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7 Submission Don’ts! From The Person Who Has To Read Your Script

Avoid These Submission Don’ts A brilliant list of Submission Don’ts from Sophie Wing today! I especially love her “don’t over-package” tip, which I will back up with another submissions horror story of my own … One of my first interning jobs, I opened a script held together with butterfly pins. One of the little feckers sliced right through my palm and I have a SCAR THERE TO THIS DAY. Even *better*??? Because it was a paper submission (wow, I feel so old), the writer wrote back to the literary agent and complained there was blood on his rejected script!!! Yargh.  Over… Read More »7 Submission Don’ts! From The Person Who Has To Read Your Script

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5 Ways Tweeting Will Make You A Better Writer

Aside from its ability to market your writing in the form of online articles and blog posts, tweeting can, over time, represent a writer with a whole host of opportunities to improve their writing and hone their approach. Anyone who uses Twitter to market their work needs to be aware of a few things before they delve into it with the intent of generating some sort of benefit for themselves: ● You need to contribute something in order to receive something — People can smell selfish tweeting a mile away, so make sure you engage your followers (and others) in… Read More »5 Ways Tweeting Will Make You A Better Writer

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6 Reasons NOT To Have A Prologue In Your Novel

So I’ve been reading a lot of spec novels via the Bang2write script reading service and downloading various free self published works for my Kindle app on my shiny new iPad (why the hell didn’t I get one years ago? Oh yeah, no money and the whole technophobia thing). Anyway, of the many spec or self published works that have crossed my radar in recent weeks, I’ve noticed some similar issues, all relating to prologues. Here are my thoughts on  NOT having one and why: 6. Your story starts too early. All too often, prologues in spec novels are boring… Read More »6 Reasons NOT To Have A Prologue In Your Novel

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7 Ways Of Developing Writing Ideas

  All About Developing Writing Ideas All of us hit setbacks in our writing sometimes. When we do, it can be a good idea to try out techniques other creative people use to keep their work moving. Here are a few techniques I use when I’m stuck at the ideas-developing stage, not sure how to turn ideas into a story. 1) Use The 10-3-1 Method 10-3-1 is used by designers at Apple, and it goes like this. Instead of taking just one initial idea and developing it directly into a product, designers work on 10 different ideas, being as imaginative… Read More »7 Ways Of Developing Writing Ideas

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6 Ways To Build An Audience

 I had an idea for a character. A character without a story. Being a fan of Twitter, I thought it might be interesting to set up an account in his name and use it as a testing ground for material to see if anything like a plot would emerge. Two years later, it had over 25,000 Twitter followers; appeared briefly in GQ magazine and Time, we made a short film (How To Be Dead); I quoted Yoda on stage to a large audience and had a whole lot of fun. I am now writing The Death Guide To Life as… Read More »6 Ways To Build An Audience

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BBC Future Fiction Summit: What Next For Drama?

The energy, commitment and sheer track record of the speakers at this week’s BBC Future Fiction Summit left one thing in little doubt: The digital revolution is not just here, its rapid expansion is fast setting the agenda for screenwriters, independents and major broadcasters alike. An opening Q&A with YouTube’s Rosie Allimonos (Head of Content Partnerships) brought home the impact online viewing is having on drama production. A recent addition to its viral and VOD platforms, YouTube’s original content via its funded channels is extending the platform’s reach far beyond its traditional user base. And, judging by the views they’re… Read More »BBC Future Fiction Summit: What Next For Drama?

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4 Reasons YOU Should Be The Next B2W Intern

So, we’re at that time of year again when I offer up the opportunity to be the official Bang2write intern for the summer period. B2W offers a platform for the successful applicant to get their work seen by a social media network of approximately 10K, as well as introducing them to the rigorous demands of branding; managing various social media sites; facilitating discussion; sourcing links, encouraging debvate and deflecting flame wars to name just a few. In return, the successful applicant will get my full attention and moral support as I edit and give feedback on their articles; advise on… Read More »4 Reasons YOU Should Be The Next B2W Intern

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5 Reasons Writers Should Consider A Transmedia Project

I am still new to the idea of transmedia, but it is a concept that has captured my imagination immensely. Transmedia can be roughly described as telling a story over different formats, mainly using digital technology. See the transmedia section of The B2W Required Reading List. For example, J.K Rowling could create a fake website for Hogwarts school, or set up a blog written by a pupil in Harry Potter’s class. It’s an attempt to bring a new layer of depth to your work and excitingly, is open to any writer who is any stage of a project. After experimenting… Read More »5 Reasons Writers Should Consider A Transmedia Project

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Women & Writing # 1: Suzanne Palmieri, Novelist

Now, a new series of articles dedicated to women and writing – I’ll be profiling inspirational ladies and their writing (or related work) in the coming months. First up we have novelist Suzanne Palmieri who I befriended on Twitter recently and discovered I have an amazing amount in common with! Plus her book comes out today – happy publication day, Suzanne! Enjoy … 1) If you could describe yourself in 3 words, what would they be and why? Scrappy: I was a young, single mother on welfare and I picked myself up, went back to college, received a presidential scholarship to Fordham to do… Read More »Women & Writing # 1: Suzanne Palmieri, Novelist

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3 Reasons To Buy Breaking Into Hollywood: A Guerilla Pocketbook by Genevieve Jolliffe

Published on Feb 25th 2013, BREAKING INTO HOLLYWOOD is a new addition to the Guerilla Filmmaker Pocketbook series. Written by Genevieve Jolliffe, the book details – unsurprisingly – how to “break in” to Tinseltown and is divided into two parts: Part One is “Working In Hollywood” and looks at such important elements as the studios and how they break down; what agents do and the various types (large vs boutique), plus Managers; Lawyers and what they do; fees; pitching; packaging; how Television works;  The Writers’ Guild of America and The Directors’ Guild; even The Art of Schmooze and the various… Read More »3 Reasons To Buy Breaking Into Hollywood: A Guerilla Pocketbook by Genevieve Jolliffe

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Submission Horror Stories: 29 Ways NOT To Submit To An Agent

Submission Horror Stories ‘How NOT to submit to agents’ is one of the top searches leading to this blog! It should be noted there’s no ‘right’ way to submit writing, but there *are* multiple wrong ways, so check this post out. There are some real submission horror stories here … Many thanks to Carole Blake from the Blake Friedmann Literary Agency for providing a VERY comprehensive list on how NOT to submit to an agent. This is a fab list and  I have actually had a number 27 myself!! Maybe it was the same lady??? Eeek. This post is in… Read More »Submission Horror Stories: 29 Ways NOT To Submit To An Agent

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Blog Hop: My Next Book – Writing & Selling Thriller Screenplays (Sept 2013)

Many thanks to Natasha aka Script Smart for tagging me in this Blog Hop, which consists of   ten questions and then tagging other authors/writers. So here’s mine: 1. What is the working title of your next book? I’m currently editing WRITING AND SELLING THRILLER SCREENPLAYS. It’s a non-fiction book about, oh – you can probably guess. At the moment I’m contacting all the industry peeps I can think of to contribute quotes on either writing or selling Thriller screenplays, so readers can have as many great insights as possible from the industry. 2. Where did the idea come from… Read More »Blog Hop: My Next Book – Writing & Selling Thriller Screenplays (Sept 2013)

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