I don’t often do this, in fact I believe this is the first time I have done it on my blog, as I like to keep things positive and uplifting here. I want to inspire others to pursue their dreams, whatever they may be, and be the best writer (or whatever) they can be. Sort of like that slogan for the Army. But to any aspiring screenwriters out there who may read these words, let me warn you about a situation that comes up time and again in the film industry.

Never, NEVER, ever, EVER, sign an agreement with an established producer, production company, or studio to write an original screenplay, or to adapt a novel into a screenplay  for NO MONEY UPFRONT.

Trust me on this. Heed my sage advice, for it is wisdom born of pain. Yes, I have been suckered in by a predatory production company once myself, back in 2009. Notice I said ONCE. And I learned (the hard way!) that having no deal is better than working under the constraints of a BAD deal.

Here’s what happened. An established indie producer of straight to video action movies liked one of my scripts. The Producer (who shall remain nameless) wanted me to write a faith-based action thriller specifically for an (at the time) aging action star they were working with. They wanted to have it set partly in Africa. So we signed a deal where I would write for no money up front, but would be paid $10,000 when the project got greenlit.

It sounded good at the time. I was a non-union writer who had written and directed a feature horror film (DELIRIUM, 2007, York Entertainment) a few years before that had lost money, and funding for my follow-up horror feature fell through in the economic crash of 2008. I was overextended at the time, and when my Investors pulled out, my company, Forsaken Media Group, collapsed. Thank God I had a day job at the time that paid well.

So this Producer and I developed a basic plot, then I wrote a logline, then a synopsis, then an outline, then I wrote the script. At every step of the process, I was in contact with the Company, as they had approval authority. I was writing the script “on assignment”, meaning I was a “writer for hire”. I did not own the script I was writing, or any of the characters therein. But that was okay by me. I was writing, and I felt confident that the script would get a green light, because the action star was big on home video in many parts of the world at the time.

A director got hired. He worked with me on the script. I learned about script notes, and how to incorporate input from others into revisions on the script without completely writing over what I felt was the true emotional core of the story being told.

I turned in the revised draft to the company. They thanked me, said they would be in touch. They never were. And when I called for an update, the exec who had been so accommodating to me was suddenly unavailable, and no longer returned my calls. Eventually, his assistant even refused to answer my emails.

Long story short, the project never happened. And I know because I watched for a couple of years to see if the movie came out with someone other than me being credited for writing it. I had all my script drafts, revisions, script notes, etc. I would have sued, and I would have won. But it never happened, so…..

If you’re in the WGA (Writers Guild of America), this will never happen to you. The Union sets the basic terms of your agreement as a member of the Guild, and real Producers, i.e., producers who are Signatory to the Guild, know they can’t do that. BHut if you’re not in the Union, well, welcome to the deep end of the pool, buddy. Are those lead weights tied to your shoes?  You know how THAT ends, right?

Listen. Professional writers GET PAID. We have a unique set of marketable skills, honed over years, sometimes decades of grueling training, education, and experience that few people have. These skills carry with them a certain monetary value. And if a Producer can pay option money to an author to get the rights to a book, a magazine article, a stage play, etc., then he/she can pay you at least SOME MONEY upfront for your work, with more being paid upon the delivery of your Main Draft. A final payment is usually made when you deliver the rewrites they ask for after the Main Draft.

This is commonly called a “Step Deal” in the industry, and it’s how things are done. The writer gets paid a portion of an already agreed-upon total amount at every completed “step” of the deal. Make sure you have an agent, literary manager, or entertainment attorney look over the contract BEFORE you sign it. Because it’s not about what’s legal. It’s not about right and wrong. It’s about what’s in the contract. And under California law, once you sign the contract, you are bound to it, right or wrong, for better or for worse. Something in there you don’t like? Oh well. You should have dealt with it BEFORE you signed your name to it.

See what I mean? Morality never even enters into it.

So how do these guys sleep at night? My guess is, quite well, actually. But here’s the rub: If a producer wants/asks/requests/demands you develop a script from an idea (which can take weeks) or to adapt a screenplay from another original source (which can take MONTHS) but they claim they can’t pay you any front money, then they’re not for real. They are either an amateur without any solid financing behind them, or they are a predator looking to exploit you and your talent. In either case, exit stage left. QUICKLY!

Writing for no money upfront means you’re working for free, and will never see a penny. And there are Producers out there willing to exploit a non-union writer with promises of paydays, IMDB credits, and more work somewhere down the road in the future to essentially get a script for free.  I hope there’s a special place in Hell for producers like this.

