Howdy, Wavers! Did everyone have a nice Fourth of July? Over the holiday weekend, a Waver wrote in with a great question (paraphrased):

"...is there really a phantom database in Hollywood that puts a permanent black mark by my name if I get a "pass" coverage or is that just an urban myth like the thing about the dog in the microwave or how that guy in Queens found a snake in his linguine?"


To which I say: The snake thing is totally not true.

But seriously. Well - no, there isn't a phantom database, per se - a list of bad writers and their scripts that is passed around among executives. But there are tracking boards and there are development execs and their damned memories.

Think of it this way: Hollywood is a town that relies upon information, whether that information is garnered from the trades, from between the sheets or from rumors of rumors over cocktails. And this information shoots around very quickly. Sort of like those old vacuum tube delivery systems in offices. And with the advent of the Internet, information zips around this town so fast that it sizzles in the air above your head. What's the hot script? Who sold what to whom?? Which exec was laid off and wound up where? What actor was seen at Whole Foods totally blotto? Hollywood is a town that fuels itself on information and it is the information age. So yeah, that is a little scary.

So the bottom line is that yes, if you send in a script to an agency (in particular) and it is so bad that the assistants chat about it on the tracking boards - you are not a happy camper. However, the chances of a tracking board mention of a bad script are significantly lower than that of a good script.

Let's back up - what is a tracking board? Tracking boards are basically private message boards frequented by assistants and other industry types. They function as virtual water coolers. How much stuff gets discussed around the putative water cooler in your office? A lot. I have never seen nor heard mention of a writer being called out on a tracking board for being bad. Not by name. Even in Hollywood, there are limits.

But before you let out a big sigh of relief, let's keep exploring the topic: Executives in Hollywood change companies frequently. So today's assistant is tomorrow's development exec. And today's junior development exec at Company X is tomorrow's senior creative exec at Company Y. So if your script goes to a production company and gets a pass, the reality is that the exec simply sends a "no thanks" to your agent or manager and moves on with his or her day - not interested. So far so good, right?

But what if, just what if the creative exec's reader thought the script was SO bad that when they turned in the coverage they actually sat down and laughed it up a little bit with the exec? And the exec saw your name on the title page? And had a great memory? I am very sorry to have to report this, Wavers, but I have seen the situation above happen first-hand. Look, don't hate the readers for having a laugh at your expense. Hate the writers who send in such bad work that it makes you all look bad. See, that's what it is, Wavers. For every ONE of you who takes this really seriously and have some talent, there are 100 for whom the reverse is true. And that is what Hollywood thinks about aspiring writers. That you don't care enough to do it right, that you have no talent and that you do not take our jobs seriously and you waste our time. That's why everybody gets SO excited when we read something good. Hollywood cannot WAIT to elevate that writer and give him or her a ticker tape parade.

But let's back up yet again:

Some of you reading The Rouge Wave may be new to the blog and perhaps new to screenwriting. And you're thinking wait, I'm confused, ticker tape parades, readers, execs, tracking boards, oh my GOD I just want to know what to do with my script already!!

One question that a new Waver might be asking themselves about now is do I submit to an agent, to a manager OR to a production company? All three are mixed up together in this blog post and frequently are not separated in these discussions. That's because getting your script read does not have a necessarily straight path. Yes, you should initially submit to an agent or manager. Usually. Most of the time. But some production companies will read unrepped work and if they love the story, then you can take the script to an agent or manager and say hey listen, Prodco X loves the script and they want to option or purchase it, will you rep me? To which the agent or manager will, in general, choke on their coffee because they say "yes" so fast.

But let's back up even further:

Agent: hardcore, fast-talking salesman. Interested in making a SALE. Only interested in you, dear writer, if you have the goods to make a SALE and to do it again and again. They do not really care about your career, your feelings, your family, your son's Little League team or where you went to school and how much you loved JULIET OF THE SPIRITS. They care only about making a SALE. Think Ari on "Entourage" and you pretty much get the gist. It is not uncommon for an agent to actually be an attorney as well. The agent will take 10% of the sale price your script garners; only an agent (or entertainment attorney) is legally qualified to sign the deal and set the monies in action. Agents are not generally interested in brand new, baby writers. Why? No paycheck is coming forthwith. Agents don't got no time to "develop" you. If you're not hot, you're not selling and they ain't interested.

