2. I was given the option of having an option, but I turned it down. I own the screenplay outright now, the producer who has contacts wants to place it at a studio or with a production company, possibly the one that is interested. The producer who I am working with offered me the minimum amount as required by the WGA, I turned it down because I would rather wait until it is bought outright which is what we are preparing for right now. You say this is your first screenplay, so I want to make sure that you understand a couple of things. What you're basically doing at the moment is writing on Spec, which means that there's no guarantee the project will sell. Assuming the best case scenario, meaning that you finish an Oscar-caliber work and your producer contact can help you get it on the radar of a major production company, that then presents the project to a major studio who is willing to entertain the idea of making the movie, doesn't mean the piece would get bought outright. Almost none are.
Even in the big leagues, you get optioned. Either a production company will take it to a studio, or if it starts as a book, a studio might option it and then see if they can attach a director or producer or big name. In any event, you get a percentage (usually 10%) upfront with the studio having the option to hold onto that project for 12-18 months, on average. At the end of that time, they can renew or back out. If they renew, you get another 10%, and it starts over. You won't get paid outright until a few months before the movie goes into production - after all the pieces are in place and it's pretty much a guaranteed go.
Option amounts can very widely, depending on what the studio offers.
And since you mention the WGA, go check the guidelines for writing credit when guild members are involved. Maybe it's your work, but if your producer contact has had a hand in the writing at all, then the credit line can quickly change from:
AWESOME FILM, by: Author.
to
AWESOME FILM, by Author and Producer contact.
or
AWESOME FILM, by Author & Producer contact.
Each way of phrasing means something very specific ("&" =/= "and"), and it's the guild that gets to decide how credit is doled out.
3. I was advised by friends in the industry that I should wait because the agent who was interested in repping was a small time agent. I wanted to wait for an agent who could get it to the big publishing houses. I have also been told that if the movie is placed with a large studio, they might already have a publishing division and might want to release the book at the same time of the movue
Here's where my question about the subject matter / novelization comes in. IF you're writing a novel, then it's a story you own and the studio *might* want to sell that novelization as something akin to work for hire. (Unless it starts as a book and the movie rights are sold in that order.)
But you aren't writing a novel. This is non-fiction. You don't own the story of the person or event that you're writing about. Anyone could pick up that same story thread and write a non-fiction book about it. 12 people could, and it wouldn't matter because the story isn't something a single person owns.
If you want to go after big-named agents, then do so. If you want to submit to agencies that handle media rights, then do so. Tell them that you've got a screenplay in development with a producer (name said producer). It might not help you, but it won't hurt you, either. The point is, there's no sense in waiting for things to settle with the screenplay.
4. It is actually THAT unique, and it is mine. Why would it not be mine? I am the only author/writer.
(see above about historical events not belonging to anyone, and WGA guidelines for work done on a screenplay)