• Act 1 (the first 1/4 of your screenplay 25 – 30 pages) – This is the setup of your story where your characters are introduced along with the basic direction of the story. This first Act must contain a Hook in the Set-Up to keep the reader, whether it’s a literary agent or producer, riveted to your screenplay.   In particular, the first 5 pages of a screenplay should totally hook the Hollywood movie executive.  If it doesn’t, they will read no more than 10 pages hoping it will get better and will then toss it in the trash.

• Act 2 (the middle half — roughly pages 27 to 87) –  Now that the story is Set-Up with the basic characters and the challenge of the story, you have to focus on creating lots of Conflict and Increasingly Difficult Obstacles for your main charactet to overcome. This is typically the hardest part to write because you have to makes sure that it builds upon itself and doesn’t become repetitive.

• Act 3 (the final quarter of your screenplay – roughly 85 or so to page 100 or so, and up to 120).  Your Third Act starts with a turning point and builds to the Climax of the story with the big confrontation between your main character and their opposition.  This is where your character either achieves his or her goal or fails — usually it’s best to have them win.  After the climax, then you have the Resolution to show how it all works out and things get back to a basic, simple life again.

Your plot is essentially how you put the basic pieces of your story together to make it interesting.  You should write out the basic beats of it at some point in your writing, whether it’s to do it before you start or at some point after you get some of your story down on paper.  The main thing is that while writing itself is often a right brain/creative process, working out the plot itself requires you to sit and think about it at some point and to really structure it for maximum effect.

This will be one of the biggest challenges you have, so stay at it, study it, and work on it till you feel in your bones that it is as good as it can be.

Proofread again. It’s important to make sure that there are no errors in your screenplay.   A literary agent will get a very bad impression if your script has errors, so before sending it out, proofread it one more time.  If you know your grammar or formatting has problems, hire a professional proofreader to review your screenplay.  Be sure it is someone who knows proper Hollywood script formatting.

Once it’s ready to go, you must learn to pitch your script.  As I like to say, “If you can’t tell it, you can’t sell it.”   Whether you write a query letter or pitch verbally, you have to develop a pitch of your story, which is simply telling a very short version of it to get someone interested.

When you pitch verbally to a literary agent, you have only a few seconds to hook them, so make the most of it. Practice pitching to your friends and family, or even in the mirror. It doesn’t matter where you practice, just keep at it.  See if their eyes glaze over or if they light up.  That should be your feedback.  You can also work with a professional pitch coach in Hollywood to help you prepare it. 

It can be challenging to get a chance to pitch verbally, so another option is to write a query letter to sell a screenplay. It will most likely be the first thing seen by a literary agent so it’s imperative that you impress them. This is your only chance to convince them that your screenplay is unique and great, so be sure that your query letter presents your script in the best possible light.

If you aren’t sure about the query letter part, that is another area that you can get a professional to help you.  Or even if you simply don’t have the time to mess with it and would rather work on the script itself, then you may want to hire someone to help you with the pitching and marketing.  Some possible places to get help are QueryLetterMailing.com and The Great American Pitchfest.  At the query letter mailing site, they will help you put together a query letter to go out to production companies and literary agents.  The Great American Pitchfest is an event that happens once a year where you can pitch in person to your choice of as many as 100 different Hollywood professionals. 

The main thing after you write your screenplay is to make an effort to sell it.  Don’t hold back and sit on it for years like some aspiring screenwriters do, get a pitch ready.  Then try to get your screenplay read by Literary Agents, Literary Managers, and Producers in Hollywood — any way you can!

On the other hand, when you write a great query letter, you will make a good impression, and you can get the surprise benefit that even if they aren’t interested in the idea of this script, you can start to build a relationship with them and come back to them in the future with other scripts that might suit them.

Here are some basics tips for writing your query letter.

• Stick to the point.

Tell them just a little bit about you and also give them the pitch of your screenplay.  End with a thank you.  That’s it.  No irrelevant information, that rambles on about how you really need to sell a screenplay in a hurry or you’ll get kicked out of your apartment – that would be seen as unprofessional.