Manager: a professional who is interested in grooming you for your first sale and many sales after that. Think someone significantly more mellow than an agent. The manager is going to take 15% of a sale you make. A manager is interested in staying with you for a long time as you make sale after sale. A manager will develop ideas with you. If you make a sale, a manager will bring an agent in to sign the deal and do the hardcore negotiating. Managers are really the place for writers to start. But here's the thing with managers - it takes a LOT of time to develop a new writer and nurture ideas, etc. So if they read your first script, WATER COOLER DAYS, and think wow, this is a great new voice, and start working with you...but your next script, 26 DRESSES, strikes them as derivative and unpromising, then their belief in you takes an enormous hit, their faith is shaken in your ability to write well consistently and...they'll cut you loose. Usually using the language of unreturned calls. It's like dating, Wavers. Exactly like dating. No call you back...no interest in you. They speak a different language. I think they even sell a Rosetta Stone for Agent/Manager language. It goes like this: Manager Language: Silence. English translation: Your second script disappointed me and I've lost that lovin' feeling and I think I may have been wrong about you and look, no hard feelings, but this Beemer ain't cheap so see ya, pal.

Production Company: Some prodcos will read unrepped work. Not all. Some. They might be a smaller company more open to reading material and more comfy with release form legalities than a larger company. What's cool about submitting to a prodco? It's like going from trying to sell pastries at the county fair to selling chocolate chip cookies TO a chocolate chip cookie fan. In other words, a prodco will be looking for more specific material (a supernatural thriller, a romantic comedy set in Europe, a low-budget horror featuring tarantulas) and maybe you've GOT a low-budget tarantula script and now the question is will the prodco like THIS particular script and YOUR particular writing. If they do, you just have to be sure you protect your rights and go find representation to help you seal the deal. Now, there are some out there (my colleague Bill Martell is one) who write and sell scripts all the time, without rep. But I have to emphasize, this is really quite exceptional. And at minimum, you would need an entertainment attorney to sign the paperwork and ensure that your rights are being seen to in terms of a contract that guarantees payment upon delivery of various drafts and all of that boring stuff that's not so boring when your check has not been delivered but the pages have. This has happened to me and it ain't fun. Gather close, kids, not just everybody who says they are a "producer" is in fact an upstanding, honest or professional business person. And the detritus on the side of the road in deals gone sour is usually the writer.

But I have backtracked enormously. Is there a phantom database that keeps YOUR information online or in the minds and hearts of agents, managers and producers? Yes and no. Not physically, no. Your bad script, you writer from South Dakota or whatnot, is not interesting or significant enough to chat about on the tracking boards or anywhere else. Files are not kept - think about it - really? - busy Hollywood execs with the time to create lists or files of BAD writers? Silly, right? Ridiculous. Nobody has time for that. And you are not the center of the universe, dear writer, you are one of ONE HUNDRED scripts that arrived at X company that day.

That said, Hollywood is a very weirdly incestuous town and people do talk all the time. Good and bad. I don't even want to tell you how often I have heard professionals sharing a laugh or a story about a bad script. Might they remember your name, too? Maybe. It's entirely possible. A development exec at one company who read your script might then move on to another company where you have submitted another script and yes, might remember your name.

The bottom line is that everybody knows everybody and everybody shares a lot of information. The writer who is GREAT with the script that is PHENOMENAL is what will take up most of the gossipy air-time, for sure. But the laughable script, that will get some air too. Maybe not officially - but it will.

So the only thing you can do, Wavers, is to give them NOTHING to laugh about and everything to say WOW about. If you have given it your absolute best shot and get no response, don't worry, your "pass" coverage is not on your permanent record. I feel pretty comfortable guaranteeing that writers who treated themselves and their work like true professionals by doing all of their homework and getting notes and feedback on the script will not be forced to wear the Scarlet "pass" forever.

Might you and your script get gossiped about? Even tracked on the tracking boards? Maybe. You cannot control that. Like anything in life. But you can control the quality of the work before you send it to someone in Hollywood. If you get a regular "pass" coverage meaning it's just not for that company and/or your writing just did nothing for them, well, that's not sensational enough to energize a busy exec to in some way vindictively gossip about that "pass" rating.

