Read 'Submitting Your Screenplay Via Email – How To Create A Catchy Subject Line' at http://www.SellingYourScreenplay.com.

I got this question recently:

“I’ve noticed that e-mail queries are becoming more accepted. When sending an agent an e-mail query, what should the subject line be? Should it say Query or the script title or Attn: Agent’s Name?”

You should read my post Getting your screenplay to producers and production companies if you haven’t already as that article covers some logistics to tracking down contact information for production companies including email addresses, fax numbers, and mailing addresses.

The fact that email queries are considered “acceptable” is precisely the reason why I think you might want to consider other methods of approaching a production company like regular mail or faxing. The problem with email is that it’s so easy to do and costs so little that everyone is doing it so your email is likely to get lost.  In addition with increasingly powerful spam filters there’s a high probability it won’t ever be delivered.  No one has invented a spam filter for faxes and most companies are not in the habit of throwing regular mail away without at least opening it up and having a quick glance at it.  Furthermore, unless you’re prepared to send hundreds if not thousands of emails you’re probably not going to be very successful at cold emailing agents, producers and directors.  When I was sending out email queries to production companies I had gathered every single email address in the HCD so I was sending a lot at one time.  I suspect that these screenplay submission services are doing the same thing.  If you’re going to use email as your delivery method be prepared to spend a lot of time gathering the email addresses because you’re going to need to send a lot.

As a rule I would try and be as direct and up front as possible while also trying to catch the person’s attention.  Perhaps you can even slip in a condensed logline, something like this: “Screenplay Submission: Dish Dogs is Easy Rider meets The Graduate.”

What I’m doing is using my alternate log line and trying to grab the person’s attention as much as possible.  See my post Writing A Screenplay Logline for more details about how to write a good logline.

Do not just use something vague like “Screenplay Submission Request” as your subject line. That will most likely be deleted quickly.  You’re not giving the reader any reason what-so-ever to actually open your email and read what you’ve written.

I highly recommend you NOT try anything underhanded even if you think it might increase the likelihood that someone would read your entire email.  For instance something like this is probably a bad idea:”Steven Spielberg told me to contact you about my project.”  You’re trying to build a long-term working relationship with this person so start it out on the right foot.  Use creativity in a positive way to make your subject line catchy and interesting.

It’s really marketing 101.  If your email actually does arrive in someone’s email box they’re most likely going to read the subject line and then either view the full email or delete it without reading it so make the subject line count.  Keep in mind there’s really no hard and fast rules with something like this.  Use common sense and test what you do.  For instance if you gather 100 email addresses from the HCD try a test to 10 or 20 of them using one version of your subject line and then 10 or 20 with another version to see what works best.

If you have a specific contact name (i.e. a friend knows the brother of an agent at CAA or you meet someone in a coffee shop who gave you her business card) use that in the subject line.  “Jane Smith told me to contact you” or “We met in Starbucks on Thursday”.  These may not be very creative or catchy but a lukewarm lead like this may actually be just enough of a cracked open door for you to slip your email in and it will separate you from all the other people just trying to submit using the above mentioned logline approach.

Read 'Writing A Screenplay Logline' at http://www.SellingYourScreenplay.com.

You will need a great screenplay logline to sell your script.  The logline will be a one or two sentence pitch of your film.  You will use it in your query letter to agents and producers and you will use it to pitch your script idea to anyone who asks about it.  You should practice it a bit out loud so that you can easily recite it.  If you live in L.A. being able to recite your logline can be very important as you never know who you might run into.

I often see screenwriting books and websites define the logline as the “short blurb in the T.V. Guide” that describes a film in a sentence or two. I think this is a horrible definition of what you want your logline to be.  Just open up any T.V. guide and you’ll see that they’re often written by hacks and usually do very little to sell the film.  Your logline must be compelling and make people want to read the entire script or at the very least make them want to read your synopsis.

I point this out mainly so you don’t open up the T.V. guide for assistance in writing your logline.  Keep in mind the reason for your logline: it’s to get someone to read your script, practically at all costs.  The T.V. guide blurb is there to give the viewer a truthful, straightforward summation of the story so they can decide if they want to watch the movie or not.  There’s a big different.

Let’s look at a few examples.

Here’s the one sentence logline I found for Die Hard on IMDB:

New York cop John McClane gives terrorists a dose of their own medicine as they hold hostages in an LA office building.

I think this logline sums up the story pretty well.  After all, Die Hard was about McClane whooping terrorists’ asses in an LA office building.  One thing that I hate about this logline, and it’s something you see a lot, is that it uses a clichéd figure of speech (dose of their own medicine).  I think they’re used often mainly because they can convey a lot of meaning in a relatively short space.  Personally I hate them and I think you should avoid them.  To me it is a lazy way to describe your script and it makes it seem clichéd and unoriginal – how many movies could you describe as the hero gives the bad guys a “dose of their own medicine”?  If you find a more original way to describe your script it will sound more original.

