And I'm not talking craft.
PHOTO CREDIT: PRETTY WOMAN Touchstone Pictures
In the past couple of years, I have noticed a new trend among brand-new writers in the industry. It's this thing that a lot of newbies are doing.
Do you know what it is?
BULLYING or just being NASTY, in general, to industry veterans, especially if that person isn't famous.
Yes, it seems like common sense not to do this, but it happens.
Years ago, when I was about twenty years into my career in the film industry I wrote and pitched a book called, WHY IS THERE A SPIDER ON MY HEAD? Mistakes you are making that are hurting your career.
It wasn't published, but I may publish it myself because I have invaluable advice for new writers.
Do you remember in Pretty Woman when Vivian tried to shop and the snotty sales women in Beverly Hills took one look at her and dismissed her?
The scene is iconic. Why did they do that?
Because they didn't know who she was or who she was connected to.
That is what happens with new writers.
This is important as a learning tool for others.
I want to start by saying that I have nothing but respect for anyone who decides to change their career and become a writer from midlife to retirement age. It's hard enough to do your entire life, much less dive into it, and then add Hollywood, so I have respect for that.
BUT---what I have found, especially in women----and I HATE saying that as women should always have each other's backs is that WOMEN turn into MEAN GIRLS.
PHOTO CREDIT: MEAN GIRLS Paramount Pictures
If you are a new writer, here is some advice.
You don't know everything just because you have taken a few random classes or workshops or gone to expensive retreats.
Fame isn't real and doesn't mean anything, so if someone has been working in the industry for three or four decades, be nice to them, even if they aren't famous.
See my post about the fame thing HERE
LISTEN to others and absorb what they share from experience.
Know that NOTHING stays the same in this industry, and it's constantly changing, literally all the time.
Don't ever bully someone-ever-for any reason.
Always be NICE, always.
This is a business of opinions, so understand that one person may say one thing, and someone else may feel differently about what works for them.
Always go to the source. Example. If you want to write for Hallmark, talk to developmental executives at Hallmark instead of relying on long narratives from people who had scripts produced four-plus years ago or from someone who knows someone who knows someone who directed for them. ALWAYS go to the source. (this goes for any studio or anything you want to do)
Don't block people on social media or throw tantrums if they give you advice you don't like.
This is a business of connections and networking. If you act like a petulant child in a chat or group, people will not want to help you.
It's important that newbies have respect for those who have been here for a long time no matter what we have done in the industry, we are still here.
For me, I make my living from the industry, this is not a hobby. I'm not a retired grandmother who watched a few Hallmark movies and decided to write one, nor is this something I'm doing just to see if I can sell something and pay off some bills.
If you are new, especially to all the retired women of a certain age, please understand that the prism that you see the industry is completely different than someone in the thick of it paying their bills this way.
Let me break down some things that I hear newbies getting confused about--and also know there is a lot of BAD ADVICE out there, and even courses, so take EVERYTHING you hear with a grain of salt.
~TV writing is harder to break into than feature or TV movie scripts. It just is. You'll hear people say, "get into a writers' room". That's nearly impossible when you are unknown. If you are over 30-35 it becomes even harder. Trust me, I did it at 37 and was told over and over and over that I was too old. My agent at the time made me age down by ten years, and I still aged out because I wasn't a showrunner.
~Telling everyone that you have been working on your pilot for five years is hurting you, not helping you. TV writing is FAST PACED, and you must be able to churn out quality work. You think that it's showing them how dedicated you are but it's showing them that you are slow. There is no place for slow writing in television.
~Get a manager, not an agent. OMG if I hear this one more time, I'll scream. Even those who love managers will say with an agent, and most managers will also say that agents sell, not managers. The truth is that right now, it's nearly impossible to get an agent if you are unknown, and managers might be more willing to read but if you don't have a career to manage, most likely that will be frustrating.
~You need multiple writing samples. So many newbies say things like, "I'm just going to submit this one and see what happens, and then if they like me, I'll write something else," followed by, "This took me three years." You NEED to have more than one spec script or more than one spec pilot finished. If you want to break into TV HOLIDAY MOVIES-have at least four written and then at least ten one-page treatments and twenty more ideas--this is information I have gathered in the last month (it's Aug 2024 now) from development executives at the studios putting out these films.
~Breaking the rules. Don't do this until you can. Follow the formula. If you want to write for Hallmark, don't have a death at the end of the film, don't have multiple characters with complex storylines, always lead with romance--I hear this all the time from new writers, "they don't want romance anymore"----who is telling them this?
~Watch and read what you want to write. I can't believe it but I have heard multiple new writers saying they never watch TV Holiday movies because they hate the plots or they say they hate rom-coms but they are writing rom-com? Why??? STOP IT and immerse yourself into the genre you are writing.
~Read scripts-this goes with the one above. Get scripts and read them. Understand the difference in a shooting script and the one you submit. I'll make a new blog about this soon.
~Diversity does not mean tossing in a POC to have them in there, it means coming from a diverse perspective. This is a HUGE one that newbies are doing. I asked a new writer why she had a black character and she said for diversity, and then there was no other reason she made him black as there was nothing about his culture or anything except the insulting way she had him speaking.
~You are never done learning and growing. Always take courses, workshops, continue to study and write.
The last thing that I will say is that THERE IS NOT ONLY ONE WAY to sell your work, get staffed, get writing assignments (OWAs), work-for-hire (WFH), or "make it." You have to understand that a lot of it is timing, luck, who you know, and talent.
I hope this was helpful and it comes across the way that it is meant.
Please share and comment or message me if you have questions. If you are new, whether you are young or older, welcome to the industry. It's great even when it's not easy.
XO XO
Follow me on social @stephobourbon
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