Uncategorized : How bout an experience based t… by Nicky Testaforte

Great remarks. As a writer, I'm tired of running into people with "great ideas" who want me to build their dreams for them, when they have no solid plans and no backing to get them off the ground. On the other side of it, I'm tired of trying to find producers who are truly interested in helping "new" writers and have the connections to do it. (I don't consider myself "new"--I've been a successful writer for years--commercial, stage, fiction, etc. One screenplay produced to date. I can take criticism and am willing to do the work to rewrite to make a project workable. I understand that this is business as much as it is art.) How do I weed out the "wannabes" from the serious artists? Cory--question for you: Don't you have to have some body of work before SAG will allow you to register a project?

Hey Debbi, just wanted to commiserate a bit. When I was writing novels I kept running into people wanting me to write their story...as if I had the time or interest even if they were willing to pay for ghostwriting, which they weren't. Most didn't take my genre into account either, like the guy who wanted me to write his life story. I told him he'd have to be kidnapped by aliens in chapter three. Serious artists will be able to talk specifics. Wannabes don't bother to learn the finer aspects of the craft. Often they don't want to pay the going rates, either. If you're looking to sell a screenplay, remember that you're the one who's supposed to get paid.