You know, it's often very tricky to write about Hollywood because for everything that is true, there is something that counters that. I only speak from MY experience and I have never seen or heard or heard about a black list for "pass" writers. But I have seen and heard, many times over, execs and assistants on every level laugh or talk about a really bad script that they found particularly egregious. So it is only you, egregious writer, who should truly worry about having a black mark next to your name. Because the really GREAT scripts and the really BAD scripts - those are the ones that stand out. Just a regular "pass" script won't follow you around like bad credit, no.

So bottom line: No, there is not an official system for black listing bad writers and scripts. But yes, there is a lot of gossip and shared information, so the risk is always present. Only one thing you can do and that is to not send a script to Hollywood that has not been gone over carefully by your friends, colleagues and ideally, a professional service. The onus is on you. Do not play dodge ball with the big boys if you are not prepared for a bloody nose.

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Okay Wavers, it's the moment you've been waiting for. I received TONS of loglines. Everything from the ridiculous to the sublime and back again. I received loglines that really, really don't work but that made me laugh very hard. I received loglines that were quite sober and dramatic but not particularly unique. So I came up with these three top nominees based on inventiveness, entertainment factor and well - I just liked these three the best. They stood out from the crowd. There were about three others besides these that I had to carefully consider but at the end of the day, this is what I chose:

Yellow Fever by Audrey McKenzie

When a notorious pirate seeks revenge on the Port of Savannah for the outbreak of yellow fever that decimated his crew, a sailor recuperating from the disease struggles to mount a defense and protect a young woman the frightened townspeople blame for the epidemic.

The Sailor by Michael Perri

After an extraterrestrial war forces a impotent human race to seek refuge in space, a rag tag ship and its crew attempts to evade a Pirate overlord bent on recapturing a stow away simply known as the “Sailor” with the ability to regenerate the human race.

The Entertainer by Elizabeth Ditty

When a Somali pirate with a secret fantasy of becoming an entertainer is sent onto a cruise ship disguised as a sailor, hijinks ensue on the high seas as he attempts to serve two masters: his duty and his dream.

Cast your votes by end of day, Monday February 9th.

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The most ardent wish of new writers is to get a manager or agent. This, they believe, will open all doors. And it does. Kind of. Wavers, I know from experience how much representation feels like a brass ring and how deeply we pine for it. I know it so well that a few years ago I actually accepted representation from a manager who, while she did live in LA, usually had a barking Chihuahua in the background and who, as it turned out, never got my work to anyone that she mentioned she would. I never met her in person, though I offered to fly down at meet her several times (I lived in San Francisco at the time) and was naïve enough to be surprised when, a few months later, a loud whump on the front doorstep heralded the return of all my work and a note which read: Wave-inatrix, I am done representing you. Had I done something wrong? Was it something I said? Was it that my work sucked? Wavers, I had done something wrong all right. I had chosen a bad manager indiscriminately because I was desperate to have one at all. If this manager were still working, I’d mention her name so you could avoid her but it doesn’t matter, really. Bad managers are bad managers. And they prey on writers desperate to be repped. They might charge fees for representing you. You know, to cover the copying and postal fees incurred. They talk a very big talk but aren’t actually known or respected in the industry. But you have no way of knowing that. Because all unrepped writers see is a blurry, moving target somewhere in the middle distance. And beyond it – Valhalla.

Today I am indeed lucky enough to have a respected and connected manager who has been running a marathon with a script written by myself and my partner. He believes in the script like nobody else does, through thick or thin and he never gives up. But it took me a long time to find such an amazing professional.

Rouge Wavers – two things: 1) Be selective about who reps you even if the search is long and arduous. A bad rep is worse than no rep at all. Remember, your rep serves YOU not the other way around. For some reason that is lost in the mists, this concept has been turned on its head in the perception of many. It is not thus. You should not beg to be repped. Your rep should be thrilled to have you. 2) Know this. Being repped will not necessarily change your life.

The difficult thing about this business, dear readers, is that it is a highly dichotomous one. Hope and fear. Success and failure. Possibility and things gone wrong. Creativity and cold hard business. I would be lying to you if I said that getting a rep isn’t a huge step and that it could change your life. But I would by lying by omission if I didn’t point out that it might also get you and your material absolutely nowhere. It happens.

