Inside the Castle Walls
There are two questions as old as time:
What is the meaning of life?
How do I break into screenwriting?
Only the latter gets asked of me from time to time. My answer is usually prefaced with a sigh, for a couple reasons. One, I’m not a fan of the phrase “breaking in” as it creates an image of a high wall around a castle that is protected by “gatekeepers” and the only way in is to smash through but once you do, you’re in that dazzling Hollywood castle forever. Only it doesn’t work that way really. It’s more like a mildly-defended door and once you’re through it, there are a lot more doors. Some lead to Spielberg’s office, I suppose. Most just lead to more doors. Some are actually the exit. It’s very confusing.
But I get it, people wanna know how to get through that first door. Which leads to the second reason that initial question makes me sigh: because I don’t really know what to say. I mean, I know how I did it. And I know how some friends did it. But there are no real tried-and-true steps that will guarantee you a path inside. And people hate hearing that because they want specifics. How to get an agent. Which contest to enter. Go to film school or don’t.
And the truth is, I don’t have answers because it’s a way different time. Aspiring screenwriters have so many choices, so many ways to get their start, and I came up in a time with different choices. So my advice on this matter is often useless. Except I keep getting asked so I thought I should think about it for a minute. Or a month if I’m being honest.
What’s some advice I could give that isn’t dependent on current tech or online opportunities? What’s a general way of doing things that worked for me and others and might work for you now or ten years from now? After much thought, I came up with three basic things that you should do if you want to begin a screenwriting career:
1. Write great scripts
2. Meet great people
3. Make great stuff
The first two are non-negotiable. You have to write great scripts and then you need to meet great people who will read those scripts. The third step is optional but it really helps with the first two steps and it also helps you stay sane in this crazy business. So allow me to go into a little more detail, starting with:
Write great scripts
This seems obvious, but you’d be surprised. Mainly because most writers think their scripts are great. And they may very well be, but probably not. So how do you write great scripts? You could write a book answering this question. Or, I dunno, hundreds of them, because that’s how many screenwriting books are available at any given moment. You should probably read some of them. But not all of them, because once you've read three or four, you realize they’re mostly the same thing with some interesting variations that you may or may not find helpful. But learning the basics is certainly important. One could also go to film school, which plenty of people do, but that’s not required. Especially now, with so many resources available online, you can learn a lot with a laptop and a good internet connection.
You should also watch plenty of movies (or TV shows if that’s what you wanna write). Then practice. Write lots and lots of scripts. Show the scripts to people you trust. Friends, family, colleagues. When you meet other writers, form a writers group and give each other feedback. And here’s the crucial part: listen to the feedback and learn how to incorporate it into your scripts.
If you show your scripts to people who love everything you write, you won't get any better. If you show your scripts to people who tear everything to pieces, you won’t get any better. You need smart feedback from people who have a vested interest in your improvement as a writer. And you have to accept this feedback. If you fall in love with your own words and don’t learn how to revise, you won’t write great scripts. That’s the difficult truth, but there it is.
There’s a lot more to say on this subject, but that’s enough for now. Next step:
Meet great people
When people complain about hard it is getting started in Hollywood, they often say it’s all about “who you know.” In some ways, that’s true. I’m sure it helps if your college roommate’s dad runs Universal or whatever. But what is a screenwriting career but people reading your script and loving it and either buying it or sending it to someone who will. Somehow you need to need to meet those people so it’s less about who you know and more about who you meet. But how do you meet great people?
There are plenty of contests that promise to get your script into the hands of managers, agents, or producers. Maybe some deliver. Most probably don’t. Sometimes an agent gets your script and they throw open that door and your career is off to the races. People love writing about those kinds of stories where someone is bartending one day and the next they’re cashing a big check for their script.
But the reality is much less fancy. Instead of looking above you and figuring out how to meet people who are already successful, instead look around you at the people who love what you love and want to make the kind of stuff you want to make. These are your colleagues, hopefully your friends. And if you all work hard, help each other, and stick it out, then eventually they might be the great people who help launch your career. And you’ll do the same for them. Maybe your buddy becomes an agent’s assistant and gets your script in the boss’s hands. Or another friend gets a shot to direct her first feature and your script is the one she wants to make.
Everyone wants Spielberg’s cell number, but what's more realistic is you make friends and you work together or maybe you just root each other on. And then times passes and before you know it, your friend is the talk of the town and you ALREADY HAVE THEIR CELL NUMBER. Yes, that’s a bit of a dream scenario but so’s meeting Spielberg at a Starbucks and convincing him to read your script.
But how do you meet these people who share your passion to make great stuff? In places like LA and NYC, it’s fairly easy. You can get a job at a production company or an agency or a post-production facility. You can join a writers group or form one. Volunteer at a film festival or hell, start one. Seriously, if you live in LA for a year, it would be impossible not to meet people who want to be in the film business.
But what if you don’t live in one of those big cities? It’s still possible to meet film lovers and filmmakers. If there’s a nearby college, take film classes. If there’s a local film festival (and most sizable cities have at least one), then volunteer or apply for a job. You’re not only going to meet locals who want what you want, but you’ll also meet visiting filmmakers.
At the end of the day, it’s less about “networking” or creating acquaintances based in a transational situation. It’s so much better to have friends in the industry and then they read something you’re written and love it and want to show it to their friends. That’s organic and meaningful and can truly lead to the beginning of a career.
But there’s another step that really, really helps with the first two:
Make great stuff.
The goal, of course, is to make big stuff that gets seen by a lot of people. But what I’m talking about here is smaller, more manageable stuff that’s relatively inexpensive that you can “green light” on your own.
Stuff like: short films, web series, narrative podcasts, stage plays, comic books.
You can’t just make anything. It has to be a medium that speaks to you, that you want to dig into and learn more about. In other words, don’t just make a narrative podcast because you hear some of those are being made into TV shows. Make the stuff that you love and you’ll see some genuine rewards.
For instance, it’ll almost certainly make you a better writer. Let’s say you make a short film. In addition to writing it, you’re casting it, either directing it yourself or partnering with a director, finding crew who’ll work for free or almost free, shooting it, editing, and submitting to festivals. Now the next time you write something you will bring with you all that experience, all the mistakes you made, all the miracles that happened, all the stuff that turned out great, and all the stuff that didn’t. All of that makes you a better writer.
Plus, when you make stuff, you get to put it in front of an audience. And that’s an amazing way to learn what works and what doesn’t. If a film festival audience doesn’t laugh at your short comedy, you have an opportunity to learn why. If a live theater audience doesn’t cry at the end of your heartbreaking play, why not? Every interaction with an audience is a chance to learn about your craft.
Also, when you make something, you have to create or join a community. If it’s a short film or web series, the cast and crew are your new best friends. Maybe you want to join a theater company. Or partner with an artist if you’re making a comic book. These are your people. If you choose well, these are your peers who will accompany you on your journey to becoming a working screenwriter.
Next post, I’ll share my own “breaking in” story through the lens of these three steps. How I learned to write great scripts, how I met great people, and how I made great stuff. And how that all led to my first big wins as a screenwriter.
Spoiler alert: I was not an overnight success. It took years. That’s probably the main takeaway from this: there are no short cuts. Sure, you know some kid whose mom and dad are famous and boom, that kid’s now a working screenwriter. Whatever. That’s not me. If you’re reading this, I'm guessing that’s not you.
This is a path. A journey. Not to break through some castle walls, but to get through that first door. And to keep getting through the doors that follow. And to make great friends who help you through some doors and you help them through others. And to maybe, someday, have your own castle where you get to make cool shit with your friends and earn a good living doing it. That’s the dream anyway.