Something I see a lot of on amateur screenwriting forums is writers telling one another that the spec script market is dead, nobody is buying them, and their collection of completed scripts are useful as a portfolio at best. While selling a spec to the IP obsessed big Hollywood studios might be a pipe dream, there is still a hungry section of the industry snapping them up to meet production demands. Don't believe me? Check out this blog post by Larry Postel which details the key elements he feels helped him sell not one, not two, but FOUR spec scripts over the past few years.
https://www.scriptrevolution.com/blog/yes-you-can-sell-a-spec-screenplay...
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I can relate to that post-cancer mindset :) It also includes that you got through something rather tricky and lived to tell the tale. So trying to sell a script doesn't seem that daunting in comparison.
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Thanks for sharing this encouraging article, CJ Walley. I found some great tips in it. I'm like Larry when it comes to theme: I need to have a theme before writing a screenplay.
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Inspiring, thanks CJ Walley. There will absolutely continue to be a need for content to meet production demands. Yes, “the age of peak TV” may be changing, but the market is not dead so stop wasting time telling yourself that it is. Make your script more valuable like Larry Postel does instead.
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Very insightful and inspirational!
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I've sold two and have an option on a third. It can be done; there are no rules - just never give up.
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Congrats on your success, Jerry Robbins!
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A lot of this comes from arrogance. I can’t sell my screenplay, the market must be dead.
If you listen to scriptnotes. That podcast is hosted by two Hollywood heavy weights. They often say “I had a meeting with (big studio) to pitch an idea”. Guess what? That is a spec. It is only at the idea stage. But it is work they have done for free SPECulating that they will sell it later.
PS join and promote scriptrevolution.
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CJ:
I agree. I see a lot of people looking for specs right now. But you have to hustle to get in on the action.
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As I reflect upon decades past I am certainly aware of filmmaking's changing landscape and how disconnected I've become. There were a whole lot fewer of us practicing the art & craft of screenwriting, there were three networks and half a dozen major (maybe less) studios.
We were dedicated to our craft and proud of our work - it was quite good - we knew each other and it was a friendly, helpful little community. We knew many of the Directors, Producers and Stars of the era & they know us. Many of us have been on the red carpet between the velvet ropes. That's just the way it was. It ain't that way no more and I sometimes I forget that.
You folk talk about sales of spec scripts in a way that I just don't understand. Most of us had little Cottage Industries going - we'd option two, maybe three scripts a year with an occasional sale thrown in. I only had one mid six figure sale mostly I lived on options. I can't go back to the way it was and neither can you.
Can you sell a spec in today's market? Sure you can - you have way more buyers today than we ever had. I'll admit that we used to talk about low, mid & high six figure sales (I knew a couple of low sevens) but I doubt you'll see those days again.
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Great article. I loved the part about "Become a better person, become a better writer". Couldn't help but think how if it is hard for a writer in America to sell a script to a major Hollywood producer, what does it say for us aspiring writers from Africa or third world countries in the global south? All said, many thanks to digital platforms like stage32 for breaking these geographic and cultural barriers
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@Craig Griffiths, it's partly arrogance but, in my opinion, it's mainly due to the hyper-focus everyone has on the Hollywood studios. It's like 99% of the industry doesn't exist sometimes.