09: Best Advice For Christmas Screenwriters

Seasoned professionals in the Christmas movie industry offer crucial advice for screenwriters.

Insights include the necessity of aligning scripts with market demands and the importance of acknowledging and pursuing one’s writing ambitions without delay. Emphasizing the value of a robust work ethic for the swift establishment, contributors also stress the benefits of creating passive income streams and understanding the enduring nature of a screenwriting career.

Additionally, the conversation revolves around advocating for innovative storytelling within the Christmas genre and maintaining realistic expectations while fostering self-compassion on the journey to becoming a successful screenwriter. These diverse perspectives provide an invaluable roadmap for navigating the complexities of the Christmas movie screenwriting industry.

Chapters

0:00:00 Introducing the Christmas Movie Screenwriter Podcast,

Episode 9
0:01:20 Best Advice of 2023: Writing for the Market
0:02:09 Breaking into the Film and TV Industry
0:03:36 Independent Films: A Path to Building a Career
0:04:30 Jennifer Snow: Stop Wasting Time, Embrace Your Calling
0:06:01 Charles Shyer: The Dangers of Saying No Too Often
0:06:13 Learning from past mistakes and being more conscious
0:07:10 The benefit of good work ethic and consistent writing
0:08:28 Being assertive and reading more scripts for success
0:09:26 Setting up passive income and embracing the long haul
0:14:13 Challenging the Christmas genre with innovative storytelling
0:16:40 Give yourself a break
0:18:18 Wrapping up 2023

[0:00] [Caryn] This is the Christmas Movie Screenwriter Podcast, episode number nine.

[0:11] Hello and welcome to the Christmas Movie Screenwriter Podcast. I’m your host, Caryn McCann. The Christmas Movie Screenwriter is a podcast about writing, producing, and selling Christmas movies. You can find any links mentioned on the podcast on my website.

Just go to www.christmasmoviescreenwriter.com and look for this episode, which is number nine. A quick few words about what I’m working on. If I finished a rewrite of a script that was a Christmas thriller, however, I think it’s better as a pure thriller. So I hope to start sending that out next month.

A Screenwriter’s Life

And then secondly, I am rewriting another Christmas script. Originally, it had a lot of action, but I think I’m going to lean into the more rom-com aspects, and I’m happy to say that’s going well. And lastly, out of the blue, I received a very nice review for another script of mine called Revenge of the Hungry Ghost, which at the moment is on a website called The Blacklist.

The reader had some very nice comments and said my script has lots of potential. And now this script, Revenge of the Hungry Ghost, does have a director and two stars attached, so I look forward to telling more people about that next year.

Best Advice of 2023: Writing for the Market

[1:20] In this episode, I collected the best advice of 2023 and compiled it into one episode. Here is the best advice of 2023.

[1:30] In this first episode, Scott Kirkpatrick, Executive Vice President of Co-Productions at Nicely Entertainment, discusses how writers need to pay attention to what the market wants. If you want to break into the industry, don’t waste time writing big, sweeping epics. Focus on what genres are in demand. Here is that segment.

[Scott Kirkpatrick] The first time I would say this, there’s a lot more creativity in them than I ever would have expected before I got into this space.

Screenwriters: How to Break into the Film and TV Industry

[2:09] When I was younger and I was getting into this industry, I wanted to do these big, epic, sweeping types of movies and such.

And then once I sort of realized where the real industry was and what the real projects that moved through the industry, I would go back to myself and just say this, like, if you want to break into the film and TV business.

[2:37] There are those big studio projects, yes, but they’re very, very, very hard to reach. And the barriers of entry, all the walls of barrier are so hard to break through. However, the majority of media that is getting produced, like the vast majority of it, is independent.

Screenwriters: Most jobs are Non-Union

A lot of it is non-union or minimal-union, we’ll say. And they’re very open to new ideas. they’re much more forgiving about like lack of experience in terms of like you don’t have a ton of titles to your name and like if you want to get your foot in the door at any point in your life but especially when you’re you know starting the independent space is fantastic and Christmas movies last year they produced 172 of them I mean that’s insane for like two and a half months of.

