I've never made a financial goal going into a new year before, but the times they are a changing!

That's all, 5 little tiny goals that could change my life in more ways than seven. If in 365 days I have met all of these goals then it'll be a pretty good year... but I'm not done yet.

GOALS THAT DON'T HAVE NOTHIN' TO DO WITH WRITING
Couple of fun ones for the kids out there.

I want to meet at least one of my heroes in 2012... I could type a list of those who would qualify but I would be here all day. Lot's of movie people, lots of sporting people, lots of amazing people ... If I met Martin Scorcese I'd be happy!

Fun Goal number 2 (more of these later)
I want to own a double neck guitar.... I really really really want to own one.

BEFORE I TURN 30 GOALS
Yes, that's not a typo, I'm going to be 30 on April 25 2012 *insert frowny face*. I'm looking on it as a reason to do all the crazy shit that I've always wanted to do but always chicken out of... lets do these things.

THE TAT
Since I was 18 I've been saying that I wanted a tattoo and I think I'm ready to get it done, I want a Gibson Les Paul on my right forearm with Rn F'n R (Rock n Fuckin' Roll) scrawled underneath it (probably in courier new 12pt!). No more being a wimp, just do it.

THE MARATHON
HOLY SHIT I'M GOING TO BE 30 and it feels kinda right that I run a marathon, I"ve never run more than ten miles in my life and even that was a long time ago... however I plan to win a marathon before I turn 30.

RECORD BREAKER.
FUCK THIS, I always wanted to be in the guinness book of records and I've never broken a world record (They don't count most awesome dude in the world)... so by APRIL 25 I will break a world record ... suggestions on which record will be happily laughed at.

UNEMPLOYED!
No, I have no desire to be unemployed, what I do have a desire for is not to work in a shitty job anymore. I want to write for a living, and make movies for a living and if possible to be a full time model of sexiness ... shouldn't be too hard... I have 4 months to make this happen ... this is the most important goal of 2012.

BACK TO THE MOVIES
In January I'm going to make a movie, it's a cheap movie that we are going to shoot in just one day ... a week later the final cut will be finished and a month later you'll be able to buy it on AMAZON and on a special film specific website... I'm serious, this is less of a goal and more of a this is going to happen so get your fucking money ready, it'll cost you $19.99 on Amazon OR JUST $14.99 ON MY WEBSITE!!
All sales will help the making of a new movie.

TOTAL MOVIE MAKING GOAL
Self funded indie specials, I WANT TO MAKE THREE MOVIES, each paying for the next. I have a plan that is top secret but my brother knows it.

INDIE FILM STUDIOS
Yeah, studios. I never understood why it cost so much to make a movie, I never agreed that it was an elite business and I'm hoping to start a studio type business where people can come to our locations, make their movies and we'll be able to help with distrib and marketing etc... also use our equipment and expertise... the only expenses people will have for this is to pay 50% of the budget of their movie... be that $5,000 or $50,000.. This is my big dream goal, the profit from my writing sales and movie sales will go into making this happen.

Thats pretty much it, except for the personal goals which include learning to play some kickass songs on guitar, buying a new car, extending my blu ray collection, extending my guitar collection, getting some drums and meeting my wife ...

Whatever happens I'm just going to have a fucking great year as best as I can and I hope that you guys do too!

If I can just give you a couple of tips for the year ahead then these will be them:
1, No matter what happens, always look on the bright side of life.
2, Never give up on yourself or your dreams, just work hard.
3, Surround yourself with people who make you smile.
4, Every now and then imagine you have everything you ever wanted and enjoy the feeling.
5, No matter what happens, do whatever it takes to enjoy yourself.

Write on and on and on

Dave The Screenwriter

The year is 2011

This year began, like others before it on January 1st but for me at least this was probably the only thing about 2011 that would be the same as all of the years that preceded it. The following flow of words will describe the highs and lows and even the in betweens of the year for me, Dave the Screenwriter and optimistic dreamer.

If you've gotten this far then you must be interested in how an "aspiring" screenwriter spends his 12 months and so I will try to enlighten you and entertain a little as we go but I must warn you at this point that there may be many many swear words, tasteless jokes, lots of bitching and some self appreciation along the way. Also the word aspiring is stupid, you either are a screenwriter or you aren't as my hero Kevin Smith was once told by his sister "stop aspiring to be a writer and just be a fucking writer".

The start of the story that is 2011 actually begins in November 2010, I was fortunate enough to be at a pro series event in Hollywood where along with 20 other writers I was brought to Warner Bros, Universal and Paramount to listen to producers, writers, directors and waitresses who all work in the Hollywood system. At the end of the trip we all got to pitch ONE script that we had been prepping for months ... I went instead with an outline for a page 1 rewrite and gave it my best shot. The great thing about not having 100 pages written at that point where I was pitching producers was that I could change my pitch mid sentence to engage the producers, I could make my script fit them because it wasn't written yet (they didn't know that but one producer did say to me that he knew I was still only 90% finished the script!).

At the event I had my script requested four times, which was a great result and thought me that I'm good at pitching, and that having an Irish accent can help you pitch to LA producers who love Irish people! The greatest breakthrough I had though on the whole trip was in my hotel room while speaking to my roommate Gary. We spoke about what kind of scripts we wanted to write and what kind of writers we are, while I was telling Gary that I like dark humor but I'm more of a thriller writer who laces scenes with a light layer of humor a voice in my head started screaming at me "YOU"RE A FRICKIN' COMEDY WRITER ASSHOLE" and so the choice was made, I would be a comedy writer forevermore.

When I got home to Ireland I let December pass me by, I decided that I was going to be a comedy writer and the first comedy script I'd write would be the dark comedy Hit-man script that I had pitched in LA, but I wouldn't write it until I got a copy of Final Draft (that's write I was writing on CeltX up until then, something I regret now that I'm an FD stalwart). Final Draft did arrive shortly after the turn of the year, so did a brand new notebook and a shiny new pen... time to be the writer I was born to be.

