Since launching the new format for the pitches last week, my Talent Circle inbox has been ON FIRE!!! Some great pitches have made their way on to the noticeboard so far, so well done to everyone who’s grabbed this FREE opportunity: we’ve had all sorts, from TV series to shorts to features pitched so far and I’m genuinely looking forward to seeing what comes in next.
I’ve also had to make a rather large number of declines. This has largely been down to people not following the guidelines: the main issue has been – you guessed it! – TAGLINES INSTEAD OF LOGLINES and uber-lengthy synopses or bios. A few people have mentioned URLs to previous work that have not existed and I’ve had several writers insist in their bios they “have no experience”!!! Nooooooooo – we *all* have experience, writing-related or not! I’m not saying blatantly fib or anything like that, but you’re creative people, that’s why you want to pitch stuff, so get us interested in YOU, the writer!!! Do NOT hide your light under a bushel.
Of course there’s also been a far share of admin to sort with this too, so please bear with us… I’ve had a few writers make duplicate and even QUADRUPLE postings when their pitches haven’t gone up IMMEDIATELY. Please note there’s ONLY ME overseeing the pitches and I want to give each of them a decent amount of attention, so if there are any problems I can offer some brief feedback etc and invite a resubmission. Many thanks to all those writers who’ve resubmitted pitches on this basis with good humour.
In addition, I’ve had a plethora of emails, FB msgs and tweets asking me how to register for Talent Circle etc. PLEASE check out all the information on this new page here, at the top of the blog. It details how to join Talent Circle, the pitch guidelines and how to put your pitch on the noticeboard.
And the good news: I’m already hearing from writers saying producers and filmmakers have got in touch with them about their pitches! This is fab and exactly what we want for everyone pitching on Talent Circle. HOWEVER, as with all things good, I’ve heard from one pitcher who says another writer got in contact with very negative/confrontational views on a particular pitch of theirs. Please be aware I take a very dim view of this – we’re all in this together, so constructive criticism is always welcome BUT please be aware remote communication has its drawbacks, so even if your advice is well-meaning, it might not always seem that way to someone who isn’t you, especially if they haven’t invited it! The last thing we want is for writers to think twice about posting to Talent Circle because of daft stuff like this, so if you find yourself on the receiving end of negativity like this, DO let me know, plus the TC member’s username and/or email if you know it.
UPDATE: Btw, a few people have asked when the deadline is for this initiative… THERE IS NO DEADLINE! Just keep pitching your projects as and when for as long as you want, all we ask is to wait for your previous posting to expire on the noticeboard before putting it back up! Also, please only pitch twice a DAY.
Finally, in response to the LOADS of emails about managing one’s online presence via social networking, blogging, etc I get I have finally composed another page here with all my favourite links and a blog post I wrote a while back. Enjoy!
LINKS
How to Connect With Other Writers Online
Pitching Tips Section on The Required Reading List