Screenwriters: Independent Films – A Path to Building a Career

[3:36] Program. 172 mostly non-union, mostly independent films, mostly under one, one and a half million dollars in budget. And a lot of those were written by people who have very minimal credit to their name.

So just by doing, I mean, just by looking at statistics, this space and independent media in general is the best way to sort of get your foot in the door and build a career. And a lot of younger people, myself included, waste a lot of time or will waste a lot of time trying to go after the wrong group to get their foot in the door.

Screenwriters – Strategies to sell your script

[Caryn] You can check out Scott’s episode entitled Expert Shares 6 Strategies to Sell Your Christmas Script. Scott also discusses the Christmas movie market, how writers can stand out from the competition, production logistics, and the importance of personal branding.

Jennifer Snow: Stop Wasting Time, Embrace Your Calling

[4:30] In the next segment, author and screenwriter Jennifer Snow discusses how she spent too much time avoiding her life calling to be a professional writer. She advises just to admit to yourself what you want and stop wasting time. Here is that segment.

[4:45] [Jennifer Snow] For detours off the path that I know is the right one, I tried everything to not be a writer. I’ll be honest. I’m halfway through a Ph.D. in neuroscience I’ve had a jillion different careers.

I’m only 42 and I think I’ve lived the lifetime of about 10 different people.  Just trying to avoid it and then I had my son.  And I was on maternity leave and I had some time. I thought I kept denying what I truly wanted to do.  I was active in writing and pitching books for years.

Screenwriters – Just Do It

And then I just kind of stopped and let everything else kind of take over. So at that moment, I was like, you know what, I’m just going to try to write a book and see if I can get it published.

And if I can, then I just got to, you know, just go with it and give in to what I, what I know I’ve always wanted to do. So I think I would ask my, you know, tell myself to stop wasting time and just get there fast.

[Caryn] You can check out Jennifer’s full episode, which is number two entitled Christmas Magic: Pro Tips for Script Originality.  Jennifer also discusses how to make your Christmas script more original and how Christmas movies with a bit of action are becoming popular.

Charles Shyer: The Dangers of Saying No Too Often

[6:01] In this next episode, producer, director, and industry vet, Charles Shire advises on the dangers of saying no too often. Here is that segment.

Screenwriters: Learn from past mistakes and be more conscious

[6:13] [Charles Shyer]  Well, I turned down a lot of stuff that I shouldn’t have turned down.

And I guess there was a kind of cockiness or an arrogance that I, you know, I didn’t have the humility that I have today. But then the business was much different back then, you know. Now it’s really hard to get stuff made. So I would be more conscious. I’d just be more careful about saying no.

[Caryn] You can check out Charles’s full episode, which is number three, Reel Renegade Breaks Christmas Movie Formula. Charles challenges the status quo, arguing that Christmas movies don’t have to be tied to the holiday season. Instead, they can stand on their own merits. In the next segment, screenwriter, director, and writing coach Paula Tiberius discusses the benefit of having a good work ethic, which will get you established a lot faster. Here is that segment.

Screenwriters: Develop a good work ethic and consistent writing

[7:10] [Paula Tiberius] Maybe don’t party so much. No, honestly.

[7:16] I feel like if I had my current work ethic back then, I think like, I feel like I’m finally at I’m 52 and I’m finally at the point where I have a ton of stuff in development and I have interest in things and it’s, and I feel like things are reaching a tipping point.

And I do like to think that perhaps if I had spent a little less time partying and a little or even just being more consistent like let’s say three hours a day in the chair writing I feel like maybe I could have been where I am now like 10 years ago, you know? You feel like you have forever.

[Caryn] But it’s also life experience I mean that comes through to your writing. You can check out Paula’s full episode which is number four, How to Make Your Christmas Script Stand Out. Paula explains your screenplay’s unique edge is the unusual characters and settings. She also discusses a new app to connect with romance writers and producers.

[8:20] In this next segment, screenwriter Samantha Herman suggests how being more assertive and reading more scripts pays huge dividends. Here is that segment.

