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7 Big Mistakes In Unpublished Novels

Unpublished Novels I’m reading more and more unpublished novels these days for Bang2writers. Just like the screenplays, I’m seeing lots of the same mistakes. So, here’s a round up of things to check out, so you can avoid those common pitfalls when you make your submissions: 7. Consistency of Tense & Mixed Tenses When I read unpublished novels for Bang2writers, one of the biggest issues is consistency of tense. This means the writer will chop and change from tense to tense, seemingly on a whim. Whilst this is not automatically incorrect, it frequently is … Particularly if you’re swapping tenses… Read More »7 Big Mistakes In Unpublished Novels

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Pitch Me … Full Reads

NB. PITCH ME IS NOW CLOSED  If you recall, back in November 2012 I ran Pitch Me, where I invited writers to send me their loglines for their features, TV pilots and sitcoms, according to a list of what I was and wasn’t looking for. It was an interesting script call, with over 100 writers submitting. Here’s a run down of how I found the first round. No B2W-led script call would be complete without my announcing who made it all the way … Here’s the 5 lucky writers/teams who have made it through to a full read: 1) Dan &… Read More »Pitch Me … Full Reads

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Stuck In A Rut: 7 Ways You’re Sabotaging Yourself (And 1 Thing That Will Set You Free!)

Stuck In A Rut Is your writing stuck in a rut? You’re not alone. It’s  been a week since I posted *that* post about avoiding low budget depressing drama & high budget science fiction/fantasy spec scripts if you want to stand out from the crowd … And what a week! Some writers have been expressing: AMAZEBALLS! I TOTALLY GET IT! INVEST IN IDEAS! YAAAY! Others have been decidedly lukewarm: *Grumble grumble* MY SCRIPT IS ONE OF THOSE AND I HAVEN’T GOT ANY LEADS SO I “SPOSE” YOU “COULD” BE RIGHT *Grumble* … And others have said, point-blank: YOU’RE TOTALLY WRONG, GET… Read More »Stuck In A Rut: 7 Ways You’re Sabotaging Yourself (And 1 Thing That Will Set You Free!)

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6 Tips On Writing A One Page Pitch For Your Script Or Novel

All About The One Page Pitch Is there any more misunderstood and feared document than the one page pitch? Sometimes called a ‘one pager’ or synopsis (especially for novels), the one page pitch can make or break your submission. Lots of writers want to avoid writing a one page pitch. This is is a big mistake. Never, ever, ever send your work without a one page pitch. A One Pager is a GREAT opportunity to sell your story “off the page” and get in that reader’s good books. Wait … What’s that you say? You already have a one page… Read More »6 Tips On Writing A One Page Pitch For Your Script Or Novel

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Pitch Me …

PLEASE BE AWARE PITCH ME IS NOW CLOSED  Wow! London Screenwriters Festival 2012 happened … and brilliant it was, as ever. Top marks to the team and to the delegates for making it happen. Being immersed in that pool of talent got me thinking. I heard loads of pitches during the Script Labs and the Pitchfest and I was asked several times whose work I liked and I facilitated a couple of meetings between people while I was there. This lead me to consider whether I could do this for more writers and scripts I like. I get asked all the… Read More »Pitch Me …

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LondonSWF Script Labs 2012 – A Look In The Spec Pile Part 2

With 360+ entries to wade through and lots of people to collate with (including the Script Lab leaders), I thought I’d give a further little peek into the spec pile while we wait. As mentioned in the previous post on this, we’re looking primarily at the pitch docs. Being three hours long, with 6-8 participants in each lab means concept will be top of the agenda in the Script Labs, rather than workshopping script pages. Also, the screenplay submissions were for the most part strong – I know *every* contest says this, but I’m known for telling it how it… Read More »LondonSWF Script Labs 2012 – A Look In The Spec Pile Part 2

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Inside The Spec Pile – Script Labs 2012

… Aaaaaand that’s it! Script Labs applications for London Screenwriters’ Festival 2012 are NOW CLOSED. I always try to give an insider’s guide to the spec pile on all LSF contests or schemes I head up, so here’s this year’s Script Labs 2012. We got 250+ applications from those people signed up for this year’s LondonSWF, so it was great to see people grabbing this opportunity with both hands for the most part. So while we wait, here we go … … First, the stuff surrounding the submissions: Email address. It’s hard to believe, but I’d venture about 40% did… Read More »Inside The Spec Pile – Script Labs 2012

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Your Book Is Movie …

… I heard this advice at a seminar at London Book Fair 2010. It was a real watershed moment for me. It was quite literally the best advice I ever heard, because it finally unlocked the idea in my head that had been percolating for about five years, which enabled me to craft my novel so that it sold. But what does it mean? Seems to me there’s two ways of thinking about “your book is a movie”: Your book will want to “unlock” all possible markets … In other words, if your book can be easily adapted INTO a… Read More »Your Book Is Movie …

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Novel Submissions

It’s novel writing week over at Bang2writers, so here is a round up of questions I received on the Facebook page, via Twitter and email, all of which centered on novel submissions. Do I submit to an agent or a publisher in the first instance? Whilst some publishers take direct approaches from writers, I recommend submitting novels to agents in the first instance. Why? Because they have a huge amount of contacts, not only in getting English deals but foreign sales too as well as selling other things like movie rights. In other words, it’s their JOB, they know that… Read More »Novel Submissions

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How To Write A TV Series Bible That Sells Your Pilot

What Is A ‘TV Series Bible’? A TV Series Bible refers to the treatment, or  pitch document that accompanies a spec TV pilot when it goes out on submission. Since there are spec TV pilot scripts flying all over the place, your bible needs to “stand out” from the rest of ’em. But how? Well, for me, that’s a no-brainer … You write the PERFECT spec TV series bible and hook the reader! Sadly, I’d venture a whacking 95% of spec pilots are let down by their accompanying TV series bible. In the course of this post, I will break down… Read More »How To Write A TV Series Bible That Sells Your Pilot

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Children’s TV Drama Specs: Common Mistakes

Thanks to thegodofallbens, I got my first Twitter-induced blog question! Apologies for taking so long, God. Please don’t smite me. The Great One asks: What’s the most common mistake writers make when writing for children’s TV? As you know, I get rather a lot of TV specs these days – and I’d venture at least half of them are aimed at the children/family market – the kind of slot Dr. Who, Primeval and Robin Hood inhabits (the rest is loosely made up of “grown up” sci fi and period drama. Interestingly, I very rarely get medical drama, cop dramas or… Read More »Children’s TV Drama Specs: Common Mistakes

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The Story Engine, Notes, Pt 2: Agents & Pitches

Here’s Helen’s excellent insights again – this time featuring the Blogosphere’s very own James Moran and some VERY interesting stuff about agents and pitching. Enjoy!————————————————————————————————- Screening: TORCHWOOD – SLEEPER Writer James Moran gives a live commentary to his episode of the popular sci-fi series. Followed by Q+A. Has carved out a niche in horror/sci fi He wrote Severance but got pigeonholed after this. However then Dr Who was relaunched. He wrote the Fires of Pompeii episode. Sleeper for Torchwood as well as writing for Primeval, Spooks Code 9 and Spooks. It’s cheaper to blow up a car than have several… Read More »The Story Engine, Notes, Pt 2: Agents & Pitches

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