Oh – what a depressing post, Wave-inatrix! Geez! Ah but Rouge Wavers, here’s the thing: your career is in your hands. Nobody else’s. Take charge, be the master of your own domain – I mean, destiny. Say you’ve gotten a reputable manager or agent. Fantastic. Reason to celebrate. Go out to dinner. You’ve earned this. I am in no way diminishing the level of the joy you should feel.

What I am saying is that the same powerful belief in yourself, your writing, your goals and your purpose that infused you when you wrote that great script should continue to infuse your every business decision and action going forward. Question your manager, give him or her feedback and suggestions. Continue to be vigilant about the market, suggest particular actors or producers. Be a partner in the process. Because at the end of the day – it is your material, your career and your life. A manager or agent is, at the end of the day, a broker. A friendly one, maybe even a snarky, Ari Gold one, but a broker, nothing more or less. You are the creator of the item being brokered. Don’t give up that power, stay in the know and do not rest on your laurels.

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One of the most memorable moments of the screenwriting program I graduated from a few years back was when the ah – temperamental - founder of the program was pacing behind the classroom, chin in hand, listening to a student’s convoluted, complicated premise line. Suddenly, he slapped his hand on the student’s desk, and shouted JUST #%$# ENTERTAIN ME!

Setting aside the poor, boring student’s near heart-attack, Rouge Wavers, the lesson learned by all of us that day was huge. That's why it stands out above all other lectures and exercises I have ever participated in. So put down your Syd Field, your McKee and your Vogler for a minute and consider that you have one job to do when writing a script: just make it effing entertaining. That's all. Simple, right?

What does "entertaining" in this context mean? It means that regardless of genre, the reader (and ultimately exec) is turning the pages with a slight smile; they are lost in concentration, their eyes move quickly over the lines, they do not hear the phone ring, they do not care about anything else. Everything from the action lines to every word the characters say is entertaining. The premise is entertaining. It is engaging, in other words. The pages of your script are lively, quick, original, remarkable and delightful.

I’ve said it before, let me say it again – this is bread and circus, Rouge Wavers. Earn your bread. Dance for the reader. Dance as if your life depended on it. Dance so that the reader will not want to put your script down even for one minute.

I read a script so dull the other day that it took me three days to finish reading it. Because I couldn’t read it for more than 20 minutes at a time before my attention wandered so badly that I had to read other scripts in-between. When I read a script that entertains me, I read it in maybe an hour flat. Time stops, I care about nothing else, I am completely engrossed in the material.

Discussions about the art and craft of screenwriting can become very academic. While I honor, respect and through experience have absorbed a great deal about all that bookish stuff, I also know that the entertainment business is paperclips and glue; it is cue the moon and lower the skyline just so. It is art, it is commerce, it is Just Effing Entertain Me. If there is one fundamental principle that guides the business of making movies it is: keep asses in seats. If your script, no matter how properly executed, is dull, it bears no promise of that.

You want to earn a lot of money and see your movie grace the silver screen? You want meetings and an article about you in Variety? You want a WGA membership and to quit your day job? Then keep up your end of the bargain: write colorful, original, entertaining stories. And when you finish one and it wasn't good enough to get you over the Citadel wall - do it again. Dance, Rouge Wavers, Dance. I do it - we all do it. Keep your understanding of the business simple: it's right in the name - The Entertainment Industry - ShowBiz - Hollywood.

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More than one Rouge Waver contacted the Wave-inatrix and asked about the difference between a treatment and a synopsis.

The short answer is that in general a treatment is a proposal or blueprint for what you will be writing in script form. A synopsis is a summary of what is already done.

A treatment is when someone says hey, build me a new airplane - what would it look like? How fast would it go? Would it have drink holders? A synopsis is: the airplane is done - describe it to me because I'm going for a Sunday drive. One is an imagining of the story and the other is a description of what already exists.

Treatments can be used for a variety of reasons. They can be a great tool for the writer as the story is being "beat out" and imagined; my partner and I have a great five page treatment for an action-thriller which is relatively detailed. Other writers might have a 30 or 50 page treatment filled with details. James Cameron uses "scriptments" that can be upward of 134 pages.

Treatments can also be a tool to pitch an upcoming script you've begun to work on. You pitch your idea in a meeting and the executive says - do you have a treatment? Yes, you do. Though the script is not done yet, the treatment does give a detailed sketch of what the script will be like.