• Proofread for errors, make sure your letter really sells your idea, and in general, rewrite it until overall, it has a very a good quality feel to it.

If your query letter stinks or if you have too many errors, then the literary agent will assume the quality of your screenplay is even worse, and there’s no way they will read it.  It goes back to your query letter being critical in making that first impression.

• Always address your query letter to one individual literary agent (or manager or producer).

Do not  send “To Whom It May Concern.” If you want them to represent you in a big money world, then you better at least be resourceful enough find out their name and address the letter to them.

Those are a few basic ideas to get you pointed in the right direction on writing a query letter. If you feel you would rather focus on the screenwriting itself than on marketing your screenplay, or if you are not sure you will be able to give it your best shot, then you might want to check out having a professional Query Letter Mailing created for you by Smart Girls Productions.

Smart Girls Productions has helped hundreds of screenwriters get their scripts read by real Hollywood producers, literary agents, and managers, and they pick out the people who are best suited to your specific script.  In addition to query letters for your screenplay, they also offer a variety of other screenwriter services that might be of interest to you, such as typing scripts and script critiques.

Many new writers fall prey to some common mistakes when typing up their query letter. Here are some tips to writing the perfect query letter and how to avoid the common mistakes that will no doubt cause a literary agent to reject your script.

1. First of all, your query letter should hook a literary agent.

The purpose is to give the literary agent just enough information to keep them engaged and want to know what happens next, but not tell too much. If you hook them and engage them in your story and the story is really good, they will want more.

2. Keep in mind that you’re not only pitching your story, but yourself.

There are so many writers sending these agents their scripts that you must set yourself apart from them. Prove why the literary agent should read your script over the hundreds of others they receive.

3. Address your letter to a specific agent’s name.

Never address a letter to “whom it may concern.” If you don’t take the time to find out the literary agent’s name, then they will assume you don’t know what you are doing and they will not take the time to even read your letter.

The perfect query letter still doesn’t guarantee that the agent will request your script, but you will dramatically increase your chances. There are professionals who will help you make the perfect query letter. Sometimes hiring a marketing professional is the best way for a writer new to Hollywood to get the attention of a literary agent, so you can focus on writing the screenplay itself and you can also make sure your marketing is done properly and that your script is presented professionally.

Knowing that, you find a place to get script coverage that you feel will do a good job for you. Then you get the notes back and they say that your script falls somewhere short of perfect and they tell you why. It’s not quite what you wanted to hear about your screenplay that you worked so hard on.

In fact, you don’t really want to make any changes and you’re not even sure if you agree with the feedback. But yet you know you getting feedback on your script with a script analysis is part of the process of selling your script, so you have to do now you’re in the middle of it and you got the notes. So what do you do when you’re sure if you agree with the notes?

Three things to keep in mind.

1. First, let go of your disappointment, defensiveness, or hurt feelings about what the script coverage says.

It’s natural to feel a little bit badly when someone tells you they think your work is not the best it could be. But let go of that as quickly as you can. You can’t make good decisions when you feel that way.

2. Listen objectively to what they’re saying and try to get it. If you don’t get it, ask questions.

Once you let go of the disappointment or any other negative feelings, then you can listen for the value in what they are saying. Hopefully, when you looked for someone to review your script, you did your homework and found someone who has credibility. And if you did that, why would you NOT listen to them objectively? That would be silly to not seriously consider what they say, even though in the end you may or may not apply it.

So as you listen objectively, try to fully understand what they are saying and why they believe you need to do it – that is, if you can ask questions. When you get script coverage or a script analysis, whenever possible, try to get something oral so you can ask questions of the person giving you feedback. Then make sure you fully understand both what they are saying and why they think you should make the change they suggest.

3. Finally, think it thought later and make your choice about whether you will apply it or not.

Make your choice NOT based on the fact that you don’t want to rewrite it, but based on what the script needs to fulfill your vision – not the vision of the script analyst or coverage person, but your vision.

