Monday, January 31, 2005

Mamas Don't Let Your Kids Grow Up To Be Screenwriters

Rejection goes hand in hand with writing, and especially so if you're a screenwriter. See, us screenwriters put up with a lot of crap that other writers wouldn't. Could you imagine Stephen King or John Grisham turning a novel in to their publisher only to have it torn apart by producers, agents, managers, development execs, publicity flacks and various other sundry and nefarious know it alls? Stephen, not enough product placment! Hey John, where's the character arc, and oh, by the way, change the ending, it's too much of a downer.

Screenwriters must love being in hell because we spend so much time there.

1 comment:

George said...

But, I think it's a wonderful outlet of one's creative drive! I wish more people wrote in general. As for screenwriting, I also think that we don't have enough good writers given the quality of the films being made.

The problem is that it's hard to sell a script which is heavy on character development, or if it targets anything other the lowest common denominator. Appealing to the tastes of the American consumer has been a financially successful formula. Agents and producers and execs want to minimize their risks, so they act accordingly.

Being or visiting hell often might give you an idea on how to trick the devil next time!