ASK & DISCUSS INDEX

11 years, 1 month ago - Andreas Lambis

What is the novel?

10 years, 11 months ago - Magnus Wake

Hi Everyone,

Apologies for the slow response. I think my notifications must be turned off as I've managed to miss all this. Thanks for all the thoughts. I'm now talking to some writers with a view to accessing some dev. money from Creative Scotland/England.

Just for some information:
What genre? Thriller
What book? First and Only by Peter Flannery (available on Amazon)
How well known is the book and author? Over 60k downloads via Amazon Approx 500 reviews majority 5 stars
Format (feature film/ TV movie etc)
Production company interest: Encaptivate
Development finance in place or planned: Corwdfunding in pipeline, applications to BFI etc and co-production planned
Timetable: Filming Summer/Autumn 2015
Budget: In the region of £1.5m
Proposed payment: dependant on xp and what the individuals expectations are (negotiable!)

More info at www.firstandonlymovie.com

So that's where I am. A huge thank you for all the thoughts and feedback. The door is still open as well so do get in touch if you want to.

All the best

Magnus

11 years, 2 months ago - Richard Anthony Dunford

The calibre of the writer you can recruit to adapt this novel will depend on the size of the fee you can pay.

If there’s no upfront fee the chances of hiring a successful writer, professional or even semi pro are gonna be slim to none.
Taking on a novel adaptation is a big undertaking with a big time commitment but you might be able to find a writer just starting out who’s willing to do it on a deferred fee by posting ads somewhere like here on SP or mandy or something.

11 years, 2 months ago - Vasco de Sousa

Magnus,

You have a few options.

Option 1. Hire a high powered writer, often through contacting their agent. Make sure the approach is super-professional. Cost: approximately 2 million dollars, down to 500k. (approx. 1.2 million pounds.) Some writers to contact: http://time.com/2815729/book-to-movie-adaptations-screenwriters/ or, simply look on the credits of adaptations you like.

Option 2. Hire a medium weight writer who has done television or radio adaptations. Price: approx £ 150,000 UKP

Option 3. Make a deal with a hungry writer who has talent that you admire, but who hasn't proven themselves yet. Price: approx. £50,000. Read some sample scripts online until you find a good one, and then make sure to offer a sum that's not insulting and is enough to live on for the duration of the work.

Option 4. Go with some desperate kid who owns final draft, hiring them through Mandy or Freelancer.com or other online places where wannabes go. If they fail, hire another one for cheap. Then complain about how bad the script is. Price: £10,000 up to 30,000.

If you hire me, the first thing I'll ask is to know what the book is and see if I want to adapt it. If someone is so desperate for work that they'd adapt anything, that's a warning sign. Make sure the writer you get actually likes the source material.

Cheers,
Vasco

http://ptara.com

11 years, 2 months ago - Stephen Potts

Magnus, Bob and Marlom have already said it, but it bears repeating. Adaptation is a good way into the screenwriting world, and not enough starting screenwriters pursue it. There may be writers early in their career who ae prepared to work on spec for a deferred fee (ie for nothing), in the hope that the film gets made and they get payment and/or a credit. But only 5-10% of optioned books ever hit the screen, and half the films produced don't get distribution - so it's a gamble for the writer, which they can perhaps justify as part of learning the craft. However you want a writer who is not just experieinced, but experienced in the specific genre. This means they will have done most of their learning already, and they will be looking for payment. How much? Depends on their record, their profile, and the budget for the proposed film. Rough rule of thumb: take the estimated budget (say £1million). Assign 2.5 % (£25,000) to the author of the book, another 2.5% to the screenwriter. The author might expect 10% of that figure (£2,500) as an option fee, securing the rights for 18 months or so. The screenwriter, via their agent, would normally expect staged payments of X on signature, Y on commissioning a treatment, Y on delivering the treatment, Z on commissioning the first draft, Z on delivering it, etc. You can negotiate these sums, but the more eperienced the writer the higher they will be, especially if you are approaching them, rather than the other way round. The total should be near the £25000 cut of the budget.
You can find writers via Shooting People, The Writers Guild of Great Britain and other resources, but you need to be prepared for questions:
What genre?
What book?
How well known is the book and author?
Format (feature film/ TV movie etc)
Production company interest
Development finance in place or planned
Timetable
Budget
Proposed payment

You may already have these answers - if so you stand a chance in attaching a writer . If not, you need to work on them or rethink the level of experience you seek. Good luck.

Stephen Potts

www.stephenpotts.net

11 years, 2 months ago - Nicole Behrens

there are certainly writers that do work for free but if u want a good one u have to offer payment. cuz lets be honest we writer dont want to starve while putting our all into writting a script. ;)

11 years, 2 months ago - Marlom Tander

Are you offering decent money?

If so, talk to agents.

If not, adjust your requirements.

11 years, 2 months ago - Bob Eckhard

Magnus, you need to be more specific in everything. If you intend this as an advert to find a writer through SP then you must state it for what it is. If you are looking for a writer, is there payment or a guarantee that the film will be produced and/or writing/production credits at the end of it - after all, you are asking someone to read the novel and then spend time selecting key moments within that which they then have to fit into a screenplay structure and write and redraft. Frankly, optioning before you have a writer in mind is risky as the clock is ticking as time is already running out so state the genre, the reward and hope you get lucky.