So I set about writing and completed the script within a week, read it, liked it, sent it to friends who also liked it for the most part and only suggested minor changes (all of which were made because they were brilliant suggestions *Gardner Grout's in particular had been on my mind before he said anything) Then I sent out the requested copies, pitched some more people and got some more requests... I was certain that this was going to be my year.

As happens with any script you submit in this business it was quite a while before I heard back from anyone but when the comments came back they were pretty much all the same (mostly from managers) they read "This is a great script, really funny at parts with great dialogue, great character and evidence of a very talented writer, BUT the story is too dark for us but please come back to us again with anything else that you have" and there was the problem, I didn't really have ANYTHING else. Sure I had some scripts but they were not what I wanted to send out, they were practices! So I made a decision that I wouldn't pitch for the remainder of the year and for that year I would write like a  mofo and round out the year with three new comedy scripts that I could present whenever any said "so, what else you got?" So I began to write what would become a mountainous library of 2011 work (slight exaggeration!).

The first script I decided to write (which was the second I wrote in the year, keep up will you) was an American Pie inspired comedy which I'll describe like this: The three hottest girls in school decide to make a fortune selling their dates to the prom, they get the three nerdiest guys in school to set up an auction site to sell their dates but don't expect the guys to set up their own site selling access to hidden cameras in the girl's rooms. I loved writing that script because I had such a blast writing funny scenes between two polar opposite groups: Hot popular girls and nerdy loser guys. I loved developing the romance between the lead girl and the lead guy and how the fallout of their relationship ruined both plans and how I got to use writing this movie as a excuse to watch REVENGE OF THE NERDS 1&2 as "research". And there it was, I had begun to be the comedy writer that the world needed me to be but although I was happy with the script, really happy with it in fact I was barred from pitching it to anyone until Jan 1st 2012 so I better keep writing.

Next up came a short film, I'd already made two (NEEDS & FATE) and really enjoyed them, I loved working with the actors and I needed to do it again, so I wrote what I felt was a short homage to Reservoir Dogs, called it "Honor Of Thieves" and it was a pretty good shoot but I was not completely happy with the final product so I did not send it out, maybe I'll pst it on YouTube someday.

After that distraction I had to get back to writing and I was still in love with filming, so I bought a camera, a good camera, it cost me $1,000 it better be frickin' good! I spoke with my brother about making a movie, not a short, not a half our special a full length movie film. We decided to give it a shot and I decided that I had just the story to tell, the script is called WALK ON and is about John, a soccer obsessed dude who loves his team more than his girlfriend until she makes him choose. The script is pretty good, I sent it to my actors, I even auditioned some new people I cast some people I was ready to go and then the person I cast in my lead actress role pulled out just days before the shoot was to begin ... best advice I can give is NEVER WORK WITH YOUR FRIENDS. That collapse of the shoot set me back a small amount of cash and a lot of time, but like I learned in LA, "go with the flow" and you'll be fine.

So I got right into a new script, one that I'd been thinking about for a while, one that I knew there would be a lot of me in, one that I thought was going to be AMAZING. I called it THE WINNER and it's about a writer who is obsessed with Slash from guns n roses and has been working on a biography of the axe man for years (Stop laughing, it's pure coincidence that I'm a huge Slash fan, honest, okay maybe I wrote that part of the character just so that I could meet Slash when he does his cameo at the end!), Anyway Simon (the writer) gets ditched by his girlfriend as he proposes and the next day wins the lottery. Simon is upset but his friend Eddie drives him to forget the bitch by hiring a hot assistant, who he does indeed fall in love with... Clare tries to win him back but he now knows what true love is and there's also a whole thing about a store called Guitars and Strippers which is pretty funny! I did get coverage on this from a few sources, my favorite quote from the coverage was "The Winner is a very funny script, if it was just about being funny then this script would be really successful..." I've ready that quote a million times since I got that coverage back and I've been rewriting that script for a while to the point where I know that in January that it will be the one script I lead with because it's a very funny read apparently and the "characters are great, the dialogue is great and the writing is very very good" (that's another quote! and yes I'm showing it off because I can!)

Sometime around the writing of THE WINNER the Page awards were handing out condolences to losers but I got myself a birth into the second round for THE HIT-MAN which was so cool because I have only ever entered 2 contests, The Nichols fellowship a couple years ago and this years Page awards, I was so happy to make the second round that I started planning what I would do with the prize money, but I didn't make the next cut ... However making the second round was AWESOME!

I should also say at this point that I had taken THE HIT-MAN and submitted it to Amazon Studios early in the year, it was not a comedy script (kinda dark comedy but it appears to be too dark for anyone in Hollywood to take on) and that meant that it is there's until 2013, anyway only about seven people have read it and most have said nice things about it, check it out if you like. http://studios.amazon.com/scripts/8013

After THE WINNER came back with such good reviews I tried to get WALK ON back up and running but again I was halted by people not being available or not wanting to do it anymore and stuff of that nature. So I wrote another script (if you've been counting then you should be on FIVE for the year so far) This one is called MY TWO INTERNET GIRLFRIENDS and is pretty much what you think it is, a guy from Dublin has two girls online that think he's a wealthy doctor who is going to be their knight in shining armour. Of course he isn't a wealthy doctor at all, he's a loser who works in a video store (not that all people who work video store's are losers, just this guy!) His world is thrown in to turmoil when both of his online honeys come to Dublin for a weekend, the same weekend ... he learns the difference between love and lust and how being yourself is better than pretending to be something that you're not.

Good coverage on that script too and the great thing about it is that it could be made on a small budget or a big one, so I have though about us making it ourselves, I have a list of potential actors and actresses who could play the part and all I need is about $100,000 ...

I had been discovering lots of cool film stuff throughout the year and the most interesting to me was the idea of shooting a real time movie, ie the whole thing takes place in one location for an hour and a half and you shoot one big long take, maybe two takes if you want to be fancy! So I thought about it and came up with an idea for a 24 hour shoot, a movie about a guy and a girl who are one a date watching movies at his house when she chokes on a peanut M&M and dies but rather than call an ambulance the guy calls his friend, who convinces him that they have to dispose of the body or spend the rest of their lives in prison. A night of crazy goings on follows and the script is fun, if a little gross out - I'm planning to get everyone together in early Jan 2012 and shoot it, we'll also sell the crap out of it online in order to raise funds for a really good attempt at making MY TWO INTERNET GIRLFRIENDS.

