Plan B

Plan A:

1. Write a crappy script
2. Get feedback
3. Rewrite crappy script
4. Get feedback
5. Rewrite crappy script
6. Get feedback
7. Polish crappy script
8. Consider crappy script a first draft
9. Repeat steps 3-7
10. Convince self crappy script isn't crappy
11. Submit crappy script to contests
12. Stare at e-mail inbox for weeks
13. Submit query letters for crappy script
14. Stare at phone, fax, e-mail inbox and snail mailbox for months
15. Submit crappy script to everyone who'll let me
16. Stare at phone, fax, e-mail inbox and snail mailbox for months
17. Collect rejection letters in a 3-ring binder
18. Repeat

Plan B:

1. Write, rewrite and polish a mediocre script with tons of feedback along the way
2. Write, rewrite and polish a better script with tons of feedback along the way
3. Write, rewrite and polish a good-great script with tons of feedback along the way
4. Submit query letters
5. Submit script to contests
6. Start next script
7. Do periodic query follow up without being an ass
8. Submit script to those willing to receive it
9. Continue work on newest script
10. Do periodic submission follow up without being an ass
11. Collect rejection letters in a 3-ring binder
12. Complete new script
13. Repeat steps 3-12

Plan C:

1. Convince yourself it's impossible
2. Quit
3. Whine
4. Eat

TV or Not TV?

When my interest in screenwriting emerged a few years ago, somewhat late (too late, if you ask anyone west o' the Mississippeh), my focus was on features - specs, to be more specific. In that time, I've taken a few courses and sporadically written chunks of two different scripts, though I've yet to finish a draft of either. I'm still intent on completing them, in spite of myself and my absence of writer's discipline. However, with a script sale rate of 4 per thousand, it's a tough gig. Throw in an aversion to pitching and an age that exceeds 29 and it becomes Mission: Highly Improbable.

Is that cynical or am I just being realistic? A recent article essentially eulogized the spec market and deferred all new contestants to television writing instead. I'm considering the shift. I'd never considered the TV market before and still prefer to stay clear of it, but what alternative is there? Web? Gadget apps? I just want to tell a story. I'll write it the best way I know how. The conventional wisdom has always been that all you need is a great script. Perhaps I'm naive, but a part of me holds on to that as being true. Hopefully, someone in the industry does, too.

Lightning, the Lottery and Selling a Script

The odds of selling a spec script in today's market are probably close to that of being struck by lightning while holding a winning lottery ticket in your hand. A recent article about the state of the spec market reminded me that I'm facing a thick brick wall, armed with only a keyboard. That wall is made up of a Hollywood mindset that strongly suggests I have no place in the industry, that I should turn tail and go home. Part of the wall is my own making - my brain getting in the way. And yet, I persist in trying to become a screenwriter. Why? Because I don't care about the wall. It wouldn't be healthy to.

It's not about 'making it' for me. Would I like to get paid ridiculous sums of money for the fruits of my imagination? Sure, but that's not the purpose of telling a story. I can't let it be about an occupation. It's about the joy of creating. I have stories to tell and this is the medium I've chosen to tell them. When I finish one, I'll dangle it over the wall along with the thousands of other story danglers, but that's all. If my scripts do nothing but sit in a trunk in an attic somewhere, that's fine. Someone will find them, read them and think, "Hey, that was a pretty cool thing to find." Or "Wow, I can't believe people used to print words on paper." Either way, the stories will live on. I'd be okay being the next Philip K. Dick.

Rejection is the norm and I'm fine with that. You have to be. You can't take it personally and you can't let it deter you. Have to have a thick skin or you really should go home. Any "thank you for playing" form letters you get should be considered a badge of honor. Frame 'em, I say. And what if I get a bite? What then? It's not exactly sunshine and rainbows. Sure, you can pay your bills for a while, but there's a price beyond the payday. Before long, you've been asked to alter your story until it's unrecognizable, the tale you sought to tell is lost and your heart's not in it anymore. That's par for the course. You can't go into this thinking the movie will even remotely resemble your draft. Yet, the thought of having a writing credit on a feature film is drool-inducing.

So, I know the game. I have realistic expectations, but I'm also ever the optimist. There is no wall for me. I hear thunder. Anyone for Powerball?

Creative Screenwriting Cyberspace Open 2010

Last fall, I entered my first screenwriting competition, the Creative Screenwriting Cyberspace Open. It had been nearly a year since I'd last opened Final Draft, much less written anything. I missed the first round cut by 2 points, but enjoyed the experience. Therefore, I was happy to give it another shot when the CS CS Open 2010 returned in April. I didn't anticipate getting through to the next round as I felt my dialogue was cliché, my scenario not particularly original and my writing style rather stale. However, this time I somehow matched the cutoff score of 93, undoubtedly thanks to a very lenient judge. My dialogue score was, not surprisingly, the lowest of the four criteria, though not nearly as low as I would have expected.

I was understandably shocked to find I was among the 108 finalists out of more than 1,400 entries. I was very pleased, of course, and this did give my confidence a bit of a boost, though listing the finalists in reverse alpha order by first name ensured I was listed dead last. That, and I was listed as "Al" instead of A.J., so there wasn't going to be a whole lot of head swelling here.

The Round 2 submission had to be conceived and written within 24 hours. I felt this entry was much more original and the dialogue slightly better, so I'm hoping for a higher score, but the judging is very subjective and unless I'm more talented than I believe I am, I don't anticipate climbing many rungs on the scoreboard, if any.

I really have no business partaking in this contest, as I have no complete script to shop, but it's so far been a good motivator. Making the winner's circle seems rather unlikely, still I look forward to seeing how I fared - matched up against serious writers with loads more experience. The second round results were expected on Friday, but as of this post, nothing's been posted. Regardless of the outcome, I already feel accomplished to have made it this far and this experience may very well be the push I need to get back to work on my long neglected script.