Screenwriters: Be assertive and read more scripts for success

[8:28] [Samantha Herman] I was very shy, would not admit it, and would never show anyone my work. And so this business is not made for the timid. And I’ve kind of graduated into a more boisterous and more overt and assertive version of that.

But if I had done it sooner, maybe it would have gotten the ball rolling sooner.

So that’s what I would say. and also just read more scripts because I watch everything, but it’s different on the page. So I would have started that sooner as well.

[Caryn] You can check out Samantha’s full episode, which is number five, How 1 Conversation Launched a Screenwriting Career. In the next segment, screenwriter Eirene Donohue gives out-of-the-box advice on how writers should set up a passive income stream.

[9:19] Being prepared for the long haul and some good news about how being a screenwriter has no career expiration date. Here is that segment.

Screenwriters: Set up passive income and embrace the long haul

[9:26] [Eirene Donohue]  You sent me this question. I was saying, I was like, what advice would I give?

And there’s sort of two and the first leads into the second one. And the first one would be to invest in real estate. I wish I could go back and invest in real estate when I was younger and to have that type of financial asset would be incredible.

[9:58] If you can create, and not like real estate, but like, if you can, at some point before you embark on this career or while you’re doing it, create some level of passive income or another source of income that is not a full-time job, but that is, but can keep you floating in the very long, hard, dry patches, that would be amazing.

Amazing because when I you know through the years going you know I was before I did this I was a bartender. I taught English in Japan, was a nanny, and a tutor, and did freelance. I did all of those odd jobs.  Temped on Wall Street. All of those things.

A lot of those jobs can they’re great for the short term. But they can be hard sometimes because while you’re doing some of these jobs you don’t have time to write. Or it’s not enough we’re working so much that you never can get your work done.

Screenwriters: Consider starting an Online Business

And so if I could have, I don’t know, created some sort of website or servicing that I didn’t have to or that I was more of a like a side hustle, but that could come in handy when you’re financially strapped.

You know, luckily, when I had when I have had dry patches or things, my like I said, my husband has he’s a nurse. So he has a regular job with a steady paycheck that doesn’t quite keep us floating, but mostly.

[11:22] So I would say if you can invest in real estate.

[Caryn] That is a great answer.

[Eirene Donohue]  When you’re young, whatever you can do, just invest in real estate, get a rental property, and then you can just have that gaining value and renting it out and giving you some sort of income outside of writing.

Screenwriters: Think Long Haul

And that leads sort of to the second part of that strategy.  Just know that you are going to be in this for the long haul.  Or be in it for the long haul. It is not an overnight success – I’m suddenly a millionaire – I can do whatever I want the type of business.  Maybe that happens to some people. But even those people if you’re like in five years – you’re like where are they now?

It’s ups and downs, hits and misses, building connections and networks, stepping up that ladder, and sometimes falling. Then having to climb up again.

Screenwriters – your career doesn’t have an expiration date

It’s also not the type of career that has an end date that has an expiration date. You can write a script at 70. If it’s a good enough script, someone can buy it from you.  Know at any point in your life if you are still writing and still pursuing it and still going after it or you could start art. You just retired, you’re an empty nester or whatever. I’ve always wanted to write a screenplay. You can write a screenplay.

No Time Limit

[12:44] I can see how that with actors or certain careers, like, I got to do this now. I got to get in young and all those things. If I’m not a success by the time I’m 30, then forget it. You know, if anything, the more life experience you have, the more interesting your script is going to be. And the more material you have to bring to the world as a writer.

And so just be prepared for the fact that it’s you stick with it. You have to be persistent. You have to not let rejection get to you. It’s not personal. A lot of the time you just okay keep going. Keep writing and rewriting.

Screenwriters: Live an Interesting Life

Make sure you live an interesting life. If you’re not living an interesting life, that’s when it becomes generic and reductive. Because you’re writing the other Christmas movies you’ve watched.  Not because of your own interesting lived experiences or your friend’s experience or something you saw. It’s the material.  so make sure you live an interesting life.

