Writers Literary Agency / The Literary Agency Group / LAG /TLAG

Thank you for your speedy response but due to discoveries made by a little internet research, I've decided not to pursue your company.

> From: [email protected]
> To: xxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: WL Screenplay Agency: Thank You For Your Query
> Date: Fri, 11 Jan 2008 12:35:57 -0500
>
> Thank you for your query to the WL Screenplay Agency and Management Co.
> Based on your query form information we would like to see your work and
> learn a little bit more about you.
>
>
> 1) Would you please send us an electronic copy
> of your screenplay for further evaluation?
>
> Please email your manuscript to
> [email protected] .
>
> 2) Would you please answer these 2 questions
> in the body of the SAME email? (Just copy and paste
> the questions).
>
> A. How long have you been writing, and
> what are your goals as a writer?
>
> B. Do you consider your writing 'ready-to-go', or do you think it needs
> some polishing? If you have had coverage or a formal critique please list
> the details and dates and discuss the changes you made. If you have worked
> with accredited screenwriters, please discuss that as well.
>
>
> You may send either 30 or so pages, or the entire screenplay, whichever you
> are more comfortable sending to us. Your screenplay is completely safe
> within our company. We take care to properly manage all access and if we
> don't end up working together, we delete all files.
>
> Please DO NOT include any questions with your submission. If you have a
> question, please send it to [email protected] where the proper
> people may address your question. Most of the questions you may have are
> answered on the website and at the bottom of this email. Please see the
> FAQs below.
>
>
> Our preference for receiving your script is via email.
> ============================================
> If you simply must mail your work, please email our question email and
> request a mailing code and address. Please explain thoroughly why you feel
> that you must mail the work. (Can you tell by now that we really want to
> make it difficult to mail? We hate mail. It costs money to ship, buyers
> don't want hardcopy, etc, etc.) Mailed scripts may take up to 6 weeks to
> reply/process. As a matter of fact, we will probably lose it and you will be
> mad at us <grin>. Emailed scripts are processed much more quickly.
>
>
> We believe we are very different than other agencies.
> ==========================================================
> We believe that we are unique in that we are willing to develop an author
> and their talent. We like the metaphor of a business incubator as a
> description of how we will take time to bring an author's work to the proper
> quality level, even if it takes months to do so. We take pride in the fact
> that we answer every email personally within 2-3 days.
>
> Also, you may understand how a Literary Agency works, but many authors
> don't, so please excuse me while I take a minute and let you know how the
> process works. As your Literary Agent, our mission is to assist you in
> finding a buyer for your work and to coach you along the way in various
> options available to you. We don't edit your work, our mission is to sell
> for you. As for compensation, get paid on success only, meaning we only get
> paid if you get paid. Typically we will receive 10% of what you receive if
> we are successful.
>
> We do not charge fees, so our compensation is based on success only. Along
> the way, we may suggest that you improve the quality of your work and or how
> it is presented. Once your work is deemed 'presentable', then we'll start
> shopping it to buyers.
>
> We never promise a sale, but we can tell you that we have a model that
> works.
>
> We look forward to receiving your materials.
>
> Best regards,
> Sherry - V.P. Acquisitions
>
> p.s. You might as well get used to these long emails. Part of our filtering
> process is to see if you actually read them <grin>. Why the long emails? If
> you will read them you will actually get a decent view of the agency
> business and what we see from our side. We try to explain as much as we can
> along the way and I am always pleased when authors tell me that they enjoyed
> learning from these emails.
>
> Please don't be upset because we use forms and long emails. I spend my time
> doing two basic tasks, 1) managing submissions and evaluations (currently
> about 3000 applicants a month), and 2) answering questions. If I can answer
> your question BEFORE you ask it, then the entire process will proceed much
> more efficiently.
