Time to Write

Should You Look for a Manager as Well as an Agent?

Traditionally, agents are the ones who represent your work to publishers and producers, but lately there has been an upswing in the number of writers' managers. What do they do, and should you have one?

Agents are the ones who negotiate deals for you--in the scriptwriting world, only agents are allowed to do that (not managers). The ideal agent would also concern himself or herself with developing your career, but quite a few of them don't do that. They try to get you as much work as possible and don't worry about the bigger picture. At least in theory, that is where a manager comes in. He or she guides your career, introduces you to the right people, and may have a more personal relationship to you.

It sounds like a great idea, and in some cases it is but of course it comes at a price, usually 15% of your earnings. Add that to the 15% that your agent is taking, and figure maybe another 5% for your accountant and/or your lawyer. Then let the government take their share and you won't end up with very much. And here's the kicker: usually your contract with both the agent and the manager will state that you must pay commissions even if they had nothing to do with bringing you the job.

Naturally, if you can get a manager who is so well-connected and powerful that he or she can help you take your career to a totally new level, it will be worth it. Just be sure that you have a contract that pays on a commission basis only and that you have an out clause for no later than 60 days from signing in case it doesn't work out.

What to Do When You Get Feedback You Don't Agree With

What do you do when you submit your manuscript or your screenplay to an editor or a producer and they give you feedback you don't agree with? Well, it depends.

* Are they just offering an opinion, with nothing else at stake? In that case, thank them politely, make a note of their reaction, and then ignore it--unless you find that several people give you similar feedback. In that case it might be worth revisiting the comments to double-check whether they could be right.

* Are they offering to buy it, conditional on you making the changes? If so, and if you don't feel that the changes would totally ruin the project, you should probably go ahead. Otherwise, you may lose the sale, or they may buy it and hire someone else to make the changes. You may feel that you can make the alterations more sensitively than someone else would. However, don't talk yourself into making changes that you know, in your heart, are wrong. I did it once, for a TV movie, and regretted it (and ultimately the movie wasn't made anyway).

Be sure you understand their reasoning for wanting the changes. If there is a problem, you may be able to find a more elegant solution that satisfies them and you, too.

Also worth keeping in mind is this rule: If they suggest something that makes the project better, make the change and be grateful; if they suggest something that is neither better nor worse, just different, make the change and shut up; if they suggest something that makes it worse--fight! Save your ammunition for the important battles, give way on the unimportant ones.

Once You Have an Agent, Do You Still Have to Market Your Writing?

Some writers think that once they have an agent, their marketing days are over. Wrong, very wrong, especially for scriptwriters.

Your agent will be representing a number of writers (once mine let slip that he had 36 on his books). That means they will be devoting a relatively small amount of time to each one. If you write a book a year, that's not so bad: the agent will make a concerted effort to get the manuscript out to the right publishers, negotiate the contract, and then move on to other clients until your next manuscript arrives. But if you're writing scripts, especially if you're free-lancing TV episodes, you'll be looking for assignments throughout the year and will require more effort from the agent and from yourself.

Whatever you're writing, here are a few of the things you will still need to do:

* Read the trade papers, the L.A. Times, the N.Y. Times, and other publications to keep you eye on who is looking for what (this includes publishers, networks, studios, publishing houses, actors, and directors). Yes, that's the agents' job but they do miss some opportunities;

* Suggest to them the names of people you feel you should be connecting with (but not to an obnoxious degree);

* Go to meetings with editors and producers, either to pitch specific projects or to get acquainted and considered for assignments. These may be set up by the agent or by you as a result of networking;

* Maintain contact with any of the above that you meet, whether or not they use your services or buy your material right off the bat.

As you can see, having a good agent is extremely helpful--but not the end of your marketing work.

What are Agents Looking For?

I've received a few questions about agents and thought I'd answer them in the next few posts, starting with, "What are agents looking for, other than a good script or manuscript?"

If you are a new writer, the agent will spend a disproportionate amount of time getting you your first contract or assignment, so what he or she is looking for is someone who will be bringing in money for some time to come. In other words, they want to be sure that you're not going to be a one-hit wonder. That's one reason why they will ask you what else you're working on or have available.

That's not your cue to bring out every old project that you've submitted but have never been able to sell. What the agent wants is fresh material, not something that's already made the rounds (how you can refresh a rejected project is another topic, and I'll try to get to that one before too long).