Here’s how I might have written a logline if I had written the script for Die Hard:

When NYC cop John McClane gets trapped in an LA office building taken over by terrorists, he kicks the shit out of them one terrorist at a time.

Obviously you can’t use the word “shit” in a T.V. guide blurb but that’s the great thing about what you’re writing – it’s not a T.V. guide blurb – it’s a one sentence pitch of the movie and you can use whatever language you need to sell your script.  I think saying “he kicks the shit out of them one terrorist at a time” really sums up the “R” rated violent humor this action flick and would do a lot more to sell this script then the IMDB logline.

Here’s the logline I found on IMDB for Easy Rider:

Two counterculture bikers travel from Los Angeles to New Orleans in search of America.

Are you kidding me?  I love this movie but would this pitch really get me to read the script?  Only if I knew that Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper and Jack Nicholson were in the film!  So if you don’t have that level of actor attached to your project you’re going to need a better logline.

Here’s my re-written logline for Easy Rider:

Two counterculture bikers travel from Los Angeles to New Orleans in a cocaine funded, LSD fueled road “trip” encountering dirty hippies, a convict lawyer, and murdering bigots.

The story for my screenplay Dish Dogs was actually similar to Easy Rider.  Here’s the logline I wrote for it:

Dish Dogs is the story of two college graduates, fed up with society and eager to gain some measure of free will; so they drive around the country in a 1958 Ford pick-up truck washing dishes.

Your logline should include the main character(s), the antagonist(s), the central conflict of the script, and give solid clues about the genre and tone of the script.  This sounds like a lot but that’s what you need to do.

In Die Hard John McClane is the hero which is in the logline I wrote.  The terrorists are the antagonist and they supply the conflict, which is also in the logline I wrote.  It’s a tongue-and-cheek action movie (tone and genre) which I think “he kicks the shit out of them one terrorist at a time” makes clear.

In Easy Rider Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda are the “Two counterculture bikers” that the story revolves around.  “Murdering bigots” are the antagonists and supply some of the conflict – although the hippies and convict lawyer do also.  The genre is pretty clear, too, it’s a road buddy movie (Two counterculture bikers travel from Los Angeles to New Orleans).  The tone is summed up by the entire sentence (I hope).  Easy Rider isn’t a comedy and there’s nothing funny about the logline.  It’s a gritty look at the counterculture movement and America at the time the movie was made.  I hope that’s what is conveyed by the entire sentence but especially the last part: “cocaine funded, LSD fueled road “trip” encountering dirty hippies, a convict lawyer, and murdering bigots.”

For my script Dish Dogs the two main characters are the “two college graduates.”  The antagonist and conflict comes from society – they’re “fed up” and are eager to push back against it (conflict).  The genre, like Easy Rider, is a road buddy movie but much more lighthearted.  The main characters are somewhat sophomoric and using grandiose themes like “free will” against the backdrop of washing dishes and driving around in a 1958 Ford pick-up truck hopefully shows this lighthearted comedic tone.

One other thing that you might want to think about is using other well known films to draw comparisons to your own film.  For instance I put this sentence at the end of my Dish Dogs synopsis:

Dish Dogs is Easy Rider meets The Graduate for a new generation.

This is not a replacement for your real logline but can act as a quick way to sum up your script, especially in a verbal pitch where you tell someone your logline and then follow it up with “it’s like Easy Rider meets The Graduate for a new generation.”  If you can come up with a really creative marriage of two well known films to describe your script you might include both sentences in your query letter and they might both act as the logline.

If you would like me (and other readers) to comment on your logline just post it in as a comment below and I’ll try and comment on it.  Feel free to comment on other people’s loglines as well.

Or take a stab at the examples I gave and see if you can come up with better loglines than I did.

Read 'How to Sell Your Screenplay (in a nutshell)' at http://www.SellingYourScreenplay.com.

Since the title of my blog is “Selling Your Screenplay,” and I want that to be the focus of my blog, I figured an obvious first post was to write a simple guide to getting your screenplay sold.

Keep in mind that this blog is not an exhaustive list of ways to get your script sold.  It’s just a few ways that I’ve tried and had good luck with.  Always be on the lookout for other ways to get your script sold and realize that some of the things I’ve done may not work for you.  Hopefully if you see exactly what I’ve done and how I did it you will be able learn from it and apply it to your own situation.

To sell a script the first thing you need to do is write a great screenplay.  I know this sounds obvious, but really, it’s got to be great to get noticed.

I would guess that for most of us to write a “great” screenplay you’re probably going to write a half dozen (or more) not-so-great ones.  I read once that Platoon was Oliver Stone’s 11th screenplay – but the first one that actually got him any recognition.  So don’t be ashamed about being a novice, everyone is at one time or another, just keep writing, and with each script you’ll get better and hopefully you’ll eventually start churning out scripts that are up to industry standards.  Just because your first one (or first ten) are terrible doesn’t mean you’re not capable of writing a great screenplay, it just means you’ve haven’t acquired the skill yet.

