Screenwriter Blog Posts

Screenwriting 101: A Practical Guide for First-Time Screenwriters

Just finished your first screenplay draft? This practical guide for first-time screenwriters offers a step-by-step checklist to strengthen your concept, structure, formatting, and rewrites.

Written by

Melody Jackson

Are Email Query Blasts or Hard Copy Query Letters More Effective For Marketing A Script?

When it comes to marketing your script to a targeted list of producers, agents and managers through the written word, you pretty much have to decide between ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

7 Tips For Effective Producer Follow-Up Calls

Congratulations, your pitch of your screenplay was compelling and now a literary agent or producer has requested your screenplay. Be proud of yourself as this ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

Don’t Even Think About Selling Your Screenplay Until You Do These 7 Things

So, you’ve finally finished your screenplay! Congratulations! This is an exciting time in your career, and you’re probably anxious to get it on the market ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

Don’t Let Formatting Kill Your Writing Flow: The Case for a Professional Script Typing Service

Stop Fighting Your Software and Start Writing Your Story: Why Pro Script Typing is the Secret Weapon Writing a screenplay takes an enormous amount of ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

How To Make An Audience Care About Your Characters

John Truby believes that focusing on details and character traits can lead to superficial characters. Melody Jackson, Ph.D. does, too. Go here to Learn what ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

Is It Better To Market Your Script to Producers, Literary Agents, or Literary Managers First?

Screenwriters often hear “You need to get an agent to sell your screenplay. That’s the only way it will happen.” And because they hear that, ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

How Do I Get a Literary Agent for My Script so Producers Will Read It? — ASK SMART GIRL SERIES

I have just started a new series of posts called ASK SMART GIRL! Each week or so I will be answering some of the questions ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

10 Mistakes Screenwriters Make That Drive Readers Crazy

Completing a screenplay is a huge accomplishment. Getting a Hollywood executive to read your script is another big accomplishment. The last thing you want to ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

5 Tips on Choosing a Script Analyst — Warning You Could Choose One Who Knows Less Than You!

Most writers realize that when they finish their screenplay, at some point, they will need to get a script analysis / consultation. There are probably ...

Written by

Melody Jackson

Should I Put 1 or 2 Spaces Between Sentences?

In dialogue, how many spaces between sentences? Are there 2 blank spaces between the period and the next sentence? Or 1 blank space? Actually, Guy, it’s ...

Written by

Melody Jackson