Treatments are longer and much more detailed than a synopsis. It is unusual for a new writer to be asked for a treatment since most newbies are querying or pitching a spec which is already complete. If you are asked for a treatment versus a synopsis, just get your synopsis out and add more prose-like detail; extend the whole thing by another page or two and call it done. A synopsis is significantly more likely to be requested.

The Wave-inatrix recommends that writers use treatments as a way of outlining and planning a new script idea not as a selling tool. The truth is, while a treatment can be time consuming, you should know your story well enough to write either a synopsis or a treatment if requested.

Bottom line:

Treatment: a lengthy, detailed, by act outline for your script-to-be.

Synopsis: a relatively brief yet entertaining summary of the script you have finished.

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Rouge Wavers know how much regard I have for Stephanie Palmer of Good in a Room. I have taken Stephanie's workshop and will again. You can sign up for Stephanie's newsletters by going to her website (link at the end of this post). I received today's newsletter and am reprinting it here with Stephanie's permission; I know this is an issue that many writers are dying to learn more about. So here you go:

What is the best way to meet an agent or a manager? Get hot.

And it’s not as hard as you think.

Agents and managers are heat-seekers. They only make money when their client’s careers are on fire. This is why agents spend a great deal of time poaching from each other’s lists—they would rather work with proven talent.

However, agents are also looking for the next big thing. In other words, YOU—provided that you’re generating enough heat to attract them. You don’t need to be working if you can demonstrate that you and your projects are getting serious attention.

How do you generate heat? Here are some questions to consider:
• Have you staged a reading or theatrical performance of your work? Could you produce it?
• Is your material the kind that wins screenplay contests? Could you adapt it?
• Have you created a short film or teaser?
• Could you partner with other people who have short films and put on a festival?
• Has your work been reviewed in the paper?
• Have you gotten any endorsements from successful people?
• What are you doing to publicize your work? Do you have a website? A blog? A YouTube clip?

If you’ve got some dynamite material that you’d like to sell to a major studio, you might benefit from having representation. The trick is to create the right strategy to generate enough heat for your project, and more importantly, your career. That way, when an agent or manager meets you, they can see that you have the potential to be a long-term client.

The next step is to polish your meeting technique so that, once you get in the room, you know exactly how to position yourself. Until then, keep working on your material.

There are two spots left in the Finding Representation workshop which starts next Monday, March 26th. For more information, go to:

www.goodinaroom.com/findingrepresentation.html

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Hollywood often feels like a very exclusive club with menacing bouncers standing at the door. And you, the writer, are one of thousands standing in line outside in the cold waiting and hoping for your chance. The line seems to shuffle forward little by little but like a Sisyphusian nightmare, you always find yourself standing at the back of the line. Watching other people get ushered inside. And everyone who gets inside has one thing in common: a smartly dressed escort at their elbow. That would be an agent or manager.

An agent or manager is a necessity. But how do you get one? Many writers try the scattershot method of listing their script with a query-blasting service, which sends your logline to any producer with an email address like so much spam. Others list their loglines on websites which producers browse. Word on the street is that successful producers have time to browse the internet for scripts. That make sense to you? Other writers invest in a Hollywood Creative Directory and start with A and end with Z, sending out one query letter after another. I know these methods well because I tried them all. And nothing came to fruition for me. Work sent in these ways usually winds up lost in a sea of other loglines and queries. The question is how do you stand out from the rest?

It seems everything is stacked against us. Some agents don’t accept unsolicited queries. So how do they get new clients? They may not be looking for clients except through referral. So how do you get referred? If you sometimes feel that everything is designed to keep you and your work at arms length, you’re not far off base. In my adventures reading for production companies I have been and continue to be shocked by the piles of scripts I see. I call them “the slithering stack”. They literally slither to the floor because there are too many. And these are represented scripts.

In order of efficacy, here are the best methods for seeking representation:

1) Friend of a friend.
2) Be a competition winner or finalist
3) Go to a pitch-fest and blow an exec’s mind
4) Query selectively using the HCD
5) The Schwab’s Drugstore Fantasy

FRIEND OF A FRIEND
The friend of a friend is obviously something very few people can take advantage of. But you can cultivate relationships in the business which could lead to a hand-off at some point in the future. You never know. That’s how I got my manager. But as I look back, it was a long time coming until the stars were aligned and I just so happened to have a good script and it just so happened to be right up my manager’s alley. Luck = timing + opportunity.