So that was my writing year, more or less. It contained SIX new scripts that did not exist on Jan 1st, it contained TWO failed attempts at making a movie, it contained one short film and a lot of notebooks, it was a great year and now it's almost over my thoughts have turned to the future.

2012 will start with submitting scripts again, calling producers again with my heart beating out of my chest again hoping that I have just what they're looking for at that particular moment. I can't wait! Undoubtably 2012 will bring new scripts into my life, new characters and witty dialogue, maybe even a nude scene or two but whatever it does bring, I'm ready. My year of writing and not submitting is finally nearly over, I've proved to myself that I am the comedy writer I was always fighting against being and I am a good writer, now I just need to find my manager and a producer who wants to work with a good writer. It'll happen in 2012, I 'll have movies out in 2012, I'll write better than ever in 2012, I'll sell in 2012, I'll be ready everyday of 2012, I'll be proactive in my career in 2012 but most importantly in 2012 I'll be turning 30... scary!

Write on and happy holidays guys

Men CAN multi task

As I'm getting to a crucial point in my screenplay I will make this a short post but one that I think will be important for many.

As I lay in bed this morning plotting the paths of my two central characters through the midpoint I got to thinking about how much more work I could churn out, then I realized that it's still only half way through March and I've already done more this year that some will in the entire 12 months. Now I'm not being arrogant or vein or anything like that, I just get a lot done in a short amount of time. Since January 1st (4th really due to celebrations of the new year) I have written a full feature length project, written/directed/edited and submitted a short film, outlined two feature length documentaries (which will be shot over the summer), outlined and am currently writing a second feature length spec (which I will shoot over the next 3-4 months) ... and I have a whole social life thing going on too!

I'm one of those people that always has to be doing something, I don't really watch mind numbing TV, I only watch a few shows (Boardwalk Empire, Curb your enthusiasm and Dexter) and sports! I listen to music while I write, I read one or two scripts a day, and several blogs. I keep active on several internet sites, I have friends around the world that I communicate with everyday and I have a couple of businesses that I help run. Oh and a job, I have a job too.

So how do I get all the film work I get done done? Simple, I never stop working, right now as I type this I'm thinking about the scenes I'm writing straight after this post is complete, I'm thinking about how by the end of the day I should be entering the third act and I'm listening to an itunes mix that includes Velvet Revolver, James Brown, John Lee Hooker, Rory Gallagher, Bon Jovi, Foo fighters and Guns N Roses.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that multi tasking is essential to getting the work done, and don't tell me that men can't multi task, look at all the stuff I'm doing!! I haven't even mentioned that I'm always planning the next step, the project that will happen once the current one ends. 

So I say to you dear reader of my blog, don't write a script - write a script, a tv pilot, a radio show, a play, a book, a comic, a graphic novel, a song, an advert, a speech... anything at all just keep your mind occupied. Soon you'll find that everything you do will become revolved around writing and you'll be a better writer because your focus will be writing that one script that will make this a career and not just a dream.

I hope that made as much sense to you as it made to me !

Write On!

Dave TheScreenwriter

I'm Back!

Hello dear reader,

Apologies for the long gap since my last post, I have in actual fact been hugely busy and I had to let something slip, that something was my blog. In the couple of weeks I have been away I have learned many things and I will pass some of them onto you right now.

First thing I learned was that if you don't ask then you don't get. I remember my dad telling me that years ago when I was just a shy little boy, turns out he was right. This past week I contacted one of the biggest sporting organizations in the world and asked them if I could possibly have access to their stadium and offices for the purpose of shooting a couple of scenes for my impending debut feature film. The response I got was positive and they were engaging, they wanted to know more and asked what they could do to help, they still have not said yes but I'm hoping that they will in the next week or two.

So I got the "lets ask everything I can ask for" bug. So the people I'm buying my camera from have been asked for a hefty discount, every company I have every heard off have now been asked for a donation to www.indiegogo.com/3projects1year ... I'm asking and when you ask you'll find that very few people will say a straight out no, most will ask what else they can do to help.

I've also been reaching out to the film community at large, I got a great opportunity to write a Guest Post for the brilliant Film Courage with Karen Worden and David Branin, which is a site that I habve loved and respected for a while now... ever since fellow PSA Jeanne Bowerman was a guest on the show (I always support fellow PSA appearances and events, they're usually open me up to something very cool!) http://filmcourage.com/content/cheapskate-one-man-crew is where you can find my slightly rushed post but I think it has some merits.

I've been writing a lot too, I got the script for my feature off to a flying start with 36 pages rolling in over 2 days ... I had done a lot of prep before that but still 36 in 2 days is impressive even for me! I've also been writing concepts, I've had a glut of good concept ideas and they simply had to be written out and developed... right now if I was idle I'd have six features ready to go, I could start writing them now if I so chose!

And finally the last thing I want to say for today is that I learned that people want to work with talented hard working people, I've had requests from people to keep them in mind when I have projects rolling and I was blown away by that more than anything else.

Ok I have to get back to writing now but I leave you with this very obvious but also somewhat profound statement: The more you work the more you will achieve!

Write On!

Dave The Screenwriter.

PS don't forget that you can always email me about anything at all ... dthescreenwriter@aol.com

FOCUS

This morning as I hit the treadmill for a jog and listened to a mixture of rock tracks I noticed that I was doing something that I should blog about, no not exercising, that sucks I recommend it to nobody! I was planning, and what I was planning was my film (which I have not written yet, simply outlined) being screened at Sundance! Why Sundance? Well all of my favorite directors have a history with Sundance and I want to be part of that list, Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez, Kevin Smith, Dave TheScreenwriter... that list sounds good to me.

Now before any says "oh, you were daydreaming", I wasn't I was actually planning the shoot, organizing the timing of the post, trying to figure out who will play the sexy journalist and where I'll shoot the break up scene. When I had finished with the treadmill I hit the net to find out the late deadline for submissions to Sundance(Sept 26th) and then figured out that due to my current geographical difficulties I would have to finish the final cut by September 10th... which is 7 months away.