Also keep the craft in mind. Many suggestions may be to improve the script in the arena of the craft that doesn’t effectively change it. Most of those kinds of changes you should definitely give very serious consideration to – such as raising the stakes, developing the character arc, and making it more dramatic and so on.

In the end, however, it is important that as a screenwriter, you connect with your gut. If a script analyst suggests a change that you are not sure about, get connected to a place deep inside of you to see if it fits with the story you are trying to tell. And be open to the answer. When you do this, you will be surprised at what you find.

Your best bet starts with you choosing a script analyst who you feel is both professional and will communicate with you in a way that supports you instead of tears you down, but who will also be honest with you about what needs work.

Good luck in writing screenplays and happy re-writing, too!

The most important part of trying to sell a screenplay is to learn how to pitch it. Hollywood executives are bombarded by scripts and ideas on a daily basis. If you’re one of the few who are fortunate enough to get their attention, you will only have it for a sentence or two. If they’re not hooked by then, they will simply let the rest of what you say go in one ear and out the other. Simply put, they don’t have time to listen to everyone who thinks they have a good story to tell. So practice your pitch and make sure the first couple of sentences are memorable.

A query letter is another necessity to selling a screenplay, although it does require a bit of effort to write. These letters are a great way of reaching producers and agents while they’re in the comfort of their office. Again, it’s important to hook them right from the start.

Does selling a screenplay still seem like too monumental a task? There are agencies, such as Smart Girls Productions, who help up-and-coming screenwriters with all of the daunting tasks associated with selling a screenplay. Many screenwriters prefer to let someone with experience in this area of screenwriting handle this challenging task. Selling a screenplay — at least getting your screenplay read — really doesn’t have to be so complicated, it’s simply a matter of pitching, hooking the reader, and having the courage to handle rejection. And then you have to stay at it for as long as it takes.

As always, with one warning. Before you take any action toward selling your screenplay, it is critical that you make your script is ready to be marketed and sold to Hollywood. Otherwise, you could blow the chance you worked so hard to get!

Welcome to Hollywood!

Knowing that, you find a place to get script coverage that you feel will do a good job for you. Then you get the notes back and they say that your script falls somewhere short of perfect and they tell you why. It’s not quite what you wanted to hear about your screenplay that you worked so hard on, and you feel that ping of disappointment.

In fact, now that you think about it, you don’t really want to make any changes and you’re not even sure if you agree with the feedback. But yet you know you getting feedback on your script with a script analysis is part of the process of selling your script. So now you’re in the middle of it, and you got the notes that you’re not too excited about. Now what? Are you just missing something because you feel defensive? Or do the notes stink?

Here are three things to keep in mind in determining whether to take the notes or not:

1. First, let go of your disappointment, defensiveness, or hurt feelings about what the script coverage says.

It’s natural to feel a little bit badly when someone tells you they think your work is not the best it could be. But let go of that as quickly as you can. You can’t make good, clear decisions when you feel that way. You have to get that out of the way first.

2. Listen objectively to what they’re saying and try to get it. If you don’t get it, ask questions.

Once you let go of the disappointment or any other negative feelings, then you can listen for the value in what they are saying. Hopefully, when you looked for someone to review your script, you did your homework and found someone who has credibility. And if you did that, why would you NOT listen to them objectively? You should seriously consider what they say, even though in the end you may or may not apply it.

As you listen objectively, first, try to fully understand what they are saying and why they believe you need to do it – that is, if you can ask questions. Whenever you get script coverage or a script analysis, try to get something oral so you can ask questions of the person giving you feedback.

So listen objectively, and then make sure you fully understand both what they are saying and why they think you should make the change they suggest.

3. Finally, think it through later and make your choice about whether you will apply it or not.

Make your choice NOT based on the fact that you don’t want to rewrite it, but based on what the script needs to fulfill your vision – not the vision of the script analyst or coverage person, but your vision.

Keep the craft in mind. Many suggestions may be to improve the script in the arena of the craft that doesn’t effectively change it. Most of those kinds of changes you should definitely give very serious consideration to – such as raising the stakes, developing the character arc, and making it more dramatic and so on. But when it comes to changing major elements of the screenplay, such as the age or gender of the character, give it some thought. Be open to changing or not changing.