>
> As a corollary to that, if you want long-winded, personalized emails you
> will probably not enjoy our process. If you are as busy as we are, and you
> pride yourself on operating efficiently (it is a business after all), then
> you will enjoy how efficiently we focus on the point, and that is, whether
> we can work together based on your writing and attitude.
>
> PLEASE UNDERSTAND THAT YOU WILL HAVE A MUCH MORE PERSONALIZED INTERACTION
> WITH OUR AGENTS IF YOU PASS THE EVALUATION PROCESS. This is the biggest
> complaint that we get and I wish I could spend oodles of time with each of
> you. I just can't. Sometimes it's like drinking from a firehose over here.
> So, please rest assured that there will be plenty of personal interaction
> with your agent but not with me. I am a real person, and I do look at every
> email. After that we have some pretty sophisticated tools for managing
> emails.
>
>
>
> Frequently Asked Questions
> =============================
> Q) Do you return screenplays?
> A) Sorry for the inconvenience however, WE DO NOT RETURN SCREENPLAYS due to
> the volume of submissions we receive. Please do not send us anything that
> you can't replace easily.
>
> Q) Would you prefer me to email or mail my script?
> A) WE MUCH PREFER EMAILED SCRIPTS.
>
> Q) How should I attach my script?
> A) PLEASE DO NOT PASTE YOUR MANUSCRIPT INTO THE BODY OF THE EMAIL. Please
> send it to us as an attachment, otherwise it hangs up the mail system. If
> you can't create an attachment, please get a friend to help you do so. We
> have every software known to the industry, so unless the format is pre-1990
> then we can read it.
>
> Q) Is my screenplay safe with you?
> A) Your materials are safe within our company. If you are uncomfortable
> sending your entire script, please only send half of it and a strong
> treatment. If we do not end up working together we will destroy and delete
> any copies of your work that we have.
>
> Q) How long does this review take?
> A) About 7-10 days. We're faster than most other agencies.
>
> Q) Why is there no phone number? I want to talk to someone...
> A) Quite frankly, we are deluged with submissions. It is our policy to
> provide a contact number later in the process, assuming we would like to
> proceed with you.
>
> Q) Where are you located?
> A) We maintain executive suites in Los Angeles and New York and we have
> various relationship partners in Los Angeles where we meet with clients and
> buyers. Other than that, we travel often and have the good fortune to live
> in Florida and California depending on the time of year. Sometimes we think
> that we live in airports.
>
> Q) Do I need to copyright my work before I send it?
> A) Not really. Your script and creations are completely safe within our
> company. We take care to properly manage all access and if we don't end up
> working together, we delete all files. You may also want to copyright it,
> but we don't need it to be copyrighted to analyze it. Regarding copyright,
> there are two ways you can go. One way is to do it yourself at
> http://www.loc.gov/copyright/ . The other way is to let someone who does it
> all the time do it for you. We found a list of copyright services here.
> http://www.inktip.com/protect-scripts.php Some of the services do books and
> some screenplays.
>
> Q) Tell me about your company.
> A) We are bigger than a small agency and smaller than a large agency. We
> have about 15 people total and at any one time it seems that we have about 3
> option agreements in negotiations. We market to the larger and medium sized
> producers. None of the options have made it to production yet, because
> we're on the newer side, but it should be a good year for our authors this
> year! As you noticed, we're new as a company. That's why we're seeking new
> talent to build our roster. Most agencies don't take new authors, so it's an
> opportunity for each of us. We have an "extended team" concept where we
> have various "partners" in Hollywood. If those partners like a script then
> they will work it with us (we pay them, not you). Those partners have
> connections of the highest caliber, Our principals have helped negotiate a
> number of options already though so we know the ropes. We are just now
> starting to work under our own corporate name. I wish I had more to say,
> but at least we're honest about our newness and we think our partners give
> us the reach that we need into inner Hollywood.
>
> Q) Have you ever been sued or in legal action with your clients/authors?