So 7 months to write, cast, rehearse, film and cut a feature length movie? Crazy? Watch me do it! You see you may have noticed that I'm kinda driven, focused, determined, obsessed or whatever you want to call it... If I can shoot an eight minute short in one day just nine days after it was written then I can pull of the Sundance miracle! BUT I need help, funding is the problem with getting these things done fast look to the side of this page and you will get more info on my funding proposal or just click on this link http://www.indiegogo.com/3projects1year?a=88034&i=addr .

I know that I'll be standing in Park city come Sundance next year, (submission accepted or not I'll be there!) and I know I'll be in Cannes this year (yeah I made the decision) and I'll be standing at both of these festivals with my head held high, knowing that I belong. The reason I know I'll be there and belong is that for a long time it has been my focus, my goal to make myself a valuable part of the movie industry and now that focus and drive is paying off.

So fix yourself a goal, focus on it, drive towards it, become obsessed and stride to where you truly belong. A big factor in being a film professional is focus, it has to be the one thing you have to do and everything you do should be for the end goal... focus, focus, focus.

Don't forget that you can email me for any reason especially if you want to ask for a certain topic to be covered in a blog post.

Write On!

Dave The Screenwriter

Screenwriting... activate!

Are you waiting for something to happen or are you MAKING it happen? People have said to me in the past that it's not as easy as making your mind up and suddenly it's done. Well that may be true but does anyone really think that simply calling yourself a screenwriter is all it takes to have a successful screenwriting career?

Personally I work on many projects at a time, I call people, attend evens, write a blog, connect with groups via Facebook, twitter and email. If you are simply writing then you're only doing half the job. As I write this I'm contemplating bringing my latest short film to the Cannes Film Festival and finalizing the edit of that film and trying to promote http://www.indiegogo.com/3projects1year ... to  me that feels like three full time jobs, did you notice that I didn't mention writing in that?

Writing is something that I simply do, I couldn't live without it and without it I wouldn't be doing any of the other things I'm doing. Oh and just to let in in on a secret, I have a "real" job too! I've told you before about how I extended my waking hours to include more writing time but now I find that my writing time has become "Film project time" that could be writing, editing, contacting, pitching or learning (Yes, even the great Dave the screenwriter still tries to learn something new EVERYDAY).

And so the point of this mini blog entry: Screenwriting is just the start, the beginning of something much bigger that includes much more work. Of course you can disregard that if you never want anyone to read your scripts! I love the work, I love the industry, I love the people I know within the industry. I dream about the big room at Paramount, the Jack Wolf building at Universal, the large Bugs Bunny outside the Warner Bros. If you don't like the work, the people, the industry or the way it all fits together then maybe you are not a writer... maybe you're a producer!!

Write on!

Dave The Screenwriter

Oh and please check this out and help us if you can http://www.indiegogo.com/3projects1year thanks!
And another thing ... email me about anything dthescreenwriter@aol.com

Which one will be for you?

There are literally millions of ways to approach a film career, but first you need to know what you really want to be. Ok so you want to be a writer? What kind? For who? Are you happy writing for a low budget company that will keep coming back to you or are all of your scripts "tent-pole events"?

I know this touches on branding a little bit but it is important to know your exact goal. Don't worry you can change your goal at any time, but if you don't have one other than "I want to sell a script" then something is wrong. So what's so wrong with wanting to sell a script? Nothing, its a great idea but once you've done that what happens? I'll give you an example: A soccer player signs for Barcelona, he's always wanted to play for Barcelona but is that the en of his goal? No, he wants to score goals, win cups, break records etc etc etc. So what about you, do you have more goals that just making that one deal?

I've spoken to a lot of writers who say that they want that first deal and when I ask "then what?" they just say "I'll do it again" or "and then see what happens". Now personally I've just changed my goals, the path my career is on is about to take a huge change in direction but the ideas I've had have always been along the lines of: Sell a script - work with the producers to make a great movie - write on assignment - write newer and better scripts - get a manager and agent - make the manager's/agent's work EASY by being professional and easy to work with - get a higher level producer on board - make a better movie - become a respected pro - keep climbing the industry ladder -  write for a tv show - create a tv show - direct a movie - become a studio's go to guy - get a star on the Hollywood walk of fame. At any point in my plan can you see a mention of money, buying a big house or a fancy sports car? No, and the reason is because my job is to write... nothing else!

So that's today's blog, and the advice is to be yourself, find your own way and do it you own way. For the sake of yourself make a plan, you don't have to follow it and you can change it whenever you like but simply "do it all again" is not enough.

Remember if you fail to plan you plan to fail - crap I'm starting to sound like my Dad!

Write On!

Dave The Screenwriter

Make it happen

Let me ask you this simple question... who has the key to Hollywood for you? Is it Christopher Nolan? If you could only get your script to Natalie Portman would you be straight on the A list? Do you also believe in the tooth fairy? Bottom line, you are the only person who can make your dreams come true.

Easy to say right? The biggest problem I see with "aspiring" writers is that they expect that Hollywood will hunt them out, will knock on the door and hand them a check, simply not gonna happen bub! Being a screenwriter is NOT a get rich quick scheme, it's not a lottery ticket but so many people think that it is.

Last week I was handed a story by a guy I would call a very casual acquaintance, he told me that I was going to love it and that it was amazing. He later went on to tell me how we were going to make this film and distribute it worldwide all by ourselves and make 100's of millions of Dollars, alarm bells were ringing in my head. So I took the story, more out of courtesy than anything else and despite it looking like a twelve year olds homework I read it. I read a page and I was already struggling, there was no story it was as if he'd sneezed every idea he had onto a page and handed it to me in the hopes that I'd make his movie career.

And so a few days later I bumped into this "writer" again, he asked me what I thought of his story and as I told him that it wasn't ready to be a movie, that he needed to work on it for more than five minutes. His smile changed to a frown right in front of my eyes, I thought he was going to cry but instead he went on a rant about how I don't know a good thing when I see it and that he'd sue me if I ever made a film from the story that he wrote.