They're also looking for someone who will be pleasant, or at least reasonable, to work with. If they sense that you're going to be phoning them every day or exposing them to all your personal problems, they will not be keen to sign you.

Finally, they want a writer who is responsive to good feedback but also has integrity (the latter may be optional if you're an aspiring screenwriter :-)) They will be gauging how you are likely to behave when interacting with producers or editors. If you're a genius, you're allowed to be annoying, otherwise it can be a deal-breaker for an agent.

How to avoid distractions when writing

There seem to be an almost endless supply of distractions when we are writing, and even your computer can be one.

Ideally your computer desktop should be almost clear, but if you're like me that's not the case. There are all kinds of files on there, as well as the dock that alerts me with a little red symbol when a new email has come in, also easy access to iTunes with its endless supply of podcasts, and on and on.

One way to reduce distractions is to go full screen when you are writing. Because I have a larger screen, simply clicking 'full screen' from the Word menu doesn't do it. But there are word processors that strip the process down (not good for scriptwriting, but fine for prose).

If you're a Mac person, try "WriteRoom" from hogbaysoftware.com -- you can get a free 30-day trial and if you like it, it will cost you $25. It creates a blank screen with green letters or you can choose your own colors, fonts, and page layout. If you suffer from eyestrain, you can scale up your test for easier reading. It offers spell-checking as well.

If you're on Windows, try out DarkRoom. If you have alternatives that you like for either Mac or Windows, please add them in the comments here.

Or, of course, you could just clear that desktop...

How Jim Lehrer gets the ideas for his novels

Journalist and novelist Jim Lehrer wrote an article for washingtonpost.com about how he has written his 17 novels.

He calls his inspirations “lightning ideas.” Here’s what he says about his latest novel, “Eureka”: I was walking through a big antique show at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington when I spotted a small cast iron toy on a shelf in a dealer's stall. That triggered the notion of a man buying an expensive antique toy fire engine and then maybe a BB gun, a football helmet and, finally, a Cushman motor scooter exactly like the ones he had wanted for various Christmases when he was a kid. His family couldn't afford them at the time, but now he can.”

Lehrer reveals, “My 17 novels have been launched by a variety of fleeting thoughts and images such as these.”

Obviously these are only starting points and it requires a lot of work to turn them into full stories. But I suspect that most of us let those “lightning ideas” flash by. It’s another reason for following the traditional advice of carrying a little notebook so you can jot down any such inspirations.

My Best Wishes for You for the Holidays

Just a little post today to wish you all the best for the holidays--whatever they mean to you. This photo is from one of many enjoyable moments of the past year, when I taught up in Newcastle and took a quick tour of Seven Stories, the children's literature centre. This is the story chair, and for a moment I was transported back to those days when sitting in a big chair and holding a book was the best magic possible (actually, it still is...). I hope that today becomes a special part of your story.

How to Generate Ideas

Here's a little present for you: a great way to stimulate ideas for your writing. Thanks to the excellent site creativecreativity.com, I discovered a site that offers a variety of notions for plots, characters, and situations. It's the seventhsanctum site, and while it's geared to people into fantasy role playing, the idea generators are useful to all kinds of writers (you'll find the different generators listed on the left).

Of course you won't be handed a complete plot, and many of the ideas are kind of strange but, as a way to stimulate your own thinking, these are excellent. I'll give you some samples. The "Envisoner" came up with these:

* The story of the 3 Musketeers set at a summer camp.

* A fusion of the legend of Perseus and the legend of the Golem that concerns a group of stuffed animals.

* The story of the little Dutch boy envisioned as a horror tale.

OK, I'm not sure about the stuffed animals, but the 3 Musketeers at a summer camp could be a good starting point for a teen comedy.

Here are three from the quick story generator (as you'll see, this adds a theme):

* The theme of this story: noir action. The main character: poor mercenary. The major event of the story: service.

* The theme of this story: psychological character study. The main character: kind assisant. The major event of the story: premonition.

* The theme of this story: romantic slice-of-life. The main characters: poised farmer and withdrawn astronomer. The major event of the story: premonition.

Here are three from the character generator:

* The hard working and ethical man who is avoiding an arranged marriage and who solves crimes.

* The laid-back common man who is the last of a lost species and who is bound by an unpleasant duty.

* The man with no name who is bound by an unpleasant duty.

And, finally, three from the action films generator (in the style of film trailers):

* In a city of hopelessness and war, four nanotechnologists and a computer programmer fight crime.

