WHY HIRE ME?
After all, there are a million script consultants out there.
Aside from my prices, I offer something that most others don't: the chance to have a back-and-forth with me about your script notes for 30 days at no extra charge.
HOW MUCH DO I CHARGE AND WHAT WILL YOU GET FOR YOUR MONEY?
RATES
For a 30-minute pilot (up to 35 pages) - $49
For a 60-minute pilot (up to 65 pages) - $79
For a feature script (to to 125 pages) - $109
PayPal: 30daysofscriptnotes
WHAT YOU'LL RECEIVE
No bullsh*t. Just simple, straightforward feedback, both page-by-page comments (I’ll take notes as I’m reading) and overall notes about your concept, characters, plot, dialogue, story logic, readability, and marketing potential. This is the same type of feedback I provide to all the material I’m asked to read at work.
WHAT DON'T I OFFER?
A SYNOPSIS
I’m not going to waste your time (or mine) with a detailed summary of your script. You wrote it. So why would you want the first half of my feedback to be wasted with filler?
CHECKBOXES
I don’t do the chart with “good, fair, poor” etc. Those checkmarks are helpful to managers/agents and production companies... but not so much to writers.
PROOFREADING
If a typo is very obvious, I might point it out. But if you need someone to proofread your spelling mistakes, grammar problems, or typos, please look elsewhere.
WHO AM I?
My first name is Josh.
Having spent the last 7+ years reading for a well-known management company, I’ve developed great instincts for what works-- and what doesn’t work-- in a screenplay. Please note: I am not a manager! I’m not making any promises that I’ll pass your script on to my boss. Is it a possibility, though? Maybe. More on that later.
What's my turnaround time?
Typically 72 hours, although I don’t guarantee it. Do us both a favor. Don’t wait until a few days before a contest deadline and submit your script to me, hoping I’m going to find some glaring problem that you can fix instantly before entering (and winning) the competition at the last moment.
WHAT DO I SUGGEST YOU DO WITH MY FEEDBACK?
The feedback you’re paying me for is just one person’s opinion. Mine. My rates are low enough that you could still hire another consultant as well to get their take on your script. You could (and should) hit up friends and other writers for their opinions as well.
In other words, I would strongly suggest
you NOT simply have a knee-jerk reaction
to my notes, but instead view them along
with feedback from others to look for recurring criticisms. What do I mean by "knee-jerk reaction"?
If you immediately get defensive and brush off certain comments without considering why I made them, that’s a knee-jerk reaction. So is treating my feedback as a to-do list where you can spend a few hours whipping through my suggestions, making some quick changes and exclaiming “done!”.
WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH THE 30 DAY
BACK-AND-FORTH I MENTIONED ABOVE?
Many script consultants fire off an email to their clients and that’s the last interaction they have with them. Some allow a few follow-up questions. But my style is different. My clients appreciate the chance to ask more... to get my opinion on their proposed revisions… and to have someone willing to toss around ideas with them about possible changes to the script.
If you hire me to read your script, from the day that I send you my feedback, I’m available via email AT NO EXTRA CHARGE to discuss anything you want about your script for the next 30 days.
Please note that I have a job and other clients, so I’ll limit myself to one email response to you per day. Could you theoretically email me 30 times in those 30 days, tossing around ideas each time? Yes. Could you pack each email with multiple questions? Yes, although that’s starting to push the boundaries of good taste. Am I willing to read rewritten scenes or new drafts? No. You’d have to pay for that (although I do offer a discount).
HOW DOES MY BOSS FIT IN?
He and I have discussed my side business several times. As long as I
read for my clients outside of my typical work hours, using my own email address, andI don’t share his name or the name
of the management company, he has
no objections.
Three times out of the hundreds of scripts I’ve read from private clients, I've passed the material onto my boss. Often, it’s not an issue of quality but quality combined with what I know he's looking for.
If your script falls into that category, I would reach out and ask you if you’re comfortable with my boss reading it. If he were to be sufficiently impressed with your script, it would be up to him to contact you. Anything from that point forward would be between you and him.