As I tried to encourage him and tell him that if he wants to be a writer that I would teach him the basics but that he would have to commit to it and work very very hard. He told me to "get lost" but in less nice terms and then proceeded to tell me that he really thought that I would have told him that it was great and that we'd go into production and make millions!

So the point of this blog? I see something like this nearly every week, people who see the film business as a route to fame and fortune within a very quick timeframe. Well it just isn't like that, this is a business and in order to make the big money and have the big profile you need to work hard, work hard and work hard. As the great A.C Lyles told me at Paramount recently "To make it in this business you need to be three things, obsessed, obsessed, obsessed!"

So please, don't think that this is a get rich quick scheme, it's a business and like any business the harder you work the more you'll get out of it.

Write On!

Dave The Screenwriter

OH and BTW on the right you'll see an ad for my crowd funding project, if you have a couple of spare bucks then check it out and become part of independent film history!

Good Luck.

indiegogo

<iframe src="http://www.indiegogo.com/project/widget/19428?a=88034" width="210px" height="400px" frameborder="1" scrolling="no"></iframe>

Just do it

Yesterday I stood on the set of my third short film, exactly one year ago to the week I shot the first of my short trilogy. The thing that stood out yesterday for me, aside from how great my cast were was that I was finally getting the hang of this directing thing. Before I shot the first short I would have told you that I was no director, that I was merely a writer and that I didn't really have it in me to direct anything.

On set of the first shot (which I also played a small part in) I was nervous, unsure of my actions, scared to give proper direction... I was a writer who was trying to be a director. That film "Needs" went on to screen at just one film festival where it was nominated for best international short... needless to say I danced all around the house and did a cartwheel or two when I found out about the nomination.

So second time around I was much more confident and had a clearer idea of how to direct the people I had into giving the performances I wanted. It went well, everything turned out as I wanted and the shoot was easy as pie and even though I had what was pretty much a lead role I felt like I was now not just a writer directing, I was a writer/director.

Then came yesterday's shoot... more actors... more scenes... more headaches! This time though I was not playing a part, I had my director hat on (I don't really have an actual directors hat, donations of such are very welcome!) and I felt so confident. I positioned the cameras, positioned the actors, walked them all through what I wanted and I got the results. As I stood behind the camera and watched the action unfold I couldn't help but feel that I was finally a director, I was no longer just a writer who tried to direct.

And the point? Well a year ago I was a writer... now I'm a writer director with an award nomination behind me for what I consider my least well made film. If you can challenge yourself to do something and face that challenge head on, really embrace it and do your best at it then you too can improve leaps and bounds. Whether it be screenwriting or directing or painting fences if you want to get better at it then do it more often. JUST DO IT!

And if you think that you  could never direct, you don't have those skills, you're a writer and that's fine with you... A year ago I felt the same, now I'm a confident writer/director who is getting ready to take on the world... are you going to come with me?

Finally, here's my advice to you: If theres something else you would really like to do but feel that you could never do it TRY IT ANYWAY. What is the worst that could happen? You never know you might just be discovering your calling in life, your hidden talent or you could simply be making yourself more marketable. Either way have fun doing whatever you do.

Write On!

Dave The Screenwriter

practice what you preach

As you know I talk a good game! I tell everyone to work hard, sleep less and work more etc etc ... but do I practice what I preach? Yes is the simple answer. Right now you may be alarmed to know I'm working on lots of projects, I have this blog that I want to service at least once a day. I have a feature script that is soooo close to being ready that I have to fine tune, I have a graphic novel that I'm writing, a tv pilot and I'm not even done with that much. I also have a very ambitious three project crowd funding plan http://igg.me/p/19428?a=88034&i=shlk which I'll be running the campaign for over the next two months, and finally I have a short film in production that I'm writing and directing that will be shot tomorrow.

Oh and I have to enter film festivals and competitions too, all while staying active on the phones to people, keeping my online presence up. It can be hard work to find the time to work on all of these projects but I simply do, I don't let little things distract me away from the work. I find that if you believe in your ability to fulfill the goal then you can get there.

The point I'm trying to make in a round about way is that if you say you're going to do something then do it, even if you only say it to yourself. Wake up in the morning and say "I'm going to write ten pages today" and don't stop until they're great. And if you have to get up at page five and make dinner then do so, but don't forget to come back and finish what you started.

And with my apologies that is the end of today's blog because I have so much prep to do for the shoot tomorrow.

Write on... oh and donate to this awesome project : http://igg.me/p/19428?a=88034&i=shlk

Dave The Screenwriter

PS: normal service will resume on Monday... hope to post a small blog tomorrow at some time too

The reason for a lack of blog activity today

Hi guys,

I'm working on this all day today. http://www.indiegogo.com/3-projects-in-one-hell-of-a-year?a=88034&i=addr if you can visit the site and spend 10 mins looking over the project I'd appreciate it, and please spread the word so that we can reach our goal.

Thanks in advance

Dave The Screenwriter

sacrifice to the screenwriting gods

The one thing I've repeat so far with this blog is that hard work is essential but there is also the element of sacrifice. Some people don't like what I'm about to say but I think it's important so please read it, if you disagree then that's ok but don't come complaining to me anytime soon.

You've heard the stories, like Robert Rodriguez selling his body to science and spending a month locked away from his new wife in order to make his first film (btw his book "Rebel without a crew" is an amazing read) or Kevin Smith maxing out several credit cards to make "Clerks"... but what about you? Have you made any sacrifice for your art? Don't tell me that you have a full-time job and need time to relax when you get home, you'll have plenty of time to relax when you win an Oscar.

When I started screenwriting I did it when I was unemployed, so yeah it was easy to spend my whole day at the computer. Unemployment didn't last long though and pretty soon I was back to working eight hours a day, but I was also used to writing for most of my day and I would always try to get at least eight hours sleep a day... the only solution? SACRIFICE! First thing I did was extend my waking hours, instead of going to sleep at 11pm I'd stay up until 1.30am , and instead of waking at 7am I'd get up (reluctantly) at 6am. With my change to my sleeping pattern I had given myself an extra three and a half hours a day, enough writing time? Not for me it wasn't so I cut the amount of time I spent watching the tv in half, suddenly I had an extra five hours... nearly done.

