Thanks for sharing your valuable experience. I should clarify that a book, even if self-published, can boost the careers of journalists, editors, artists, professional people, and writers of all stripes.
In general, screenplays are usually the hardest to sell by far. Fiction is a bit easier but still very hard to sell with some exceptions (romance, fan fiction). Non-fiction is generally easier, and how-to books (including cookbooks, fitness, dieting, hobbies, education, parenting) tend to be the easiest to sell.
I've been writing books and screenplays for over fifty years and have managed to sell one - ONE - project (a screenplay to an Oscar-winning director).
The advice I wish I'd gotten was this: finishing a writing project is not the end of the project. SELLING it is the next huge (almost insurmountable) hurdle.
I don't mean this as pessimistic or defeatist message, but rather as realistic advice based on my own experiences. Most of my writing projects involved a year or two or research and writing and rewriting, and I am quite proud of much of my output. But it was all for nothing if I can't get a publisher or director to read it. I'm not satisfied with just saying, well, I wrote a great book and good for me - I want it out there, on shelves, I want people to read it and be affected by it.
So now, even at this late date (I'm 76) I give a lot more thought into the selling of the book - will there be a market for it?
I know that many will say just write your own story, forget about trying to meet others' expectations. Sure, good writing advice, but if you want others to read it, then you have to think about pitching and selling your work.
This is probably an unexpected or even unwelcome comment, but I want to get my books out into the world, and typing The End of my book doesn't get it out into the world.
I've got shelves full of How-to-Write-a-Screenplay books, but among them there are only 1 or 2 called How-to-Sell-a-Screenplay. And that's how I got to sell my screenplay.
So what I'm saying is, before I start a project I give a whole lot of thought to how it will (or won't) be received, is there a contemporary market for this project, which publishers will be interested, etc etc
I wish someone had told me from the start that writing a book isn't enough in and of itself; you have to pitch and sell it, and that's an art in itself.
Once you get over the mental block it's ridiculously easy. Do an outline, begin, use notes you've previously taken, get feedback if you need it, keep going, finish. That's it!
Thanks for sharing your valuable experience. I should clarify that a book, even if self-published, can boost the careers of journalists, editors, artists, professional people, and writers of all stripes.
In general, screenplays are usually the hardest to sell by far. Fiction is a bit easier but still very hard to sell with some exceptions (romance, fan fiction). Non-fiction is generally easier, and how-to books (including cookbooks, fitness, dieting, hobbies, education, parenting) tend to be the easiest to sell.
I've been writing books and screenplays for over fifty years and have managed to sell one - ONE - project (a screenplay to an Oscar-winning director).
The advice I wish I'd gotten was this: finishing a writing project is not the end of the project. SELLING it is the next huge (almost insurmountable) hurdle.
I don't mean this as pessimistic or defeatist message, but rather as realistic advice based on my own experiences. Most of my writing projects involved a year or two or research and writing and rewriting, and I am quite proud of much of my output. But it was all for nothing if I can't get a publisher or director to read it. I'm not satisfied with just saying, well, I wrote a great book and good for me - I want it out there, on shelves, I want people to read it and be affected by it.
So now, even at this late date (I'm 76) I give a lot more thought into the selling of the book - will there be a market for it?
I know that many will say just write your own story, forget about trying to meet others' expectations. Sure, good writing advice, but if you want others to read it, then you have to think about pitching and selling your work.
This is probably an unexpected or even unwelcome comment, but I want to get my books out into the world, and typing The End of my book doesn't get it out into the world.
I've got shelves full of How-to-Write-a-Screenplay books, but among them there are only 1 or 2 called How-to-Sell-a-Screenplay. And that's how I got to sell my screenplay.
So what I'm saying is, before I start a project I give a whole lot of thought to how it will (or won't) be received, is there a contemporary market for this project, which publishers will be interested, etc etc
I wish someone had told me from the start that writing a book isn't enough in and of itself; you have to pitch and sell it, and that's an art in itself.
Once you get over the mental block it's ridiculously easy. Do an outline, begin, use notes you've previously taken, get feedback if you need it, keep going, finish. That's it!
Great point. I think if you approach it like baking a cake or any other task, it's much much easier.