* In a universe of lost souls and sorcery, three wizards and a nanotechnologist combat crime.

* In a galaxy of corruption, in an age of dark magic, three librarians and a biologist oppose a mob of monsters intent on on summoning an evil god.

It's fun playing with these--but I must warn you, also compulsive!

How to FINISH What You Write

I've been getting some fascinating feedback in response to asking you what is the biggest challenge you face relating to your writing or creativity. One that has come up a number of times is not being able to finish projects. One writer said he tends to write four chapters and then runs out of steam. If you have a similar issue, maybe the advice I suggested to him will help you, too:

Often, beginnings are fun and then we hit that wall where we realise that we've only written maybe 1/8 or so of the project, and the remaining 7/8 looks awfully daunting and intimidating.

I suggest that when you've done the first four chapters or so, decide what you need to accomplish in the next four. Don't worry too much about the details of what will happen after that, just address that chunk. When you finish that one, do the same again for the next four. I believe that by dividing up the task this way and putting your focus on one chunk at a time you will be able to overcome your previous tendency to give up after the first section.

Give it a try and let me know how you get on.

By the way, it's not too late to let me know what your biggest challenge is, via an email to me at [email protected], or use the 'email me' button here. As a thank you I'll be sending out a useful report on creativity, and I'll also be summarizing the findings here.

How to be a lucky writer

Richard Wiseman has done quite a bit of research on Luck and come with some principles for how to be lucky. Here is tone, and how writers can practice it:

Principle One: Maximise Chance Opportunities:
Lucky people are skilled at creating, noticing and acting upon chance opportunities. They do this in various ways, including networking, adopting a relaxed attitude to life and by being open to new experiences.

If you keep in mind what it is you want, you will be amazed at the number of 'lucky' opportunities that arise. This is not a re-tread of "The Secret"--I believe that you can't just concentrate on what you want, you also have to take deliberate, focused, persistent action to reach your goals. But certainly the first step is being aware of what you want, and keeping that in the forefront of your mind.

Example 1: I'm currently looking around for a new UK agent. Online, I read a little item saying that three agents were going to be speaking to a writers' group in a couple of weeks. I figured that agents who do that might be more open to new clients. I also assumed that when they spoke at this event they would be flooded with scripts. So I looked up their contact information and sent them letters BEFORE their speaking engagements. One replied that she is not taking on new clients, two asked to see my CV and then samples of my writing. I've had a meeting with one of these two, and the other one is still reading my sample material but promised to get back to me by January 1. If it works out, we might consider that it was 'lucky' that I spotted that announcement and followed up on it.

Example 2: I wanted to find a publisher for a new book on a right-brain approach to reaching one's goals. I read that Pearson Publishing was launching a new line of personal development books. I wrote a query letter to the editor, who then requested a full proposal. They bought it and the book comes out in May 08.

Here's the key: you have to keep bringing your desired outcomes to the front of your mind, so that you filter everything you see, read, and hear through that topic. I'm sure I've read dozens more articles that could have been 'lucky' if I'd been thinking in a focused way but that slipped right by me because I didn't have a specific outcome in mind.

What Present Can A Writer Give?

I've recently sent out a special holiday edition of my Brainstorm e-bulletin, featuring five great free or inexpensive presents that writers and other creative people can give. Here is one of them:

1: Six pictures, six stories

If, like most of us, you’ve switched to digital photography, there’s a good chance that you have hundreds of photos from this past year. Why not select the six that mean the most to you, write a little about the story behind each one, and send that as a present to family and friends? You can print it all out, or you can easily insert photos inside a Word document or PDF to send via email.

Of course if you are set up to record audio, instead of just writing the stories you could record them and send them along on a CD or audio tape (remember those?) or as mp3 files. Adding the sound of your voice (and maybe the voices of friends or family members featured in the photos) makes it even more personal and cherished.

By the way, if you're not getting the Brainstorm e-bulletin, you can sign up at www.timetowrite.com or www.yourwritingcoach.com, or just send me an email at [email protected]. We never sell or share our mailing lists. (If you want the Christmas edition, please email me directly and I'll get one out to you right away.)

Coming Up With a Plot (One Method)

Someone who had visited my www.timetowrite.com site e-mailed me with an unusual request: he was having problems coming up with a plot for a script and wondered if I had any ideas... Well, normally I get paid quite a lot of money for doing that, but I did pass along to him a technique that you might find useful as well. He wanted to write something with a character on some kind of  quest, set in a particular historical era, so this is what I wrote:

I suggest that you look at the story lines of movies you have really enjoyed and that have been successful,that have a quest kind of a story, and consider how they would be changed if they were set in the era you have in mind.

