How I Got Agents Chasing After Me Like Lusty Dogs

by David Hoag. "This was not all by some lucky chance. It was the result of about 18 months of very careful planning and plotting on my part. I designed a plan for how I could succeed.

First, and absolutely foremost, you have to have a script that everybody wants, like Chuck Pogue said in the other message. You have to have talent to do that. A great script isn’t an accident. My script was unlike anything else out there. How do I know this? I read a lot. I read any script I could get my hands on. I read tracking reports, development lists, news articles, you name it. I knew a lot of what was already in the Hollywood caldron. I read for a producer for about 8 months. I didn’t do it for the money (although I got paid). I did it to understand the business.

I don’t mean to sound presumptive, but my script was very good. How do I know this? Many people told me. It won several awards. It got me an agent. It got set up. It got me a lot of work. It still gets me work. I recently talked to a well-known director who read the script six years ago. He still remembered scenes and lines of dialogue. So much that’s out there is so much alike. Mine was so different than all of that; people can still remember the odd title and the odd story still today – better than I can, often.

Second, I was obsessed with succeeding. I did everything I possibly could to succeed that was lawful... Being obsessive about succeeding as a screenwriter has to have that same intensity. I became that obsessive. It was all I thought about. I made many sacrifices in my personal life to do this.

Third, I did a lot of research before I started on the gameboard. I read the trades every day. I read the entertainment pages of the LA Times, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times. I read entertainment magazines and trade journals. I read books about Hollywood. And I took careful notes. I kept detailed databases about studio executives, producers, writers, directors, actors, and agents. I knew who was doing what. I knew who was helping new writers. I knew who was writer friendly. I identified who could help me in the future. Now all of this kind of thing can be found for free on the Internet!

Fourth, I got people to know me and like me without them knowing I wanted them to read my screenplay. When I wanted a smart, solid quote from a studio executive on a topic, I turned to my databases. The databases of nice, writer-friendly Hollywood people I had built from my research. I made them look good in a very honest way. They had reason to like me. It was very easy to get these people on the phone.

Fifth, I told people “no” when they asked to read my script... Do you know what the power of “no” is to someone who is in the business of saying “no” to everyone? When you say “no,” that makes them want it all the more." Like he said, when I finish my scripts to my satisfaction, they will open the doors, not getting an agent, or a deal, or money. Getting an agent, or a deal, is just another beginning of long entertainment career. You game?