Screenwriting : Pitching Tips from the Pros: Your Blueprint to a Successful Pitch by Maurice Vaughan

Maurice Vaughan thanks for sharing, Maurice.

You're welcome, Geoff Hall. I got a lot of great pitching tips from it.

Maurice Vaughan when I get home, I will check it out. Thanks again.

You're welcome, Geoff Hall. Ok, sounds great.

Nice! Thanks, Maurice!

You're welcome, Bill Brock. Jason teaches some great stuff in the webinar.

Thanks for sharing Maurice ! Jason always gives the best advice & tips

You're welcome, Stephanie Munch. You're right about Jason. I've taken a few webinars by him.

Thank you

You're welcome, Bill Albert. How are you?

Maurice. Ok, need a break from pitching a while. Just getting frustrated. How are you?

I understand what you mean, Bill Albert. Sometimes I need a break from pitching my projects. What's frustrating you about pitching?

I'm doing great, thanks. I'm working on a rewriting job as part of my main goal for November Write Club.

Maurice, Sometimes I wonder if the people I'm pitching to are really paying attention. Getting responses that just don't make any sense. One spent a good chunk of my 8 minute pitch session telling my why I should get his hour long consultation. It then took 12 minutes to pass on the script. ?????

Sorry that happened, Bill Albert. I've had some "What???" experiences too. I think you just have to continue searching for the right person to pitch to. Eventually you'll find them, and they'll give you great feedback that'll help your pitch/script. One thing you could do is look out for Pitch Session success stories and recommendations that writers post on Stage 32, then pitch to those executives, producers, etc.

Maurice, tonight had a phone pitch session set up 29 days ago. 45 minutes after the scheduled time I finally gave up.

Did you email Stage 32 and let someone know about it, Bill Albert?

Bill Albert writerhelp@stage32.com

I sent an email to support@stage32.com while I was waiting. I know it's Thanksgiving but I did schedule and PAY a month ago.

I'm sure Stage 32 will give you another Pitch Session, Bill Albert. They've done it before with writers who were in the same situation.

Bill Albert “Sometimes I wonder if the people I'm pitching to are really paying attention. Getting responses that just don't make any sense.”

I know what you mean. I’ve had Producers tell me that there was a plot hole and that I’d introduce a plot element without mentioning, or seeding it prior to this. When I’d actually done the seeding work on page (whatever it was) and I’m thinking have you really read the script?

Another wanted more in-your-face action, more plot threads, but that would have destroyed the whole premise of the film being a psychological drama. However, my takeaway from it was that they told me I could write with great tension and that there were scenes in the script that had a real sense of terror and threat.

In the end you realise that these are not the Producers for your project and you move on. Don’t take it personally, and just realise that your journey to getting the project made has a few more steps. And keep talking on this site to your fellow writers. We are here for you, Bill.

Geoff Hall It's been a series of moments like that.

The first character in the first scene is November. I specifically said it was about November, she carries the story from start to finish has the answer to the big secret and the producer asked what it was when I told her she gasped. The title is In the Shadows of November. In the response the producer said she couldn't tell is November was the main character or not. ???

Three times in my pitch session a producer explained to me why I should sign up for an hour long consultation with him. He then passed on the project 8 minutes after I got off the phone.

Thanks Geoff

I like November as a character name, Bill Albert. :)

"In the response the producer said she couldn't tell is November was the main character or not." Does November have the most scenes in the script, or is there another character with more scenes? That could be why the producer couldn't tell if November was the main character or not.

Bill Albert hmm, that is so disappointing. When the Producer asks you to book an hour call, you think you are getting somewhere. I’m sorry that was so misleading and led nowhere. Hang on in there, Bill.