Screenwriting : Why do you write screenplays? by Steve Douglas-Craig

"When deciding on what to write, are you thinking about what platform would best fit your story?" Yes

"Are you thinking about the marketability of your work?" Yes

Those are some of the questions I ask when outlining a script.

Great tips/post, Steve Douglas-Craig!

Thanks Maurice! That's why when I am developing/teaching screenwriting I don't just deal with craft. I also bring my 14 years as a studio executive into the mix as well. I help writers develop their screenplays while also giving as much grounding in acquisitions and distribution as well. Essential! https://www.thenewscreenwriter.com/upcomingworkshops

You're welcome, Steve Douglas-Craig. I checked out your website. You have 14 years as a studio executive, so I'll keep you in mind for script coverage and your other services.

Thanks Maurice. Hope to help out you and others where possible.

Steve - the basic answer is no - I don't think about any of that 'stuff' anymore. I've been in & around the industry for about four decades in both the executive suite and in the creative sand box. I've taught screenwriting and producing/directing over the years but no more. Now I write for lack of a good provocative hobby. It's an addiction.

I have something to say. I have a way of saying it. I know the way it should be said. I know the impact it will have.

My craft enables me to create it in a way that makes its saleable.

Knowing the target etc. Is all part of a marketing (not sales and advertising - don’t get that confused), mindset I take to my writing.

Cause I like it...my ratio is 5% success to 95% unsuccess but I deal with it...and that's 100% success in someone else's philosophy...

Steve, I write screenplays because, first and foremost, it's my FUN.

Writing gives me a chance to have something to say...and I get to write what's actually in me.

Now, with that in mind...sending Tessa Shaffer a pitch about "Fine Tooth Comb" here on Stage 32 and, just recently, turning in a screenplay called "Intervention!" got me thinking more and more about marketability.

The "FTC" pitch gave me a chance to see what existing films "FTC" resembles (1988's "Purple People Eater" and 1950's "Young Man with a Horn"). "Intervention!" ("The Gridiron Gang" meets "12 Angry Men," if you will) sets out to do the same thing "Pixie Dust" seeks to accomplish: Depict something topical...something that affects millions of rank-and-file Americans. (Those two scripts give me an opportunity to show I can build screenplays around something other than music and/or showbiz.)

Oh, by the way..."Intervention!" looks at how racist slights affect people of color, while "Pixie Dust" takes on the marginalization of too many of us here in America.

Thanks for the post, Steve! Glad you're on Stage 32, and I wish you all the VERY BEST!

Hey Dan Guardino. I don't sit around on my computer all day waiting for someone to DM, so your insistence that I answer when YOU want isn't always gonna work. Currently raising financing right now, so not ready yet. But will do both.

Hey Steve, I mainly write what I think will have the potential for a sale. I was warned against writing a western -- but I noticed on Amazon prime there were quite a few of them made in just the last few years... so I wrote one and it sold just a short time after putting on the market. Horror sells, so I wrote a low budget horror, which sold and is now wrapping up production.

Most of my optioned screenplays are in the romcom market - which is not really my wheelhouse, but there seems to be a demand for them, so I wrote a few. We'll see if the options get the green light.

I co-owned an Audio Drama company for 26 years and while there, wrote 480 audio drama scripts. We made sure to cover many genres knowing that at least ONE of them would take off and do some great business, and the one that did was a series - a western (who'da thunk) called POWDER RIVER that ran for 178 episodes. I try to do the same thing with my screenplays -- cover as many genres as I can, even though some are not in my comfort zone - but they are in the comfort zone for producers seeking scripts.

I like your technique, Jerry. Congrats on optioning and selling your scripts!

One must consider all of these factors when writing a project and thinking about who the audience is and where it might play best. The market became very saturated when all of the new platforms came online. Some streamers are able to leverage their libraries to hold on to subs. Compelling shows that can be shot on reduced budgets will do well IMO. The writing better be stellar and speak to the target audience.