The #1 Mistake Writers Make When Entering Screenplay Competitions

The #1 Mistake Writers Make When Entering Screenplay Competitions


Most people think the #1 mistake writers make when entering screenplay competitions is poor writing. I think that is closer to #2. The #1 mistake is submitting a script that is not marketable which also means interesting. In the movie industry it’s CONCEPT, CONCEPT, CONCEPT. A great concept will beat out a better written low concept script in most cases. The thing is that all scripts are rewritten at some point so the concept has to be great before you even get to that point.

The main reason people enter contests is to get noticed. The production companies who request to read the contest winners are looking for marketable material first, good writing second. What attracts them to want to read your concept is an interesting title and logline of the concept. They won’t know if it’s written well until after they have requested to read it. If you don’t have a great title and great logline hence great concept, they probably will never find out how great a writer you are. In contests, if your writing is great but the concept is not marketable, you may final but you probably won’t win. Even to garner the attention of an agent you need a marketable concept. For the Nicholls Fellowship competition, you definitely need both. Many dramas do win but I guarantee these aren’t your average dramas, there’s something definitely special about them. Just look at the winners that have been made into movies over the years.

In order to create a win-win situation, write a very good marketable script that you are passionate about! Save the low concept passion projects for after you have an established career and have made a name for yourself. When you get to that point, you can basically write what you want.

These are just my opinions so take what you can use and disregard what you can't. This works for me and I must be doing something right if I've won a screenplay competition and had 3 other entries make it to the finals. The thing is don't beat yourself up if you don't think your idea is high concept or totally marketable. This comes with practice. Plus, the industry is very subjective! No one knows what they want until they see it.

For more information regarding how to make your concept great, check out my book, The #1 Secret to Sell Your Screenplay to Hollywood.

Write right and write on!

What is high concept?

This was taken from a literary agent's blog (http://literaryagentny.com/). This defines their idea of high concept in regards to story and books.  Works for movies, too. 

What is High-Concept?


•High-concept is a welcome slap-in-the-face for publishing professionals

who’ve been lulled to sleep by thousands of boring submissions (hey, it’s the truth).

•High-concept instantly communicates an idea and gives it context.

•High-concept is the difference between good and great.

•High-concept is taking something timeless and making it timely.

•High-concept is making something familiar and/or faded… fresh.

•High-concept is clever (but that doesn’t mean it isn’t also authentic).

•High-concept is standing out, getting everyone’s attention, creating curiosity.

•High-concept sometimes (but not always) means being bold, creating a spectacle,

and/or creating controversy.

•High-concept is memorable.

•High-concept is often newsworthy and media-friendly.

•High-concept gets people talking, sometimes shouting, other times whispering.

•High-concept is simply positioning or repositioning.

•High-concept is what Houdini created when he unchained himself from manacles

and escaped while hanging upside down 30 stories above the ground (but it’s not magic).

•High-concept is what P.T. Barnum used to fill his tents, employing the talents of

Tom Thumb (but you don’t have to be a clown or create a circus to do it).

•High-concept is embracing your role as both expert and entertainer or master of intrigue

and mystery (even if you’re just writing cookbooks).

•High-concept might mean using a metaphor to make the mundane seem magnificent.

•High-concept often bends (and sometimes breaks) rules and conventions.

•High-concept is arguably more important than the characters in a novel because

no one will ever meet (or care about) your characters without it.

•High-concept might capitalize on current trends (and sometimes creates new ones).

•High-concept understands that important themes, valuable content, and

a beautiful writing style aren’t always enough.

Selling a Script on Title Alone - Create High Concept Titles

Is it possible to sell a script on a title alone?  Rarely but yes.  People have done it but even if you aren't an A-list screenwriter, you can at least get people interested in your book or screenplay by stating the title alone if it's a high concept title.  The title followed by a magnificient logline will get you read.  Below are tips excerpted from the book, "The #1 Secret to Sell Your Screenplay to Hollywood".

CREATING HIGH CONCEPT TITLES

A good title must be:

1. Concise. One to five words is the best length.

2. Genre-appropriate, The Bourne Identity hints at suspense and threat.

3. Relevant. The audience feels cheated if they can’t see a title’s relevance.

This doesn’t mean the relevance always has to be obvious from the beginning. But never take a passing detail and stick it in the title for show.

4. Intriguing. Makes people wonder what or who the story is about. Will the title you’re considering make readers ask questions, questions you answer in your story?

5. Tantalizing. Makes your title irresistible.

6. Memorable. Titles should be easy to remember. The catchier the better.