As I said before, real Producers don’t conduct themselves in this manner. They will either  negotiate a deal with you where you get paid at least some money up front, or they will tell you they are just starting out and don’t have funding. Sometimes, you can make an exception and negotiate a producer’s credit for yourself, along with gross profit participation in exchange for working on spec. But be careful. This is Hollywood we’re talking about, and these are definitely shark-infested wasters.

Beware, for here there be monsters.

Writing for no money is called writing “on spec”; that is, you’re writing something on the speculation you might be able to sell it later. Most writers do this on their own time to build up a “war chest” of scripts on various subjects and in different genres and budget ranges. That way, they are positioned for success when an opportunity arises. They are already poised to capitialize on the opportunity, as these windows of opportunity tend to close rapidly. Completed spec scripts can be sold or optioned themselves, or used as calling cards to the industry to be considered for hire for work on other projects.

Here’s the bottom line, folks.

The only person a screenwriter should write on spec for is him/her self. No one else. No exceptions.

Period.

I often find myself feeling like I have two people living inside my head, with each one struggling with the other for supremacy.

On one side is the Artist, the guy who just wants to sits down at his laptop, have a hot “mug o’ Joe” beside him, and be left alone to write all afternoon. This is the guy who sits at the desk in the house by the fireplace, occasionally goes out to his neighborhood Starbucks or indie coffee-house (a big shout-out to Coffee Oasis in Port Orchard, WA!), but mainly keeps to himself and does what he does best: WRITE! As a writer, I consider myself an artist first and foremost. I paint pictures, creates images, and characters and events. But instead of painting with pigments on canvas, I paint pictures with words, that convey that picture into the mind of the reader. It is the epitome of sublime satisfaction and artistic achievement.

On the other side, is that other guy, the Business Man. The Entrepreneur. The guy who keeps the books, balances the bank account, keeps track of the money. Money comes in; money goes out. he’s the guy who keeps it all straight — not just for him, but for Uncle Sam as well. You know Uncle Sam. He’s our poor uncle. We send him money every year, right?

The Business Man is also the guy who handles all the technical aspects of being an indie publisher. This is a perplexing, frustrating, and time-consuming endeavor. Luckily, it is not something I have to spend time and energy on every day. But I spent the ENTIRE AFTERNOON today dealing with these repellent, cringe-worthy, but important tasks.

When I published NOCTURNAL, I did so through Amazon’s Create Space tool. I published the e-book exclusively through Kindle, since Kindle is the most widely read e-book format in the world. And the trade paperback was (and still is!) available through Amazon, one of the most dominant e-commerce sites on the planet.

Good to go, right?

WRONG.

You see, you can’t get your Amazon-published book stocked in bookstores. There’s specific technical reasons for this. I won’t bore you with them here, but you can email me if you want to know, and I will be happy to explain it. But suffice to say, if you publish through Amazon’s services, Barnes and Noble won’t touch it, and neither will the smaller indie booksellers, or libraries, or anyone else, for that matter. So that’s a problem, right? That’s sales that aren’t happening, and potential readers not getting their hands on NOCTURNAL, which means I’m not growing my reader base that way I should be growing it.

Problem, right?

Enter Ingrahm Spark! This is a new self-publishing tool, similar to Create Space and Kindle, except you actually purchase an ISBN for each format you plan to publish in. It’s a bit pricey at $85.00 each, but the value you get in return makes it worth it. Through Ingrahm, Spark, I can get books into Barnes and Noble brick-and-mortar stores, indie bookstores, iTunes, iBooks, Barnes and Noble.com, and I can be stocked in countries throughout the Americas, Western Europe and even Australia.

So the Business Guy won out today. I had been planning this switchover for a while now, but had been procrastinating. Not that I was afraid or anything, I just figured it would have a very high “PITA factor” (PITA = Pain In The Ass), which it did. But I sucked it up and did the grunt work to make it happen. Got all the agreements signed, uploaded all the pertinent files in the proper formats, etc. Now the sites review process begins. If all goes well, NOCTURNAL should be available through Ingrahm Spark in a week or so. That’s a good thing. There are a lot of writers, both high-profile and obscure, who call the Pacific Northwest home. The Barnes and Nobles up here like to showcase local writers, and my nearest Barnes and Noble has assured me they will showcase my book as soon as it becomes available in their computer system database, which means Ingrahm Spark.

This is the plight of the indie author. It’s not enough to simply write the damn book. You do your own editing, publishing, marketing, and promotions. You cough up the dough to make these things happen. Your publisher can’t do it for you because YOU ARE YOUR OWN PUBLISHER.

The important thing is, I got done. The ball is in Ingrahm Spark’s court now. Tomorrow, I have an appointment with ENT at Madigan Army Hospital. I’m still in aftercare for my throat cancer. But after that, when I get back home, I’m definitely going to let the Artist out of his cage and left him roam free.

Or at least, let him stretch his legs for a while.