Hi everyone,
Just wanted to let you know that I’ll be taking a few weeks to make some important changes to the blog behind the scenes, e.g., moving hosts and adding some pages.
My next post will be on June 11th.
In the meantime, keep pitching and carry on!
Best,
Stephanie
There is a specific pitching tactic that is incredibly simple, easy to use, and yet crucial to bringing major players on board.
It’s that time of year! Deadlines for contests like the Nicholl Fellowship are looming and conferences like the Great American PitchFest are getting into gear.
When you go to the library to do research, you may discover in the library’s database that there’s one perfect book on the subject that interests you. But sometimes, the breakthrough idea you need isn’t in that book. It’s in the book that’s to the left or the right—the books that are “adjacently relevant.”
You know those stories where the hero is lied to, but doesn’t know it, and the best friend knows about the lie and has to decide whether or not to tell the hero? With rare exception, the sooner the hero is told about the lie, the better. It might hurt, but better to know the truth.
In this post, I’m playing the role of the friend, you’re the hero, and I’m hoping that you won’t be upset when I tell you:
Sometimes, the compliments you get from decision-makers about your work aren’t true.
These compliments, these times when you hear a version of “Yes,” often are lies–and what is actually being said is, “No.”
That’s why today we’re going to talk about exactly what “No,” “Maybe,” and “Yes” really sound like.
In the last Pitching Essentials class, there were students from the United States (primarily Los Angeles), but also from the UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand as well. The film and TV projects ran the gamut from big-budget studio films to indie documentaries and cable TV shows.
Scott Manville
I got a chance to chat with Scott Manville, former head of development for Merv Griffin Entertainment, and founder of the TV Writers Vault, an online marketplace for scouting and selling original TV show ideas such as Saw Dogs for Discovery Channel and Deals From The Darkside for SyFy.
John Spaihts
In 2006 John Spaihts sold the first script he ever wrote, Shadow 19. His next script, Passengers, placed near the top of the 2007 Black List. Eventually, he wrote the script for Promethus, and became one of the hottest writers in the genre of science fiction.
Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver
When was the last time you and your writing partner had a meeting about your partnership?
A writing team’s success is, in part, a function of the warmth and strength of your personal connection. This connection is what determines if you can listen and build on each other’s good ideas when writing, as well as how effectively you pitch together.
Stephanie helps creative people learn to pitch, persuade, and sell. She is a former MGM studio executive and the author of the book Good in a Room.