The next thing to go was social interactions, not entirely but they were reduced greatly. At one point a few of my friends were convinced that I had moved to LA without telling them! The sacrifices I made don't seem that much to me now as I look back on them, especially because they were for the greater good, and the future of my career. I still have trouble convincing my friends that a teleconference about screenwriting is more important than a night out, but they are coming to the stage where they accept my choices.

My sacrifices lead to me having a full time job, screenwriting like it was a full time job and sleeping the right amount of hours. I wouldn't change it for the world, I'm making new strides in my film career everyday, I'm making great contacts all the time, my friends still love me and my writing is better than it ever was. If I hadn't made my small sacrifices I wouldn't be anywhere near the place I am now and I like where I am right now.

Since that initial change in lifestyle I have grown as a writer so much, as a filmmaker and as a person, right now I have a project that I'm developing from a feature script into a tv pilot, a graphic novel and a possible web-series. I have three projects cooking nicely that will become public very soon, I have a nice new blog that I write everyday and I have another short film in production... oh and I'm submitting and promoting my short films to festivals worldwide too... So the fruits of MY sacrifices are really coming good.

So heres the question, are you making the sacrifice for your career? Are you making enough time? Or are you simply making excuses as to why you can't make the time?

My advice: Sleep less, "relax" less, work hard and then double your efforts, read scripts, take classes, join a writers group, drink more water and feel good about being a writer, it's not something you should be ashamed of.

Remember, any comments, questions or suggestions just email me to dthescreenwriter@aol.com

Write On!

Dave The Screenwriter

Cold calling for beginners!

Cold calling.

I've been asked to talk more about cold calling so this blog post will give you an insight into how I cold call, what to do and how to approach it. It wont however tell you what to say or how to say it, that stuff is down to you.

So you're ready, you've worked hard and perfected your script and now it's time to get it out there and having read yesterday's blog you decided that cold calls are the way forward... what's next?

You could look at it like this, you have to pick up the phone and call a customer and get that customer to try your product. I prefer to look at it like I'm calling a friend who can make all of my dreams come true, that way I wont get angry and tell them to screw off!

First of all write a script, not the one you're trying to sell but one for the call, go over what you want to say over and over again so that when you are on the call you won't draw a blank. Think of possible questions that the person could ask you and come up with answers to them (DO NOT have “How much do you want for it?” on the list!). Make sure you're comfortable before you call, have a glass of water beside you in case you freeze up, then take a deep breath and dial the number.

Remember that the person who answers the phone will be at work, and will get dozens of calls a day from people that have bad scripts, bad ideas, bad manners etc so be nice, help them to have a nice couple of minutes on the phone with you and try to get a name. It's worth remembering that they don't care if you're a screenwriter/director/doctor/teacher/puppeteer so don't tell them, tell them the most intriguing part of your story and see if they bite. If they don't bite just say thank you and hang up, there are thousands of other people to call.

I can't stress highly enough that you should make it all about the person on the other end of the phone, right now they might be answering phones somewhere but someday they could be a studio head... these are people you want to like you. So don't be pushy, don't be arrogant, don't be nervous or shy just be yourself and talk as if you are talking to a friend, and try to honestly befriend these people.

Heres how my very first cold call experience went:

I came home from work (I live 9 hours ahead of LA!) and decided to bite the bullet, I got all of my papers ready, wrote my script, practiced my call, imagined it going very well, picked up the phone and froze. My heart was beating out of my chest, my breath was short and I was sweating with fear but I took a deep breath and dialed the number... a girl answered “Hello, Production company” (I'm not saying which company or which producer I called btw) and I hung up, my heart beat even faster, my breath got shorter. I took a long drink of water and a big deep breath and dialed again, this time I asked for the producer and was put through to his office.

The phone rang for what felt like a couple of months and when it finally had another voice on the other end I was choked up, I croaked “Hi, I'm Dave The Screenwriter and I have a story...Blah Blah Blah.. that I thought you'd be interested in” I was talking to an assistant, he was a nice guy, wished me well, said that the concept was excellent but that they were not in a position to accept it... that was the day I learned that you really shouldn't start by calling THE BIGGEST production companies in the business! Start with the smaller guys, they can get you to the bigger guys!

After that initial call, I dialed the next one straight away and my nerves were gone, the second call resulted in a script request... but alas after considering the script they decided that it was too close to a project they had done a few years ago.

So that's my story about cold calling, I still get nervous doing it but once the phone is answered I click into pitch mode! The best advice I can give you is to prepare, know the company you are calling, know your story, know the script you're going to say... be ready. OOH and BE NICE!

Hopefully this will cover what you needed to know about cold calling, if you have anymore questions or requests for the blog (please don't request that I stop blogging!) then email dthescreenwriter@aol.com

Write On!

Dave The Screenwriter

I have no idea why the spacing is crazy on this post!

Just do it

So you've written a script, you struggled through the doubts and the problems. You listened to the people telling you to “get a real job” or “stop dreaming once you get out of bed, idiot” and you still persevered until you finished with FADE OUT... now what? Well you could save it to your desktop so that whenever you turn on your computer you see that you have written a script. You could print off a copy and put it in a drawer (after you autograph the title page obviously!) and look at it every now and then. If however you have dreams of being a professional screenwriter you need to show it to people.

It sounds easy to say, “just bring it to someone” ... go ahead, have a go at saying it. And now that you've done that get ready for the realization that the hard work is going to start now. Oh and by the way, I hate to tell you this but you really should write another script before attempting to contact anyone (except coverage people!). For the purpose of this blog I'm going to suppose that you have enough scripts in the vault to not collapse when you get asked the infamous “What else have you got ?” question, and the first thing we need to talk about is ... LOGLINE – The job of a logline is to make someone want to read the synopsis of your script, it has to be enticing and catchy, you want it to stick in someones head until they have to find out more... WARNING: You do not have to tell the whole story in your logline.