In the end, it is most important that as a screenwriter, you connect with your gut. If a script analyst suggests a change that you are not sure about, get connected to a place deep inside of you to see if it fits with the story you are trying to tell. And be open to the answer. When you do this, you will be surprised at what you find.

Your best bet starts with you choosing a script analyst whom you feel is professional, will communicate with you in a way that supports you instead of tears you down, and who will also be honest with you about what needs work. And, of course, someone who is very good at what they do.

Choose wisely, grasshopper. And listen to that place deep within! Good luck in writing screenplays and happy re-writing, too!

Here are the facts:

1.  Most screenplays are not ready to send out to agents when the screenwriters think they are.  It is critical that you first learn how to write a screenplay.  It is not easy.  You will need to do far more rewriting than you can imagine to make it work well.  After you write a screenplay and you feel that you have done as much as you can, then you need to go to a real script doctor to get a script analysis.  No matter who you are, even if you are a Writer’s Guild member or Shane Black or Joe Eszterhas or Callie Khouri, you need to have someone else look at your screenplay to give you feedback.  Of course, famous screenwriters like the ones I’ve just mentioned already know they have to do a ton of rewrites, so by the time they have someone look at it, their screenplay is very far along the path of development.

2.  It is easier to get producers to read your script with a query letter than writers’ agents.  Although some producers and production companies will not read your script unless it is from a script agent that they know, the fact is, your chances are better at getting your screenplay submissions read with a query letter to producers.

3.  You truly only have one chance to get an agent or producer to read your script because even if they read it a second time, they will still have the old ideas stuck in their minds.  This happened to me loud and clear.  I wrote a screenplay back in the day, got signed by a WGA agent who worked with me a bit on it, but even after I did a major rewrite, she still talked about things that were in the first draft that she didn’t like and she acted like it was in the second draft.  Same with the producers who read my spec script.  You really, really need to make sure your script is ready to be read when it goes out.  I cannot stress this enough.

4.  It is better to go to screenwriter managers when you have only one screenplay than it is to go to agents.  A manager works with you on your career while an agent works to get your script(s) out to the market.  Usually when a writing agent sells your script or gets you an option (10% of the money up front), they will get you less money for the first one than you will get on your second script.  Once you sell your screenplay that first time and your script gets produced, the second time around, your script agent can ask for a lot more money because you are then a proven entity.  With writer managers, who operate similarly to the writer agents in some regards, not only do they make screenplay submissions, but they also strategize with you on your career for the long term.

5.  Even though it is hard to get screenplay agents (aka literary agents) to read your script, it is still a good idea to try to get one.  Although some agencies like Creative Artists Agency (CAA) absolutely refuse to even read an agent query for a screenplay, there are many others who will at least read your query letter, even if 99% of the time they won’t take you on.  But the idea is that if you find that one special agent who really “gets” your idea, it could end up being a very lucrative deal for you!

I always encourage you to go for your dreams.  Even though Hollywood is super challenging to be successful in, I figure that there are people getting paid zillions of dollars every day for their movie scripts… why can’t that be you!?  It could be you as much as it could be anyone else, so go for it!

If you would like assistance in getting your screenplay out to Hollywood with an Agent Query Letter, Manager Query Letter, or Producer Query Letter, then check out the Smart Girls Query Letter Mailings which do exactly that.

 Good luck to you!

We’re in the last 2 months of the year and it’s really easy to start getting in the mindset of winding down and forgetting about your plans for your career as an actor or screenwriter, and even your other goals, such as health and fitness as we go into the Holiday season.  But the fact is, we have almost two months left in the year that you could still achieve whatever you set out to do at the beginning of this year.

 One of the characteristics of champions is that when they are getting near the end of a race, they don’t wind down, they actually shift into high gear and pour it on. 

 What do you want to achieve toward your screenwriting or acting goals by the end of the year? 