Just as an example, let's take "ET." The log line might be something like this;

A lonely little boy tries to shield an alien from the authorities and help him get back home, and along the way learns the meaning of true friendship.

Now if you were to transplant that to your era, who might be a fugitive? Not an alien, but maybe a criminal, or someone with dangerous political ideas, etc. Who might befriend him? It doesn't have to be a child, although it could be. Who would be the bad guys after the fugitive? How might the life of the person trying to help him (or her) be endangered?

This may seem like stealing a plot, but by the time you have finished adapting it to your era it will come out very different anyway.

By the way, this works in the other direction, too: the plot of a historical novel can be updated and in the process can yield a new story.

What not to say about your writing

I just watched a video interview with a novelist on a book-related website, and in part it was a great lesson in what not to say about your writing (that's why he shall remain nameless).

The interviewer mentioned that the book, a thriller, starts with a particularly violent incident. "Yes," the author said with a smile, "not the sort of thing you want to be reading before bedtime." Ooops, how many of us like to read before we go to sleep? Yeah, that's what I thought.

Next, he said that this novel follows on from his first. Since I've not read his first book, I'd probably avoid this one, thinking maybe I would be missing key information.

Then the interviewer asked him about one of the main characters. "He's a young guy, about 30 or 35..." the author said. Wait a minute, you don't know how old he is? Suddenly the whole thing gets kind of vague to me.

Finally, the author gave a summary of the first part of the plot in language that wasn't very exciting, and then said, "and then the story just moves along with him investigating [the case]..." Ho hum.

The thing is, this may well be an excellent book, my point here is that he did a terrible job of selling it. The lessons:
    * don't say anything negative about your book, not even jokingly (as in "not something to read before bedtime")
    * don't try to tell too much of the plot--pick out some key aspects and make them sound as exciting as they are in the book
    * be specific about the characters and situations, with language that creates an exciting image in our minds

Limit Your Coincidences (Writing Tip)

In the previous post, I pointed you toward some great scriptwriting resources at John August’s blog. I also noticed his excellent comments on coincidence as a story device. He cites “Spiderman 3” as an example of what not to do but adds, “My point is not to rip on Spider-Man 3, but to urge readers to look at their own scripts with an eye towards coincidence. If you’ve written a treatment, search for the following phrases: “at the same time,” “accidentally,” “luckily,” “unfortunately,” and “meanwhile.” They’re often a tip-off that you have events happening by coincidence. There’s almost always a better alternative. Given a choice, try to find cause and effect. One event happens because of something else we’ve seen — ideally, something the hero himself has done.
Instead of having the hero accidentally overhear a key conversation, get him actively trying to listen. Or have an interested third party steer him in that direction — perhaps for his own reasons. At every juncture where a reader could ask “Why did that happen?”, try to have an answer that isn’t, “just because.”

He notes that it’s fine to start a story off with a coincidence, but to have one after another leaves your story without a solid foundation. To read his entire comments on this, go here.

I thought causality was also missing at times in “Tin Man,” the re-interpretation of “The Wizard of Oz” that was on TV recently. It held my attention for the first two hours, but then the story seemed to turn pretty arbitrary, with new mini-episodes driven by whatever the writers thought might make a good segment. Of course it’s hard to create a six-hour mini-series that doesn’t feel episodic. I think it would have been much stronger as a four-hour or two-hour project.

Some Great Scriptwriting Resources

Erudite film buff Andy Conway is a fan of “The Nines,” a movie written and directed by John August. Thanks to Andy for pointing out an unusual feature at August’s blog: there you can download an mp3 or an m4a of him and actor Ryan Reynolds talking about the film. You can then take it with you on your iPod or Zune when you go to see the film (ideally for a second time) and listen to it like a DVD commentary in the cinema. You can get the downloads here.

If you’d like to see the screenplay, you’ll find it here. (For educational purposes only, of course).

On that page you’ll also find a wealth of other material related to films and television series he’s been involved with. For instance, the film “Big Fish,” for which you can see the original one-page outline, the revised full outline after the first draft, the final shooting script, and the introduction to the paperback version. A great resource for anybody who is interested in following the progress (or, once in a while, the retrograde movement) of a project as it goes along.