When new screenwriters finish their scripts, they often begin the search for a rep to submit the work around town. But is that the best way to do it? Well, sure! But it’s not the ONLY way to do it.

As you prep to get your script sold, incorporate this info into your marketing strategy:

SEEK REPRESENTATION But only if you have a bona fide “in” to their direct office line! It’s very difficult to get a lit agent to read a script for representation without a personal introduction by a repped client of theirs. If you know a screenwriter or other industry member with an agent who actually is getting scripts read by real studios and funders, and you have TWO solid scripts (more on that later), ask for an introduction. Give your contact a substantial gift whether you are signed or not!

Of course, it’s not necessary to have a lit agent to shop a script. Make getting an agent only one part of a broader shopping strategy.

EXPLORE LEGITIMATE SUBMISSION OUTLETS The main places you’re trying to get your script to, production companies, studios and even top-five actors’ shingles, are sometimes more accessible than lit agents. If you’re not already, make sure you join professional writers’ groups like ScreenplayLab and Scriptwriters’ Network, and attend every possible event to make those contacts. There’s a list of organizations to get you started at Movie in a Box - Links.

Again, the way to shop a script in our industry is to know someone. It’s tough to open a new professional relationship by asking for the considerable favor of an agent referral, so try a strategy where you’re offering something they could use in exchange for the introduction. And expect them to request to read your script first - and listen to their notes without argument.

Another credible outlet for getting your script noticed is via some of the online sites. If you’re not already, make sure you’re active at Inktip, for example. And be sure to explore the hundreds of screenplay competitions, like Scriptapalooza - but check first to see what success stories you can verify from their sites.

WRITE AND QC MORE THAN ONE SCRIPT “QC” stands for “Quality Control.” Do not ever submit a script that is not structurally sound, no matter how ready you are to stop looking at it! This is neither a judgment, an assumption, an insult or a joke. It truly is a requirement. I was a reader at one of the biggest prod cos in Los Angeles, I’ve had scripts optioned, I run a filmmaking seminar, I’ve taught at UCLA Ext, I’ve written a very popular screenwriting book. Please trust me on this. There are no second chances for first impressions in our industry. And it’s not just your rep on the line, but also the rep of whoever opens that door for your submission.

Why “more than one script”? That is because if someone reads work of yours and thinks you have promise, their next request (to confirm the initial impression) is very often, “Can you send me another spec?” If you can’t, that is by no means a dealbreaker. But if you CAN, and the second script is equally hot, that could be a dealmaker! The second script needs to be structurally sound, as well.

Be sure that your screenplays are structurally solid (on a first submission, nothing else will do! Trust me!). Be sure that an experienced Hollywood reader has read the script and you’ve addressed the notes. As I always say, “if the story does not fit, you must not submit!” If you submit a flawless first spec, you will never have to live up these standards again, but you should. If you submit a flawed first spec, you will not get the chance to live up to higher standards at that company; you will be blocked from future submissions.

CONSIDER PRODUCING YOUR WORK YOURSELF If you find you are getting great feedback on your work, but it’s never quite the right fit, consider producing the film yourself. This is a great approach when you have a lower-budget indie project (think “Open Water”) versus an effects-laden thriller! It is an enormous undertaking to produce a film, but there are many resources out there for people who have compelling scripts to develop. And just as you studied and trained to write well, be sure to research and train extensively before taking on a massive project like producing a movie. Your first stop should be a professional organization like Film Independent (FIND), which can connect with you with terrific partners and/or mentors, as well as vital resources.

However, you decide to get your screenplay sold, it should be clear by now that you don’t do it alone - you need community support and resources - and no one else does it for you - even an agent! It is no one’s responsibility to open a door for you to sell a screenplay. It is your responsibility to create a tight script, research appropriate buyers, and relentlessly seek submission opportunities until someone buys - or you decide to produce your work yourself!

About the Author

DMA is a former film story analyst and the author of The 1-3-5 Story Structure Made Simple System: The Ten Essential Elements of a Sellable Screenplay. For her speaking schedule and more entertainment insider resources, please visit Planet DMA.

I am lucky. I have no problems coming up with very good ideas for movies. If I never had another idea for the rest of my life, I would not make a sizable dent in the ones I already have. Screenwriters who struggle with coming up with an idea tend to be visibly annoyed when I tell them this. I think I’m comfortable sharing this with others because I know movie ideas really mean nothing and please nobody in and of themselves, so there’s not much to brag about. I guess you can get lucky and sell an idea, but in terms of what’s important, a motion picture screened in front of people, a great idea is simply a member of the orchestra that achieves that vision.