COMPETITIONS
A much more realistic approach is to enter your scripts into competitions. There are many to choose from and by and large, they really are a terrific way to get noticed. I would avoid those contests that run competitions frequently and that don’t seem to have much in the way of industry credibility. In my opinion, some competitions which can really pay off for you are:

The Nicholls Fellowship
The Austin Film Festival
Final Draft Big Break
The Blue Cat Screenwriting Competition
The Disney Fellowship
Slamdance
Creative Screenwriting’s AAA Competition
Creative Screenwriting’s yearly Expo Competition

Deadlines for most of these competitions are coming up quickly so if you do want to enter, do your research and be ready to send your script shortly.

Competition winners will have their work exposed to industry professionals. Some competitions are more illustrious than others – Nicholls comes to mind – but all of these competitions are designed to help launch writers. I urge all my clients to enter as many of these competitions as they can.

PITCH-FESTS
Attending a pitch-fest is also a good way to seek representation. FADE IN online is sponsoring a pitch-fest here in LA on February 17th and 18th. If your work is not only highly polished and ready but you feel confident pitching – this could be a terrific opportunity.

QUERYING
If none of the methods above have paid off for you, or do not appeal for any reason, you can go old school and query. This is not the most effective method but still – there are exceptions. Buy yourself the latest edition of the Hollywood Creative Directory for agents and managers (it is updated quarterly) or get an online subscription of same. As you flip through the book, have your IMDB at the ready. Read the company descriptions carefully, look up execs and their resumes.

Sometimes as a new writer, the smaller boutique management shingles are the best place to look. The HCD will include absolutely everybody but there are two things to be very aware of: The long shots and the shysters. A short list of the long shot agencies and management firms would include:

CAA
ICM
William Morris
UTA
Benderspink

We know that these agencies represent the crème de la crème in both the literary and acting realms. Not the best place for a newbie to come a’ knockin’. Which is not to say you can’t try – just be aware that it would be quite an accomplishment to even get a response to your query through these venues.

The shysters are the one-man outfits, usually. With addresses outside of Los Angeles or New York. Yes there are managers and agents in Chicago, Atlanta and Minneapolis; but that’s not where the business is. How effective and connected is a manager who can’t do lunch easily and regularly with potential buyers? As you peruse the HCD, IMDB the principal and see if anything comes up. If you do call or query, absolutely do NOT pay a fee for anything. Some of these unethical charlatans prey on new writers by charging fees to send your work out. These types of people are tempting for new writers because they will pick up the phone more or less immediately, they will talk to you and they will agree readily (most often) to read your material. That’s because they aren’t in the business of making deals – they are in the business of bilking writers. If it’s too good to be true – it probably is.

Do not pay any fees – ever. Do not trust the “manager” that has a barking Chihuahua in the background or the drone of a television set. How do I know to warn my dear readers of these types? Been there. Done that. Believe more highly in your work than to be lured into the grasp of these bottom feeders.

A resource for checking out the creds of agents and managers is the Done Deal Message Board. There writers can post about their experiences. Do a search and spend some time on the site; you may find all the answers you need right there.

SCHWABS
We’ve all heard stories of an actor or writer being discovered at odd moments or locations. And yes, it can indeed happen. Which is why you should always be prepared to talk about your work. However. The instances of a writer making a profitable connection with a representative or producer while shopping for shampoo are – well – miniscule. If you are doing everything in this list to find representation and then you run into Tom Hanks while you are checking out with your Clairol Herbal Essence - terrific. But don’t count on it.

The big question really is – are you ready for representation? It’s not just a matter of the stars being aligned – it’s a matter of the maturity of your material. How many scripts have you written? If this is your first script, the chances that the material is rep-ready are pretty slim. And that’s okay. It takes time to learn the craft and you will improve with each new script you write. It took me 7 ½ scripts before I got repped. And I tried everything from spamming producers through a service to dressing up like Dorothy and hanging out in front of Laundromats handing out scripts. Well, okay, my friends had an intervention before I made it out the door on that one.

