Screenwriting : Branding Yourself by Shane McKenzie

There's nothing that says you can't write anything you want to. Stephen King wrote "Stand By Me", remember. If you feel strongly about branding yourself, you can always write other stuff under a pseudonym. But I see no harm in expanding your horizons.

It's painful to brand yourself. I can never get that hot poker thing evenly on my butt... You can write anything you want, but the first thing you sell will define you for a while.

I definitely want horror to define me. I'll focus on that for now and revisit the comedy idea later on. That's the plan, anyway.

I think there are so many horror films that have massive doses of comedy that I can't see that this would be an issue... a drama or a muscial... well that could raise an eyebrow - not that you should let that stop you! Good luck with the feature.

Shane - maybe it's time to pick two names you write under. Many writers do that -- even Joyce Carol Oates does it -- and brand themselves for one particular audience under one name.

Never confuse what works in novels and what works in screenplays. Screenwriters generally can only write under one name, because residuals are tied to your name.

When it comes to branding try to think less about branding yourself in terms of genre and more in terms of style. Hopefully you're bringing something fresh to the genre, try to focus on what that may be.

CJ's point is perfect. While yes, some writers do get pigeon holed into being known for a genre, more get work based on their style -- such as dialogue that zings or action that is suspenseful -- many OWAs are filled based on style or handling of elements more than genre. If you're just establishing yourself, take the story that you love and try it in a few different genres and see which fits your style best.

let the industry brand you. it's like an actor being typecast. you have a particular style that perfect for you and you're successful at it. that's why you get branded. or typecast is your an actor. there's nothing wrong with that b/c -- it means you're successful. that's the most important part. it's later when you want to break out of that.... well, that's too far ahead to worry about now. ;)

Thanks, guys! I guess I don't know what I'll do about this. For now, I want to focus on horror anyway. I'll hit that comedy piece when the time seems right. Or until I can't hold it in anymore.

Worry not, Shane. Looking at your profile I'd see it's clear where your passion lies just by your novel titles. Try that comedy out and see where your writing takes it. You might find that, regardless of your intent, the script veers toward certain elements the echo your previous work. I've found the more I've branched out the more I've been able to hone in what I really enjoy writing. Branding sounds a lot more foreboding, flowery, and cynical than it really is. All you need to be able to do is concisely put forward what you are bringing to the table when you get opportunity to do so, such as your own proactive marketing but also reactive situations like meetings or enquiries. The important thing to remember here is that you're just being honest, you're not manipulating the situation like some people assume branding does. It's also worth noting that this thinking applies within the horror genre itself, just what kind of horror writer are you and who are you writing for? Again, this isn't something that demands you to go sit in a dark corner and pain yourself for hours about, you just need to be confidently be able to say "I'm Shane McKenzie and I love writing..."