So you work hard and you get your logline down (BTW, I'm not a teacher, I hate writing loglines but I learned how through screenwritingU.com) then you have to tackle what I think is the most difficult part of screenwriting, THE SYNOPSIS: I hate the synopsis, you write 100 plus pages and then you have one page to get the story across? Well, no not really. All you have to do is make someone read your script, how you do that is up to you but I know there are classes you can take in how to market your script (I took mine at www.screenwritingU.com)... What you need to remember with a synopsis is that you have one shot, this one page you write will decide if people take you seriously, read your script, like your style, be your friend, hold your hand and make you a professional.

Ok, you have a great script, a good logline and an amazing synopsis... now what? First thing to do is review what you're going to send out, I say this because one typo can be the difference, one mistake can put someone in a bad mood. REMEMBER: while your script is very important to you, the reader who has to read it sees it as just another script, it's your job to WOW them, they don't owe you anything.

And now that you've double checked everything and you are ready to go there are many routes to take, you can do it all by yourself if you look up contacts on imdb or the HCD (Hollywood Creative Directory) and start making calls, this is the toughest way to do it but once you get over the first couple of calls it gets easier. Second you could advertise your script on www.inktip.com, you could pitch it directly to execs on www.virtualpitchfest.com, you could send it to many agents/managers/production companies through www.scriptblaster.com or you could fly to LA and hand out copies at the bus stop... whatever works for you.

The only thing you ca then do is cross your fingers and hope to whichever god/deity that you wish. Remember the focus needs to be on the people who are going to read the script, if you make them happy then they will make you happy! Good luck with it...

A few people have asked me to comment on certain things with this blog.. so I thought why not let you have some input, with that in mind I have a new email address dthescreenwriter@aol.com send me your questions and ideas for posts or if you would simply like more information about me then feel free to ask!

Write on!

Dave The Screenwriter

Be yourself.

In November I was in Hollywood, I visited 3 studios in 3 days listening to advice and meeting people on the inside. So thing they all said was to get your BRANDING right, and I didn't have a clue what that meant! Did they mean I needed to create a logo a catchy slogan? NO, what it means is that you should focus on one genre, that's all it means... why don't they just say that? 

It was during these meetings that I had a lot of breakthroughs, both story and and as a writer myself. I realized that I was kidding myself by thinking that I was able to write a script in every genre, I realized what it meant to be a specialist and that by becoming the best I could in one genre then I would have a better shot that if I was pretty good at all genres. Let me put it this way: if I was a producer who had a comedy script that I wanted rewritten by a new writer and I had two choices, one a writer who has written good examples of a comedy, a thriller and an action flick or a writer who has written three very funny comedy scripts... which do you think I'm going to choose? That's right I'm going to pick the comedy specialist because that's what I want in that situation.

Now I know that it's possible to write many genres, but the point here is that if you specialize then you are stronger, for example if you write five action scripts in a row I bet you that the fifth will be 100% better than the first. So when it comes to being hired to write on assignment or rewrite you'd be in a stronger position if you can say "I'm a comedy writer" than if you say "I can write anything". To prove the point even further lets think about this, if your car broke down would you bring it to a mechanic or a guy who says that they can fix anything?

So that's branding and I encourage you to brand yourself... wait, that sounds wrong.

Once upon a time I started writing screenplays and my goal was to write for Martin Scorcese, how I didn't realize that Mr. Scorcese doesn't make Rom Coms I will never know! The point is I was doing something with the goal of something that didn't match what I was doing. It took me a long time to figure out that I was a comedy writer and not just a writer, I mean all the signs were there, I just couldn't see them.

So be true to yourself, I had to realize that I was more "Analyze This" than "Goodfellas" but once I did it  freed up my writing and I became a much better story teller. So my advice is this, take a look at your scripts and then take a good look at yourself... are they a good reflection of you? Are they your specialist genre? I have to keep working on my scripts and hope that someday Marty Scorcese will return to comedy... until then I'll keep my gangster scripts under wraps! 

Write on!

Dave The Screenwriter

It's not who you know it's what you know!

You may have heard the line “it's not what you know it's who you know”, somebody may have told you this as a reason why you will never make it in the movie business. Well ok, but it's the same in every business, no matter how good you may be nobody wants to work with someone that they know nothing about. Think about it for a second, if you were going to spend $50,000 buying something wouldn't you like to know as much about the people selling it and the creation of it as possible? Wouldn't you like to know that you are investing wisely? Or would you hand the money to a complete stranger who may or may not have the goods?

There's no doubt that this is a business built around relationships, you never know who is going to end up with the power to say yes to you... it could be me someday, equally it could be the guy or girl who starts in the mail room. So it's important to be social in this business, and I don't mean propping up a bar in on Hollywood Blvd (although sometimes that is acceptable!). How you get out there is a tricky one, everyone does it differently and there are a million options so lets take a look at some of the basics. Cold calling is scary at the best of times, but what if you look at those calls as calls to friends? The people who answer the phone usually are not the ones who have the power right now, they probably will soon though so be nice and get to know them... be social.

The obvious way to meet people in the industry these days is to use social networks... Facebook and Twitter have changed the way we can contact these people and I know at least two people who got a script into the hands of producers after they struck up a friendship on twitter. Remember though that if you us facebook or twitter to connect with industry folks then you need to keep your content clean, try and focus it on your work too. Both facebook and Twitter also have great groups with where you can meet fellow writers and industry folks #scriptchat and #scriptTip on twitter are two of my favorites.

Many writer groups will hold meet ups or get togethers, and you should get to them if you can, I can't tell you the value of sitting in a room full of writers and talking about the work you do, your goals etc etc, it really is a fantastic experience. Most important is that when you join a group you don't just sit back and wait to be invited to something, make friends within the group, offer advice, ask for advice, stimulate conversations about the art... soon you will find yourself an important member of the group and will be at the head of most events run by that group.

And so to round off my ramble for the day (I didn't prep this post, you can probably tell!) I'll leave with one small paragraph about how you should think when you are trying to “get out there”.

Imagine that you are the production exec, you have a pile of scripts on your desk which you know will mostly be bad. You have hundreds of queries to get through, again most of them written badly. You're head hurts from reading crap, you want to smash some heads together and ask “Why?”, but then you open a script that has a catchy title, the first page is great, the second too. You were going to leave early today but maybe you'll read the first twenty pages of this script, and before you know it you've just finished a great script, a diamond amongst the coal. Imagine how good that must feel, and imagine how you will feel when you get the call from that producer to tell you that your script is great! Trust me it's a great feeling.

