Screenwriting : Query Letter Advice Needed by Becca-Chris M

know something about the person you are contacting. drop a reference like "I saw you speak at WGA's event", "We belong to the same charity" or "I like your podcast"... then dive into the "meat & bones" and exit fast.

So what are the elements that would create an attractive-to-industry-professionals query letter?

Good tips, Dan. Thanks.

The important element in a query letter from a writer to people in the cinema industry is to present to them as concisely as possible a story that they can't refuse/can visualize/want to read/want to make. You have about six seconds to capture and arouse their interest with a "what-if?" type statement, and another thirty-ish seconds to harvest and rapidly raise their interest in your query. Make it acutely apparent that you grok human nature, and that you are a subject matter expert on your story. Premise/theme/conflict should be very clear in a few simple yet deep sentences. Save the fluff for the end, and the less fluff the better. Good luck and Happy Querying, Husband-Wife Writing Duo! And if you weren't aware of this...faith-based films are a hot market. Check out the Christian Film Database for what's going on...lots of production companies listed there....and here's a link to a faith-based forum topic from a while ago. https://www.stage32.com/lounge/screenwriting/Films-for-the-Faith-Based-A...

My brother/partner have sent out queries over the last two years for a dozen scripts. So far, we have only used a mass query mailing service. They send it to hundreds of general agents and production companies. We always receive some feedback asking to send one of our scripts. The problem there is that many don't deal with a genre we're writing for. In the future I plan to use the Hollywood Screenwriter's Directory. It has thousands of production companies contact information and if and how they receive unsolicited queries and scripts, and what genres they deal with. As far as what should be in the query, we keep hearing: don't make it longer than one page, put your bio information at the end, have a short and concise synopsis of the screenplay (but really showing the protagonist's development arc), include the genre, be respectful, and maybe most important, have a logline that grabs their attention. I have read that many companies will not spend over five seconds looking at queries, just long enough to read and think about the logline (hook). I hope this helps. My brother and I are in the same boat as you and your husband. We have placed in ScreenCraft and Scriptapalooza contests over the past three years. We have had contact with several producers, thanks to the queries. Good luck to you!

short and sweet. don't ramble. grab them and don't tell them everything. you can always tell more later

Thanks for the input, Doug. Going to look into the Hollywood Screenwriter's Directory. And congrats to you and your brother on placing in the contests!

Brief. It's all about the concept, so great logline that accurately reflects your script's amazing concept, then a very brief bio on why you are the expert on this script. That's it! Get outta there!

Could a well written treatment take the place or be the bulk of the 1-2 page query letter?

No one wants to read more than about 25 words - the essence of your story. Ages ago I had a meeting with the producers of WATERWORLD (hey, they made other things, too) and they had a FAX machine (told you it was ages ago) next to a 55 gallon trash can and an assistant whose job was to read FAXed loglines and thrown them in the trash can. He did that for 8 hours a day, because the producers freely gave out their phone number for queries. Every couple of months that assistant would read a logline and not throw it in the trash can. Imagine the same assistant reading emails now.

Thanks for the input. So I'm assuming a simple logline and contact info should suffice?

John you would need more than that. I don't write my own but I have seen the ones my agent uses for my scripts and they are a pretty short. A log line followed by three (acts) very short paragraphs followed by a blurb about me.