Once you’ve written a great script write two more so that you have at least three solid screenplays ready to go.  It’s very common for a producer or director to read one of your scripts and think it is well written but not quite right for them – that’s when you’ll want to pitch them one of your other “great” scripts.

Don’t be too eager to start sending out your first few scripts if they’re truly not up to industry standards – and if you haven’t written at least half dozen scripts or more they most likely are NOT!

There are lots of books on how to write a good script.  Ream them. I personally recomend Screenplay by Syd Field and The Art Of Dramatic Writing by Lajos Egri for starters.

You can learn more about Field’s Screenplay by checking out my post Syd Field’s Screenplay

So how do you know if your script is up to industry standards?  You’ll never know for sure.  But as a screenwriter you should be interacting with other screenwriters, reading their scripts, and reading scripts from produced screenwriters.  So by the time you’ve written a few solid scripts you should have some idea about where you stand compared to industry standards.  If you’re not doing any of these things your script probably isn’t ready and neither are you – so start reading other people’s scripts while you’re working on your writing.

Make sure you protect your work by getting a copyright on it or sending it to the WGA for registration. Check out my post How do you protect your work? Screenplay copyrights and WGA registration to learn how to protect yourself and your script.

Okay… so now you’ve written several great scripts and gotten them all copyrighted. Now what?

You’ve got to get your script to someone who can turn it into a movie. While this may seem obvious (and easier said than done) it’s all you have to do.

Who do you know that could turn your script into a movie?

Perhaps you have enough money to produce the movie yourself.  I’ve done this and it allows a lot of creative control over the final product.

Or perhaps you have a rich relative or friend who might be willing to invest in your project.

In this day and age you can produce a feature film for very little money and if you’re looking to get your first project off the ground this is going to be the easiest way to do it so seriously consider it.

But if you’re goal is to simply sell your script then you’ve got to find a producer who will raise the money and make your movie.  While this is very difficult this is precisely what most screenwriters are looking to do.

Many novice writers assume they need an agent to help them sell their script. While a good agent can help I recommend going straight to the produces themselves. In my experience when you have no credits finding an agent that can really help you is actually harder then finding a producer who will make your movie so you’re better off spending your time trying to find a producer than an agent. Check out my post How do you get an agent for your screenplay? (And why you don’t need one!) to learn more about finding an agent.

Many of the trade publications (The Hollywood reporter, Daily variety, Backstage West) will often  have ads in them placed by producers or directors seeking screenplays.  Over the last few years I’ve noticed that there are fewer and fewer of these sorts of ads in the trades as they have moved to Craig’s List.  Read my post about submitting to Craig’s List.  While you do have to be very careful, it is a great resource for writers, especially beginning writers. I recently optioned a script to a producer I met on Craig’s List so it can be done.

I actually began my screenwriter career by submitting to Reader’s Digest Writer’s Market.  They have a section for screenwriters and have filtered the list a bit so that most of the listed production companies will read scripts by unproduced writers.

The Hollywood Creative Directory (HCD) is a comprehensive list of every single production company in the United States with addresses, phone and fax numbers, and sometimes email addresses.  While this isn’t an easy road I have optioned screenplays through unsolicited submissions this way.  It’s going to require a lot of letter writing, faxing, emailing, and phone calls, but if you do it on a large enough scale you will eventually get some of these companies to read your material and hopefully option it from you.  There’s well over 2000 companies listed so you have plenty of places to submit.

Check out my post Getting your screenplay to producers and production companies for more information about exactly how to do this.

No matter who you submit to you’re going to need to write a good query letter and synopsis for your script.  A query letter introduces yourself to the producer.  You want to list any writing credits you have and a logline (one-sentence synopsis of your script) about your script in about half a page.  Then you’ll also include a 1 page synopsis about the script you mentioned in the query.

Read my full post about how to write a professional query letter by clicking here.

Read my post Writing a synopsis for your screenplay to learn exactly what you need to do to write a professional synopsis.

Read my post Writing A Screenplay Logline to learn how to write a great logline.

Make sure you include both your phone number and email address in the query letter so that they can contact you and have a choice about which method works best for them.

I would say as a rule if you get a response from any of these sources 5% of the time you’re doing pretty well.  On Craig’s List you should be higher than that.  Submitting to the companies in Writer’s Market you should be right around 5%.  Submitting unsolicited letters to companies in the HCD will probably result in less than 5% – maybe even as low as 2%.  If you’re response rate is significantly below these numbers you need to take a step back and really look at your query letter and synopsis, re-write them, improve them, and then try again.

I have never been a good talker so I’ve never tried cold calling companies but I’ve known other writers who used this method with great success.  I typically will send emails, faxes or letters through regular mail.  Try all 4 methods and see which one works best for you. The HCD lists all 4 bits of contact information for most production companies.

I’ll be expanding on all these ideas and more in future posts so check back often.  

Also, feel free to comment below if you’ve used some of these methods to submit our script or if you’ve used other methods.

Good luck.