I’m not sure where all the ideas come from, but I can tell you where I was, and by telling you this, perhaps this will help you come up with your idea. First, you should know what you want to write. A feature? For the studios? For yourself to direct? Maybe a low budget script for someone else to direct. Will it be shot on film or digital video? Are you looking for an idea for a short film? Perhaps you have a particular genre in mind.

Parameters are excellent tools for creativity. The irony is restriction spawns wonderfully imaginative ideas. If you can write about anything or anybody, with absolutely no conditions, it becomes harder to settle and find that jewel of an idea. So determine your conditions, every one, and embrace them, because there you will find the frame of your idea. In other words, knowing your movie has to be shot on digital video in four weeks with two Asian women in their thirties at an antiques store will narrow your thinking and concentrate your imaginative power.

Is it necessary to have parameters before we come up with an idea? Of course not. You can always find a very special idea and that idea will determine it’s own boundaries. But if you have needs for your screenplay, determine those needs, and it will help.

So after you have determined the conditions for your screenplay, or if you have not, now you can come up with your idea. What’s a good place to start? The newspaper. Read a thick newspaper. Read through all sections. Read the obituaries. This is our world. Artists look at the world and become moved to express themselves. I read the newspaper anyway, but many times I find something, even one line, which is highly inspiring. By looking through the newspaper with fresh eyes, we become open again to what affects us. I also find the newspaper will confirm instincts I might already have about an idea.

And make sure you read the section you normally never read at breakfast. Trust me.

Okay, you’re reading the newspaper, and you might find something interesting. Documentaries can also be great reservoirs for inspiration. Awesome documentaries abound these days and they often contain imagery, facts, and revelations that may provoke an idea out of left field. Now don’t run out and rent 20 docs and lean into your DVD waiting for the logline to come out of the screen and hit you over the head. Just watch what is interesting and forget about what you need.

Walk where you would normally drive. Take the train to work if you don’t. Get on a public bus, or go rent a car and drive. Spend the day at the airport. Take a different way to work each day for a week. Make a list of ten stores you would never for the life of you visit for any reason at all, go to all ten and browse for 20 minutes each. These disruptions in your environment will open your eyes. You’ll be able to take in more of your world, and it will effect you and make you think.

We’ve run out of ideas because we are bored by what we see. You’re shut down. You don’t need to get on a plane or visit a foreign country to clear your head and help you focus. Your distant planet is down the street, walking distance.

Another inspiring action is to take the day and go to a series of garage sales. The homes, the neighborhoods, the people and the stuff they’re trying to sell you will definitely make you think. There are a million stories in what people pick up and keep as belongings in their lives. Try an estate sale. I have left estate sales feeling as if I knew the personal habits and longings of the recently deceased, simply by the possessions they kept until their death. It’s not difficult to find these sales, they happen every weekend and right close by.

Take up a new sport. Enroll in a language class. Sign up for a course at the Red Cross. I picked up a basketball one day and start playing after many years and I felt like I had a new movie in my head every time I stepped on the court. Getting an education in something new gets us humble and that humility keeps us open to new information and this makes us creative. If we feel like a master, we’ve run out of ideas. As students, we accept there’s more out there, and that attitude will spawn discovery and fresh perspective.

Finally, when I don’t know what I should write about, I ask myself what’s troubling me. If you take a second to pause and get quiet with your heart, you will find you desperately what to say something very important. Let that something speak.

One more thing. Please don’t write about you know, like they always say. Let somebody else do that, and you, you write what you want.

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Copyright © 2006 BlueCat Screenplay Competition

About The Author
Gordy Hoffman

Winner of the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award at the Sundance Film Festival for LOVE LIZA , Gordy Hoffman has written and directed three digital shorts for Fox Searchlight. He made his feature directorial debut with his script, A COAT OF SNOW, which world premiered at the 2005 Locarno International Film Festival. He is also the founder of the BlueCat Screenplay Competition. Dedicated to develop and celebrate the undiscovered screenwriter, BlueCat provides written screenplay analysis on every script entered. In addition, Gordy acts as a script consultant for screenwriters, offering personalized feedback on their scripts through his consultation service, www.screenplaynotes.com. For more articles by Gordy on screenwriting, visit www.bluecatscreenplay.com.