by Cynthia Whitcomb

The Writer Books, September, 2002.
Trade paperback, 195 pages.
ISBN: 0871161923

Selling a screenplay, like selling any product, requires knowledge of the buyers, marketing skills and sales strategies. In Selling Your Screenplay, screenplay sales expert Cynthia Whitcomb offers this insider information to writers, as well as tips and suggestions on how to sell screenplays to specific Hollywood markets. The book covers a number of sales techniques for screenplays, pitches, query letters, pitch-a-thons, follow-up calls and story meetings. Whitcomb also explains financial matters, such as what screenwriters can expect as far payment and royalties are concerned. Agents, the Writer's Guild of America and the film production process are also covered in the book. Useful sections in the back of the book include web resource listings, contest listings and answers to common questions from beginning screenwriters like: "Do you have to have an agent first?" and "What is a release form and should I sign one?"

Cynthia Whitcomb has sold over seventy screenplays and television scripts, and has also taught screenwriting for nearly twenty years at the UCLA Film School. She is also the author of The Writer's Guide to Writing Your Screenplay. Once you've written a screenplay and you are happy with it, you must turn to the difficult process of getting it sold. Cynthia Whitcomb helps writers learn what agents and studios want to hear, and offers methods for approaching them and getting your screenplay noticed. Whitcomb's book is also fun to read; her stories about the business behind Hollywood and anecdotes from her own experiences are very entertaining. This is a must-have for any serious screenwriter.

The Writer's Guide to Selling Your Screenplay is available for purchase on Amazon.com

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This review was published in the February, 2003 of The Internet Writing Journal.

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