My point is that yes, getting representation is indeed the opening through which your career can sashay into the exclusive club. It doesn’t guarantee that you will then sell the project or be a real working writer, but you are in the game. But before you look for a rep, make sure you have accumulated a body of work. An arsenal as some say. Read the how-to books. Take some classes online or in person. The UCLA Writers Program has great online and weekend classes. Also the Writer’s Boot Camp in Santa Monica has online and on-the-ground courses. Give it some time. Then, when you are ready, you just upped the chances of getting a rep by 1000%. Trying to get a rep before you’re ready will ultimately be a blow to your confidence as a writer. You will find yourself on the receiving end of a whole lot of unreturned phone calls and/or dismissive letters. Make sure you and your material are up to snuff.

The sixty four thousand dollar question is this: how do you know if your work is good enough to be repped? Have you sought feedback from either professionals in the industry or trusted and literate friends? Have you done everything in your power to improve your writing at every turn? Are you perhaps rushing things and looking for the instant one million dollar spec sale? Slow down, take your time and do your homework.

And even after you've dotted every "i" and crossed every "t", the fact is, you’ll never be 100% sure if your work is all that. Even accomplished writers feel like frauds, it’s just part of being a writer. But if you’ve done your due diligence, then take a deep breath and jump in.

My friend Stephanie Palmer, who has a wonderful consulting company called Good In A Room is offering, for the first time, a three-evening series here in Los Angeles, on finding representation. Stephanie is a class-act and I highly recommend treating yourself to the series if you can. You can find the schedule and learn more about Stephanie at http://www.goodinaroom.com/

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I have a client who got a manager recently. I was very proud of him and he was beyond excited. As he should be. Having representation puts a writer in a completely different sphere. Suddenly, you feel legitimate. You get to say things like “I don’t know, I have to talk to my manager.” Other, unrepresented writers will look upon you with envy. After having belly-crawled through the desolate landscape of the Unrepresented, your new manager or agent will look like an oasis, fragrant with dates and cool, sweet water. You will pore over his credits and clients. You will look for his name-ergo-reputation in every conceivable corner. You will boast to the unrepped that your manager is very busy and probably won’t read their work.

Then some time passes. You’re not getting the meetings or the sale you wanted. Or maybe you are. Maybe you get your script to a producer who is very serious about your work. Then you go into what we like to call “development hell”. Development hell is an unpleasant place to be. It’s right there in the name – hell. Meeting after meeting; pushed meetings, late meetings, long meetings, cranky meetings, excited meetings during which your material, which the producer originally LOVED is slowly picked apart. You may develop an eye-twitch. You may notice a racing heart, insomnia and the temptation to crush a butterfly’s wings. Other people will tell you how lucky you are to be “in development” with “x producer”. You will smile thinly and pretend to agree. You will beg your manager to just option the stupid thing because your credit card is close to being maxed out. He will refuse, saying boldly, that this material will not fall into the producer’s hands so cheaply. No – a sale is what we want. You note that it’s been some months since the producer has “loved” this script. Soon, your manager says with a smile. So soon. Your eye twitches.

My client with the brand-new manager called me in a panic. My new manager has some changes! He doesn’t like the ending! Is he going to drop me? No. He won’t drop you. This is normal. A rep’s first response to new material is, in order, a) can I sell this? and b) can this person write worth a damn? Once the material is repped and has “gone out” to various producers, the real work begins which is a) can I make this movie and profit from it? and b) how can I improve this script to that end? You will be asked to change x element in your script. You will do so. At the next meeting, you will be asked to change it back to the way it was. Ridiculous suggestions will be made and you will be required to keep a straight face. Your manager will continue to cheer you on, saying how great this is and how close you are. Your eye will twitch. Visiting the lot has now changed from an exhilarating experience filled with wonder to a grueling trek during which you seriously think about carjacking a golf cart and going postal in the commissary.

This story can and usually does end in one of two ways. It starts with a phone call. And ends either with a euphoric spending spree or a phone call to mom and dad asking to borrow some cash to help pay the rent. The end of my story has not yet come. I’m not sure which it will be but I feel really bad about the golf cart thing and I am making up for that with community service.

This is a nerve-wracking business and for every new level of accomplishment I have reached, there has been a whole new vista of challenges, both good and bad. Sorta like life. Being repped is fantastic, and something to be proud of. Being in development is also fantastic and something to be proud of. But it’s not the end-all be-all. Holding on to my perspective as a human being is the most important thing. Yes my writing is important to me and yes I need to pay down that credit card. But in the big picture I know this is just one interesting chapter of many in my life. And whatever I experience on the other end of this, at least I’ll always have my eye twitch.

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