> A) We are very proud of the fact that we have NEVER been sued or a part of a
> legal action. (Note: We are bringing suit against a number of writers that
> have been bad mouthing our company, but that's different. We are very
> concerned about our repuation and will protect it strongly. As you know,
> there are nay-sayers everywhere if you want to look for them.)
>
> Q) How do I know you are for real?
> A) All we ask is that you judge us on the professionalism of our
> interactions together. We will never ask you for money, so that's one way to
> judge for yourself. Our commitment to you is that we believe that we should
> get paid only if we sell your work. Your commitment to us is that you will
> do what it takes to make sure your script is the best it can be and that it
> meets or exceeds industry quality standards.
>
> Q) What are you looking for during your evaluation?
> A) We mainly look for COMMERCIAL VIABILITY in the work coupled with good
> solid writing skills. "Is it something that will sell?" is of paramount
> importance to us. (We ARE NOT scrutinizing every word, spelling, and grammar
> usage. There's plenty of time later for that.) We believe that great writers
> are made, not born at least 99% of the time. But if a work doesn't have
> commercial potential, then we want to let you know as quickly as possible.
> Being willing to grow talent, we believe in the old adage, "luck is when
> opportunity meets preparation and hard work".
>
> Q) What if you find errors or problems with my screenplay? Should I spend
> time revising now, or later?
> A) We receive very few 'ready-to-go' screenplays. We believe we are unique
> in that we are willing to work with our authors along the way. Most that we
> receive need some level of polishing before we can submit them to buyers.
> Some need very little polishing. Some need a lot. Over the years, we've
> learned that it is worth our time and effort to do what it takes to develop
> new talent. We've learned that incubating new talent makes good business
> sense.
>
> Q) My screenplay isn't finished....
> A) As long as there is enough finished to determine your skills as a writer
> we are willing to look at your work. As mentioned previously, we take a
> long term view and we are willing to develop talent.
>
> Q) Is this an automated email? Is there a real person out there?
> A) Yes, and yes, and yes... We personally review each query form to
> determine whether the story idea/synopsis sounds interesting. This tells us
> which screenplays we would like to receive.
>
> Then, yes, we do use form letter emails to provide these FAQs. Can you
> imagine typing this time and time again? We pride ourselves on using
> technology to be as efficient as possible. This allows us to work with
> authors from anywhere in the world. By automating certain elements of our
> communications we can spend more thoughtful time on your questions that are
> specific to you and your situation.
>
>
> Best regards,
> Sherry - VP of Acquisitions
> We Grow Talent
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> How Did You Hear of Us?
> Internet surfing.
>
> The Title of Your Work:
> * xxxxx xxxxx
>
> Logline/Synopsis:
> *
> YYYYY
>
>
>
> Your Name:
> * XXXXXXXXXX
>
> Your Email Address:
> * XXXXXXXXXX
>
>
> Do you have coverage or a critique, and if so give details please?
> * No
>
> Your Bio:
> ZZZZZZ
>
>
> And now for the questions (I hope not to offend but it's best to clear the
> air between us sooner, rather than later and your web-site does try to
> promote a somewhat candid sense of business):
>
> - P & E ( http://anotherealm.com/prededitors/peals.htm ) advises against
> using your company due to a vague "difference of interests" and labels
> Sherry Fine as not being recommended - would you care to clarify?
>
> - None of the writers who gave feedback on your site have names - I would
> like to check out their credentials on IMDb and was wondering if you'd
> provide me with a (partial is fine) list of clients?
>
> - You don't charge any fees which gives of the impression of legitimacy...
> are there any hidden costs such as stamps and envelopes?
>
> - 10% is pretty much the industry standard if not even on the lower end of
> the scale; could you apprise me as to the terms and conditions of any
> contracts that may exist between us regarding my work and your
> representation of it?
>
>
> AAAAA
>
> I thank you for your time and look forward to hearing from you again soon
> (in 2-3 days, right?);
>
> Sincerely,
>
>
> XXXXXXXXXX
>
​