What goal could you set that you would be really proud to achieve before the stroke of midnight on December 31, 2009?

 For example….

• Maybe you want to finish a polish on your screenplay.  Maybe you want to get your script reviewed and rewritten so you can kick off a marketing campaign at the beginning of the year. 
• Maybe you want to announce your new agent to all the casting directors in town. 
• Or maybe you want to get an agent before the end of the year.
• You might decide you want to come up with 5 new script ideas and figure out which one you want to write, so you’ll be ready to write a new script at the beginning of next year. 

Whatever it is, be pro-active now. Don’t slack off these last two months.  Keep playing strong through the end of this year.

Yes, enjoy your life. Enjoy the whole holiday season and your family and friends, parties.  I’m going to do the same.  But I also want you to really experience WINNING in your career. 

So right now, I invite you to set a goal that you’re gonna reach by the end the year that would make you thrilled about your screenwriting or acting career, and make you excited to kick off the New Year right!

What will YOUR GOAL be?

As a starting point, let’s assume that you will not be marketing your script until you know you have a great story to market, and we’ll compare the ways to market from there.

Some methods for marketing your script are:  Go to pitchfests and pitch in person, make calls to various executives until you get through, do email blasts to potential producers or agents, or do a time-tested method of direct mail called Query Letter Mailings.

Given a great story, when you get right down to it, any of these things could work and have worked.  So whatever works, do it! 

There are trade-offs with each method though.  Emails are easily and quickly deleted and often just go unread.  With pitching, you have to find pitchfests to attend with the related expenses of the conference itself, and travel and lodging if you live out of town. Plus, the number of executives you get to pitch to in a short period of time is limited.  Phone calls are scary for most screenwriters and often disheartening.  Query Letter Mailings are not cheap or free like an email or phone call, but you can certainly deliver a professional pitch the way you want it to a lot of hand-picked people in a short period of time.

Here are a few more details on  why query letters, if you’re willing and able to invest a little in your marketing, come out on top as the best way to market your script.

With a query letter mailing, you can craft your pitch exactly the way you want it in writing and that is how it will be presented, so it’s a lot easier for most writers than pitching live. 

• You can spend however much time you need researching the right people to send to and have that list to “work” indefinitely.  In contrast, to pitch live, you will need to find a way to pitch to that person one on one, and you will just never be able to reach some execs to pitch live to them – but they might read a pitch if their assistant handed it to them in a letter.
• The query letter you send to an office has to be handled physically in some way or another, therefore has more likelihood of being noticed.  An email can be deleted instantly, and we’re trained to do that.  A live pitch disappears as soon as you hang up the phone or you leave their office. 
• A letter has a good chance of being opened and at least skimmed.  Then it takes no additional effort to place it into their inbox on their desk as a reminder call later or to pass to the exec.  But if the assistant sees your email and wants to bring it to their boss’s attention, they need to either print it out or make a note to tell the boss and later go back and find the email.  If they just forward it, you’re back to square one of it probably being deleted instantly when the boss sees it.
• With a query letter mailing, you can easily follow up with a phone call to see if they received your letter and it won’t seem odd.  With an email, it would be a bit odd to follow-up to see if they got your email, because if you were going to call you should have just called in the first place.
• One final advantage I want to mention, although there other advantages to a query letter mailing, is that when you do a Query Letter Mailing (with Smart Girls anyway), you get a complete listing of the names and addresses of every executive you are mailing to.  This is a good paper trail for you to have should you ever need to show evidence of who saw your idea when.  Hopefully, no one ever steals your idea, but it’s just one more thing to have in your backpack, should you ever want supporting evidence.

Because of the volume of digital information that people get, the most reliable means of getting through to a large number of prospective producers and agents for your script is:

          — a physically-delivered (USPS) professional query letter

          – that gives a great pitch of your story

          — to the right executives.

You can also then follow-up with all of the other methods to improve your responses.  But the best starting place is a query letter mailing.  Although it does cost more than just sending out an email, the idea is that you will then work that list indefinitely with the various other means to support your efforts, so it’s not a one-shot deal.