ASK & DISCUSS INDEX

12 years, 8 months ago - Cherry Bennet

MIght be worth checking them out on Writer Beware website. There are quite a few scams involving editng fees highlighted there.

12 years, 8 months ago - Ed Griffiths

Hi Richard,

Purely subjectively and utterly cynically interpreted yup; this sounds like Scam-This-Hopeful-Limey.

Had they offered a list of three or four individuals or services they said they regarded as reliable, it might be legit. If they actually wanted to work with you nothing is stopping them from analyzing your script themselves towards possible development and in fact most agents do this in-house as a matter of course.

If you're going to pay money for a reader report, only pay someone with real industry experience and a track record that's verifiable.

And cultivate bitter super-tightfisted wariness!

12 years, 8 months ago - Peter Spencer

Yes, sounds like your management company are part of a scam - and sadly your 'well known industry guy' is too - and if I'd heard him say it I'd be telling everyone - there are enough people out there ripping off hapless writers as it is  - without you becoming part of the problem, if it was a big company that was ripping people off - a bank, a retailer, a website, an energy company, you'd probably be warning everyone  without any hesitation. And if he's a con artist and you're good he can't harm your career - don't forget the people who pay him to read scripts, the production companies, are being ripped of too,  if he reads for them, they would want to know, and like I said, if you're good he can't hurt you - script readers won't be 'ganging up' to get back at you.

This will sound cynical but I do admire writers like you whose work is so good you don't need professional feedback - or do you rely on on amateur feedback - people who don't read scripts? I hope you're not going to reply that you listen to producers or directors - who,  A: don't necessarily know about story because they don't read scripts, and will have restricted insight or B: you use 'friends' for feedback - not necessarily a bad thing if your friends are experienced writers too.

There are lots of experienced and reputable script consultants out there - so I would say don't tar them all with the same brush - Hayley Mackenzie, Lucy Hay, Pippa Best all very reputable to name three, in the states I have used Pilar Alessandra a few times because A: she doesn't provide 'notes' as such but sits down on skype and goes through the script page by page and asks  great questions, and B: having worked at Amblin and  Dreamworks, she's read thousands of scripts and probably forgotten more than I know - and if she was good enough for Spielberg that's good enough for me. And you. She won't be costing you $200 though....And why should a good and reputable reader be cheap - they've paid their dues, their work is worth something. I don't work for
free.

12 years, 8 months ago - Franz von Habsburg FBKS MSc

Congrats on the book. I have only ever had someone look at a script for a fee
many years ago when they charged 50p per page. They had hard copy which
was returned with pencil marks all over it plus a neat typed review, so was very genuine. Whilst on the script subject, anyone got anything to say about Jerrol LeBaron's InkTip ?