Any tips for fighting off the depression that comes from all the rejection and discouragement we all sometimes get? It seems for every positive comment/feedback I get I get at least one hateful mean spirited comment as well. I have great faith in my project, so take some of the negative as nothing more than competitive pettiness on the commentators part.....but still it can get me down some days. During my acting years, pounding the pavement for auditions was very competitive, guess I need to toughen up my skin again.
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You know what to do in your heart. What really matters to you?
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Adversity is universal, but persistence is rare.
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A professional writer does not focus on one project but instead hope to develop a wide array of scripts. To paraphrase the Dorritos slogan, "Crush all you want, I'll write more." Now if you feel you have a story that touches you and you want that story told, you're leaving the realm of the professional writer and entering into the realm of the amateur producer. They question becomes "How do I get this one story made?" Pitching the idea to studios in the hopes that they will make it is one way, but there are others. Personally, I have one project and I honestly don't have an interest in writing any others right now. The story I wrote about two women who got drafted into the Soviet Air Force during WW II captured my imagination and not a day goes by that I don't ponder how I can get that story out there. I discovered comics. Action oriented screenplays translate well to comic books and they are far cheaper to produce. In addition, if you write a successful comic, it can only help your changes of getting your movie made. But that's my story and how I've chosen to approach it. If you're passionate about your story and you're not ready to move onto others, then you need to figure out what you can do to bring it about. Modern technology and the wonders of crowd funding have made it easier than ever to get your story out there in some form. If it's to be, it's up to you.
Hi Mark. I think Sam hit the nail on the head there - you need to be able to read the feedback and comments you get and understand the difference between someone providing a critique and someone just being critical. With the latter, you just get people being bitter and having a go for the sake of it, just because they don't like the story, the character, the writer, or they are just having a bad day. If someone offers you a critique, then they are also going to be offering you ways of dealing with any "problems" they have found and feeding into your script and ideas. I'm just learning all this myself, but find it easier to deal with the bad stuff by concentrating on the useful critique and ignoring the simply critical. Of course, ask me again in a couple of years and I may well just be a jaded old man! :-) Good luck!
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Sorry to hear you're struggling, Mark. It certainly comes with the territory of a marketplace in which the supply outweighs the demand by around....hmmm....let's do the numbers again..... .....so there's this script inventory of around 400,000 - 500,000....with another 100,000 or so registered each year.....around 1,500 movies were made globally last year, many of which are remakes, prequels, sequels, or based on graphic novels, books or true-life stories, or are contracted to be written....and around 120 spec scripts were sold, of which around 60 were sold by previously unsold writers.....many of whom are already in the movie biz or writing fields. And every year, more graduates come out of the film school writers' programs to put even more pedigreed competition out there against all of the non-pedigreed, unsold writers. So that's where we're at, with regards to the chances of selling your spec script. Around 60 were sold by previously unsold writers (many of whom already in the movie biz or writing fields). Even established writers realize the chances are very slim for them to sell spec scripts. There are thousands of writers in L.A., and most are vying for staff jobs in the film, TV, or video game fields. Or they are script consultants. So as a writer, your opportunities look like this to me: 1. Keep plugging away and hope an option or shopping agreement can lead to a sale or a writing assignment 2. Keep plugging away and hope a few scripts can lead to a writing assignment for a television show. 3. Turn your script into a novel or comic book that can create an audience on Amazon or elsewhere that might then lead to an option or shopping agreement that might then turn into a sale. 4. Get your script funded through other avenues. 5. Develop relationships with producers and find out what they are REALLY (SPECIFICALLY) LOOKING FOR. 6. Write a banker's box full of scripts, so when a producer tells you what they are REALLY (SPECIFICALLY) LOOKING FOR, you might very well have it. 8. Enter as many contests as you can that may lead to something promising if you can win or place in the contest(s). 9. Become a script consultant. 