Writing and Layout Tips to Help Sell Your Script

It goes without saying that success in selling a script can be very dependent upon the quality of the product you submit. Improper layout, spelling or grammatical errors, a confusing plot, and more can doom your project. Aside from the fact that way too many scripts are submitted than possibly can be transformed into a film or show, a problem with selling a script today is too many writers see it as a get-rick-quick avenue for a career. That is so rare it’s not worth exploring here. Know that preparation, training and resources can increase your odds in selling your script.

Quality in writing is vital, so think about taking training courses. Even acting or cinematography classes can help in this realm. It helps you understand what actors and directors go through when trying to transform a script into a visual and audio art piece. Of course, it also helps much to read as many scripts as time allows. You probably already watch a lot of movies, which can’t hurt, but try to see how the product looked in text before filming initiated. Even reading bad scripts helps, because it hints toward what to avoid when writing and trying to sell a script.

The ‘Four Ps’ in Selling a Script

It can be said that there are “Four Ps” in selling a script: preparation, persistence, patience, and perseverance. If you are easily discouraged by rejection, you might want to think about another career. About half of Hollywood successes were the result of persistence. Make sure you complete all projects, and submit them according to industry standards. Follow established best practices and your odds of successfully selling a script increase. Best practices include clean writing with storylines that flow naturally, and formatting your script in a manner script readers are accustomed to.

Formatting a screenplay is actually rather simple. Almost all scripts have four key elements: sluglines, action, character names, and dialogue. Sluglines are also called scene headings, and they appear at the beginning of each new scene, in all capital letters, such as INT. KITCHEN - MORNING, or EXT. BASEBALL FIELD - LATE AFTERNOON. Sluglines explain whether the scene is inside or outside (INT. or EXT.), the location, and time. A new scene develops each time there’s a change in time, location, or both. There should be a lot of sluglines in your writing; multiple scenes help sell a script.

Action, Characters and Dialogue in Writing and Selling a Script

Action is self-explanatory: this is where you describe what is occurring on the screen, and which characters are there, if any. An example: “EXT. BASEBALL FIELD - LATE AFTERNOON. Aaron approaches Mantle as he lies on the outfield grass. He looks around for help, in case Mantle is injured. Looking down he notices a small trickle of blood coming from Mantle’s mouth.” Mostly the actual action text is written with standard capitalization rules, following the sluglines. Action should be single-spaced and in present tense. If in past tense, use the slugline to explain. Strong action elements definitely help in selling a script.

Character names always appear above dialogue, in ALL CAPS, indicating who is speaking, such as “AARON” followed below, after a single space, of the words Aaron convey. Those words make up the dialogue, which may be the most important aspect of your work. Dialogue also is single spaced and follows regular capitalization standards. There are other tips, such as cuts, as in cutting to and from scenes or locations, or indicating camera directions. How best to use such tactics points back to reading as many scripts as you have time, to get a feel for formatting practices. To sell your script, a final tip is screenplays are submitted on letter-sized paper, in Courier font, 12 point, 10 pitch, no bold or italics. Margins should be 1.5 inches on the left, and 1 inch everywhere else. There are other rules regarding indention and spacing, but you should discover those while using the first P of the Four Ps: preparation. Just a little research should help you better format your piece, and improve your chances to sell your script.