[Caryn] You can check out Irene’s full episode, which is number six, Festive Freshness: Elevating Christmas Scripts. Eirene also discusses infusing your personal experiences into scripts for a unique perspective and ways writers can generate passive income.

In the next segment, producer, writer, and film exec at Hybrid, Peter Sullivan advises on the benefits of challenging the Christmas genre by using fresh, innovative storytelling. Here is that segment.

Screenwriters: Challenge the Christmas Genre

[14:14] [Peter Sullivan] Overall, I’d say I’m pretty proud of what I’ve done. There’s not a whole lot I would do differently because one of the things that I am most proud of is consistently breaking the mold over the years.

Starting with the first Hallmark movie I ever directed, Christmas Under Wraps that has become the cliché. But back then, it wasn’t.  We were at the forefront of that.

In a way that film had a lot of influence on that. But back then, it was new. It was different.

[15:04] Additionally, I did another movie for a lifetime that I still get a kick out of called Dear Secret Santa. Talk about outside the box. We were doing a Christmas movie about the theory of wormholes and time travel and alternate dimensions. We were doing Christmas movies about the multiverse before anyone knew what the multiverse was. This was 10 years ago.

[15:32] Almost 10 years ago, we were doing this movie. We were doing diversity and casting long before it became an industry mandate.  I’m very proud of the films that we’ve done over the years.  Pushing the envelope in different ways. I’ve done movies that were almost musicals, which is very unique and fun.

The Christmas genre is growing

And I’ve gone from a world where an executive said, we don’t want songs in our movie. Then did a movie that was almost a musical. I’ve seen this genre grow and expand.  So my advice to my younger self would be to continue to just continue to challenge the genre. Don’t become so complacent that your script just becomes mad-libs.

Screenwriters – Don’t be complacent

[16:40] A blank from big city blank. Opens a blank in a small town called blank. And falls in love with the blue-collar blank who helps her to overcome blank.

[Caryn] We’ve seen there, we’ve been there, done that, and got the t-shirt.

[Peter] Yeah, exactly.

[Caryn] You can check out Peter’s full episode, which is number seven, Differentiating Your Christmas Script. In this last segment, screenwriter Ansley Gordon advises that you shouldn’t set unrealistic expectations and to give yourself a break. Here is that segment.

[17:24] [Ansley Gordon] You’re doing great. I think I struggle with it. Wanting everything to happen perfectly right now. Like my first book, I was like, this has to be a New York Times bestseller. Thus, I needed to top the charts. It’s going to be the thing.

Go easy on Yourself

And then I started getting feedback on it. It was like, yeah, you’re writing strong. Your voice is really good, but this is kind of a simple book. We’d like to see something a little more heightened and elevated. I was ready to throw in the towel and be like, I’m the worst, you know? So I think being easier on yourself.

Also, everything doesn’t have to happen right now. You can enjoy your life a little bit. You can go buy pumpkins and walk to the coffee shop.

[Caryn] You can check out Ansley’s full episode, which is number eight, Brighten Christmas Scripts with Pop Culture. Ansley discusses how to get distributors to reveal what they want, plus how pop culture will make your script shine.

Screenwriters: Wrapping up 2023 

[18:18] Well, that wraps up 2023. Thank you for listening. To show your support, please give us a five-star rating wherever you get your podcasts. And please spread the word on your socials. The more folks that discover the podcast, the more experts we can attract to the show. So it’s a win-win for everybody.

Sign up to be notified of the launch of our membership website to connect writers, producers, sales agents, and distributors of heartwarming Christmas movies.

Sign up at ChristmasMovieScreenwriter.com. Thanks for listening. Bye.

HOST: Caryn McCann
Website:   https://christmasmoviescreenwriter.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChristmasMovieScreenwriter
X:  https://twitter.com/MerryScriptmas
LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/caryn-mccann-5718058/

GUEST: Scott Kirkpatrick Executive VP of Co-Productions & Distribution
Company: Nicely Entertainment
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottkirkpatrick310/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SKDistribution