10. Find a wealthy woman (or man or transgender person) to make you happy. That's the reality of things. Over the last 15 years, I've been in and out of the endeavors of trying to sell scripts that I've written. I made some money on a couple options back in 2002-2004; I was contracted to write a bio-pic about Gwen Gordy's contributions to Motown a couple years ago, and that script is a hard sell in today's marketplace. My professional careers have prevented me from pursuing writing full-speed during that time period. which is probably a good thing overall. I've probably made a lot more money in the last 15 years professionally than I would have made if I sold 2 - 5 scripts. But if I would have become a staff writer somewhere, things might have been different. Personally, I'm in the process of novelizing a couple of my scripts when I'm not working. More important to me right now - I'm in the process of acquiring funding for one of my scripts. I worked hard at seeking it, and got someone who is interested. Now I'm learning as much as I can about everything related to making a film, so that I can get the most bang for the buck when we're ready to go next year and I have to oversee the entire project from start to finish. I'm not stupid...I'll have no role in the actual shoot, other than getting all the proper people on board and probably being an assistant producer and/or line producer. It's a very long, long, long shot for an outsider/previously unsold writer to actually sell a script, Mark. We all know that. Established writers know that. Everybody on Stage32 knows that. Nobody reputable here is trying to delude starry-eyed writers with rose-colored glasses and a bag full of dreams. It's been my experience - first-hand, second-hand, and from observing writers for 15 years - that non-established writers have very little awareness as to how things really work. Luckily, Stage32 gives them the opportunities to learn those important realities. Writers write, and love to write. It's the love of writing, and the awareness of becoming the best writer that you can become, that gives you any chance of success - along with the dedication, perseverance, and writing something that is evocative and marketable in today's film business. Filling your life, brain, heart and soul with as much positive thinking as you can will give you the best chance of attaining those goals (or any goals). Overcome those depressive thoughts, and you'll increase your odds of success tremendously. I wish you the best, and all of the other writers here and elsewhere the best, in achieving their dreams.
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Mark, I had a script that made it to the Top 50 of the Nicholl Fellowships competition and then within a year of that got feedback from a coverage service a producer insisted I go through that just plain tore the thing apart. I had another Top 50 script (actually it was a Top 30 then) that I had submitted to the Nicholl before and continued to submit after (they encourage you to do that), and it never placed at all any other time. How can a script be in the Top 30 out of 7,000 one year and then never rate again? Because it's all incredibly subjective! The stories are legion of legendary movies that almost didn't get made because they were rejected so many times. And yes, as Mark Walker said, there are so many irrelevant reasons people may turn on your script. Sometimes even because its brilliance threatens them. I also agree with Bill Costantini's suggestion to hook up with a transgender person, because that's very in right now. ;) Seriously, as Bill also said, it's the love of writing that counts. And then make sure you do the business stuff as well, but in the end it has to be just the joy of becoming the best writer you can be that's the main focus. Because we are promised nothing else.
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Great advice guys. I'd like to add that you should look for patterns that are the same among critiques. Also remember that some of our peers are competitive and will crush your work to elevate themselves.
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Take a look at how badly you want what you are working toward, and fight off whatever comes into your path preventing you from moving forward. It's a tough path, but perseverance is required. Keep going, Mark.
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It's easy to get pulled down by the undertow of rejection or, sometimes even worse, radio silence, Mark. We've all been there. I always try to learn something from every experience. And I also keep present in the forefront the fact that it only takes one "Yes" to change the path of your career. Remember, this is a marathon, not a sprint. Control what you can control. And the most important thing you can control is to keep writing and honing your craft.
My advice? Write a fuck all screenplay. I'm at "a point" in that spectrum of frustration and decided to throw a lot of real, bubbling frustration into something. Of course, I may be pouring gas on my own fire.
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Thanks everyone. Feeling a bit recharged today. Sending out a few more query letters
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A watched phone never rings. So don't even think about it - just get on to the next script and then the next script and then the next script. If you are a writer, it's all about the writing (not the praise or lack thereof).
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"It seems for every positive comment/feedback I get I get at least one hateful mean spirited comment as well." Sounds to me like you need to decide what's constructive criticism and what's a hateful mean spirited comment. Most of the time people are too busy or too nice to just spew hate for no reason - so if you are experiencing that then you should take heed of that. If people think your script/project is really bad 99% of the time they won't say anything they'll just ignore you so if they take the time to hate you, that is MUCH better than ignoring you. Only listening to the positive support won't help you grow AT ALL. Just think of it as market research, don't take it personally - it's not you it's just this particular project. When you put your stuff out there, the world will tell you what it thinks and it's in your best interest to listen and take notes, instead of dismissing all but the glowing reviews
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Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. We all get punched in the gut by rejection, and you raise a good topic about the depression that comes with it. But we must accept that we are in a HIGHLY competitive industry. I agree with everyone above that a writer needs to keep writing despite the difficulty of selling...even working in different genres and trying different avenues to get exposure.