Show your script to everybody online. Pros and Cons

[retrostone]

How about you posting your precious script online on your website and show to everybody?
What’s gonna happen?
Will it get stolen?
Will you get enough interesting feedback to rewrite it even better?
Will it lead to some collaborative writing?
Will you make any good contacts because of that?
Maybe nobody comes, maybe nobody likes it?
How can you secure it against theft?
Would you put all your drafts up?
Would you limit yourself by putting up only a treatment?
How about a script that you know doesn’t work but you’d like it to work, so you need some input?
Your first work ever? (So it’s a short film right?)
Is it experimental, avant-garde idea? Ok so who is gonna make it? Film college students for a degree project? I see, so again how about posting it online, for all you need is a credit, feedback and new contacts.
Maybe you are a great, well known writer, yet you have this script on a shelve collecting dust for the last 15 years… would you post it online / or not?

… Pros and Cons Ladies and Gentlemen, Pros and Cons.


www.scriptwritingpeople.com

[Hamboogul]

I'd say that if you are at a very infant stage of writing, it doesn't hurt that much to post stuff online. In fact, if you have no reliable source of getting feedback, it's recommended.

But just don't use their opinions as gospel.

From my personal experience on Done Deal message boards where I post frequently, I had great things happen from posting pages. I am very close friends with two busy working writers who've not only been mentors to some degree but friends in LA when I moved. And I've had two other professional writers from messageboards read my writing and refer me to their colleagues.

So I say go ahead and knock yourself out.

[kojled]

retrostone

what's gonna happen? in almost all cases - nothing

will it be stolen? maybe

will the feedback be good? usually, no. extremely rarely, yes. you'd be better off sending it to a good coverage service (really)

collaboration? don't know, don't care

good contacts? are you kidding? almost no chance. contacts, maybe, but good contacts? (i have done this but would not advise anyone to hope for it - do not hold your breath)

how can you keep it from being stolen? there is not a method for doing so except keeping it secret - you could consider burning the only copy (**)

post a treatment? it's much easier to cull ideas from a treatment than it is from a script

wait a year, see what you think then (but, do consider a coverage service - it can help you cut through a lot of bullshit)


zilla

[kojled]

retrostone

i have to add to previous post. once i read a script online - at zoetrope - and offered my notes. this script was picked up by zoetrope several months later (not because of my notes - that's just a coincidence, i suppose). anyway - every now and then you can strike gold by posting online.


z

[maestrowork]

Just remember, if you post anything on a public board like this or on the internet, it's considered "published."

[dpaterso]

Just remember, if you post anything on a public board like this or on the internet, it's considered "published."
No argument intended maestro, just some extra thoughts on the subject... I've seen the same thing said on writing group forums for years, and also various replies from publishing industry pros. Technically, if the work changes then it isn't the work that was posted, ergo it isn't the work that was "published." Similarly, if it's clearly posted for purpose of critique, implying it's a work in progress and that subsequent change will take place, there's a waiver clause at work here too. That's not to say you won't find some fiction editors who'll be very picky about these points, and underline them in their guidelines. But I note your wording, that it's "considered published" rather than "this constitutes publication." It's not something I'm personally worried about, I have posted and will post script pages on message boards for critique purposes. Methinks we must each make our own decision. Shrug, my thoughts.

-Derek
-----------------------My Web Page - naked women, bestial sex, and whopping big lies. (http://hometown.aol.co.uk/DPaterson57)

[SimonSays]

Personally, I would not post my script online under any circumstances. Although I can understand why some may choose to post on some of the screenwriting sites like Zoetrope.

However, I can't see any reason for posting your script on your own personal website. Legitimate agents, managers and producers are not trolling the web looking for potential clients or material. You are most likely to attract the scammers.

People who are willing to critique other's work are far more likely to go to zoetrope, triggerstreet et. al. because those sites provide a quid pro quo environment where your work can be critiqued in return.

Will it be stolen? probably not - but the fact is the more eyes who have access to it, the greater the chances. So posting openly with no procedures in place to track access - only increases those chances.

[retrostone]

We have the Internet! It is a great invention isn’t it? It’s used for so many thing and so on, but what about writing? I mean what changes or benefits the Internet brings to the writing community in general. The other day I was talking to one seasoned writer and he said to me that, all he needs the Internet for is email. His research he does in libraries and bookshops or directly talking to the people. He gets more news than he asks for from the telly and “email is great to talk to the people you don’t want to talk to” otherwise he uses his telephone. The Internet is a “junkyard”, you have to go through the heaps of rubbish before you find the screw you were looking for. And I think it’s really sad. There is one technical flaw in the Internet that makes it so messy. Imagine all those tabloids, property add papers, brochures, leaflets and all other printed crap that we throw away in unmeasured quantities daily, it’s just that on Internet it is always there, growing, accumulating and there’s no way to flush it down the drain. Bad web site lives ten times longer than a good magazine. No wander many of you think the Internet wouldn’t help your script. Posting your script on your website sounds as cool as nailing it to your front door. Personally, I think it depends on how big is the door. Tell me what do you think would help screenwriter on the net then? Any tools, services, information, contacts, something that we know exist but we can’t find or something completely new?

www.scriptwritingpeople.com

[SimonSays]

Retro - I think the internet has a lot to offer the writing community. For one thing forums like this essentially create a writing community. A good place to connect with others who share your interest and passion.

I have been very critical about relying on said communities to learn the craft and to learn the ins and out of pursuing a career - primarily because the level of knoweldge and real experience by individuals giving advice may not be much greater than your own. I stand by that - but I think these communities do offer support and a chance to interact.

While the internet may be a junkyard, it is a great place to do research - to find the information you need quickly and efficiently. The key is to make sure your sources are reliable. I'm currently working on a novel that in part takes place in the 70's, I was able to get the Billboard charts for the year I was writing about in one click. I was also able to verify when certain brands of apparel hit the market so that I could create the ambience I was trying to create but be factually accurate with the details that created that ambience. I found all the info I needed in about a 1/2 hour it would've taken me that long just to drive to the library and back - then I'd have to have waded through who knows how many old magazines, etc. until I found the information I needed.

You can buy books on screenwriting and agency directories online that might not be available at your local bookstore. There are also some good online courses - such as John Truby, Gotham Writer's Workshop or Writers Boot Camp. Because the most important thing for a writer is to LEARN YOUR CRAFT. Have a good understanding of structure and character development. Know what an inciting incident is, know how to create conflict. These things are more important than anything else.

The major trades (Variety, The Hollywood Reporter) have online editions so you can keep up with what is going on in the industry. There are many services for writers online - consulting services, places to post loglines and/or scripts etc. Some are good, some are bad - you gotta do a lot of research on them. I can't be specific on any of the sites, because I have never needed to use any of them. I've established myself through networking and working as a writer.

Always be sure to consider the source for any information you gather on the web and be wary of people trying to rip you off.

On the other hand, remember that just because something costs money - does not mean someone is trying to "rip off" writers. The courses are a good example - the three I mentioned cost anywhere between $400 and $650. More than a reasonable price to pay to learn the craft. Consultants can also charge that much - or considerably more. But a good script consultant is definitely worth the money. I've seen really bad scripts that wound up selling for six figures after the writer worked with a good consultant. The key word there is good. There are a lot of lousy ones that charge an arm and a leg too, so if you're going to use one, do your homework.