Write on!

Dave The Screenwriter

Invest in your career

If screenwriting is your hobby and you have no intention of making it a career then good for you, but if you have dreams of working on set with some of Hollywood's big players then you need to treat it like a business. Let me ask you this: if you were setting up business as a store selling dvd's you'd buy stock, right? You'd pay to have the shop look good, and you'd pay to advertise the business? So why, WHY do so many people think that they do not have to invest in a screenwriting business? When you break it down the investment you need to make is much less than for most businesses, and yes there's a lot of information on the internet but have you found any websites that offer free businesses?

How much you need to spend will vary depending on many things like location, technical specs, knowledge, ambition and maybe even ability. The first thing you should look at is classes, I know you've read a website that tells you all you need to know, but I guarantee that a good screenwriting class will change your mind. Some of the best classes online are run by www.screenwritingU.com, in my opinion you should be looking at paying up to $1000 for a six month class that takes you through every angle of screenwriting, and if you want to justify it just think of the poor bastard who has to read hundreds of scripts everyday being overjoyed by your good script. The next thing you need is a network... but how do you get a network? Easy, go online and do some research, some writers are part of many writer groups, others only join one(btw screenwritingU's pro series alumni is amongst the best groups in the business).BTW with networks you only get out what you put in, so if you help out an become and active member then you will benefit, if however you simply join and then sit back waiting for help, you'll be waiting a long time!

So far I've suggested you spend $1000 – much cheaper than setting up most businesses! We still have more investing to do though. Heres the question, did Picasso use water paints? Did Da Vinci? No artists use professional tools and equipment so if you are serious about writing for a career then you need to invest in professional software. I know that there are freeware screenwriting softwares out there, and I've used them they feel good, until you use the real thing! Also the industry doesn't like them so in the end they'll cause you more trouble than good, so but yourself one of the professional programs, I recommend Final Draft simply because that's the one I use but there's also Movie Magic. The software will cost you between $100 - $200, shop around and get a good deal.

Now we've spent about $1200 – not bad for a business that we hope will make us lots of money. Now look at your computer... this is the point where lots of people will moan about Apple users thinking that Apple are the best... simply put, they are! Unpopular I know but of all the screenwriters/filmmakers/editors that I know I'd say that 80% use Apple computers, the rest will eventually move to Apple, so you may as well just make the move now... it will make you seem professional! So lets look at the cheapest way to do it, a base macbook will set you back £999 (but I suggest the macbook pro $1399) which may seem like a lot of money but trust me it's worth it.

Now our total spending is $2099(with a base macbook), not bad for a start up company but we haven't looked at advertising. Why would you advertise that you're a screenwriter? How would you do it? Should you take an ad out in The Hollywood Reporter? No, but there are a couple of very good websites that offer access to Hollywood execs, people like www.virtualpitchfest.com or www.inktip.com, when you have a script that is ready to send out (and I mean READY) you should look at trying these services, particularly virtualpitchfest because they guarantee a response. How much should you spend? Well lets take it easy and round off our total spend to $2500 ... now before you start saying that I'm crazy think about how much you would spend if you were starting up any other business.

The other expenses I could include are things like a desk, rather than working at the kitchen table. A hard drive to back up your work and a lot of note books and pens! We won't take into consideration the amount of coffee that writers drink or in the case of some tequila! Basically my point is that screenwriting is not a game, it's a very serious business and if you want to make it to the top of any business then you have to make investments, the great thing about screenwriting is that the investment is small and it's in YOU and if you're going to invest in anyone then surely you'd invest in yourself!!

Write on!

Dave The Screenwriter

And another thing...

Also check out my good friends at http://www.europeanmovieawards.com

To blog or not to blog... that ain't a question!

Hi Everyone,

I'm Dave and I've decided that it's time to blog, I mean I have a facebook and a twitter that I never use so I figured I should add a blog to that list. So what am I going to blog about? Screenwriting and the mammoth task of breaking into Hollywood. I'm going to attack myths and break down barriers, smash the naysayers and annihilate the rumors. So strap yourself in, hold on to something, make some coffee and put some sugar in it for the ride because here we go...

Hollywood is a place where dreams in more ways than one can come true, whether that dream is to work in the movies or to get paid for dressing up as Superman on Hollywood Blvd. Dreamers of all types come to LA with hopes of success and stardom, and many leave disappointed soon afterwards. The biggest killer of dreams are myths, myths that make people believe that their dreams are not valid, that their dream is the impossible dream and that they may as well just take that crappy nine to five job that their cousin can arrange for them.

Make no mistake, being a screenwriter is hard, the biggest part of being a screenwriter is working hard. The funny thing is that most new writers think that they only need to do one draft... rewrites are only for people who don't write awesome material first time, right? WRONG! Rewrites are essential because no matter how good your first draft is I bet you can make it better. Another thing newbies don't like is coverage(paying people to read/review your work), they feel like they don't need that, they can read and they know that the script is amazing. Well if that's your attitude then have fun for the next few years getting nowhere. Coverage is a great way to pinpoint the areas of your script that need to be improved, and no matter how good you think it is it can always be improved.

Imagine this scenario: You work in a production company, the phone never stops ringing with people who "have the next best script ever"... you are so sick of reading crap screenplays by someone who doesn't really know what they're doing. -- How does it feel?

Now imagine the adulation when you are the same person who picks up the amazing script from the pile of crap that stands before you. -- That feels great, getting dragged into a script and not realizing that you're still reading at page 33 when you only intended to read 10 pages. So why do so many writers send in the bad scripts? I'll bet you any money that most of the scripts sent to production companies by writers are first drafts by first time writers who don't know the first thing about the art of screenwriting... yes it's an art!

SO my advice for the day (which will round off every blog entry... yay that means we're near the end!) is simple, make sure that screenwriting is for you and if it is the please, make sure that you learn the art before you dive into the deep end... I wouldn't want to see you drown!

Write on

Dave The Screenwriter