Twitter Rant: Mike Sweeney on Focusing on the Quality of Your Spec Scripts, Not the Quantity

Earlier this week, screenwriter Mike Sweeney went on a Twitter rant that I thought definitely deserved to be highlighted and saved in the blog’s archives as it speaks to a crucially important issue for anyone trying to break into the business via a spec script. Mike tweets of which he knows: He co-wrote (along with Nick Creature) the spec script “The Mayor of Shark City,” a story of the making of Steven Spielberg’s Jaws. Their script made the 2013 Black List.

Mike’s Twitter rant is reprinted here by permission:

https://twitter.com/Courier12/status/562420972343402496

(This will not be a @HIGHzurrer quality rant, so as Westley says, get used to disappointment.)

A few months ago, I was speaking to a writer struggling to break through and frustrated that he’d written so many specs with no bites…

He’d written ten specs over a couple years, all “cool” ideas, shipping them out fast, moving on to new ideas when he didn’t get traction…

Simple math would tell you he wasn’t investing a lot of time in each of these scripts.

He was the kind of person who’d get major notes on structure but then make a few dialogue changes within a couple scenes and call it good…

Still, he was determined that his odds were better having more material out in the marketplace because something had to stick…

I’m going to tell you what I told him…

It’s important for writers trying to break in to understand the difference between generating material and cranking out specs like widgets.

Churning out specs at the speed of thought and shipping them off means that it’s physically impossible to invest a lot of time in each one.

https://twitter.com/Courier12/status/562422064351416320

https://twitter.com/Courier12/status/562422184740536320

I’m basing this on personal experience and the experience of people I have known who have had major breakthroughs in the last year or two.

Yes, it’s key to have more than one arrow in your quiver. But you want arrows that shoot straight and true rather than splinter on contact.

https://twitter.com/Courier12/status/562422451968032771

(Notice that I put character first in that sentence.)

Because I will ALSO tell you this: Those same people I know who broke through in the last year? They didn’t do it with 4Q tentpole specs.

They did it with scripts that were strong in CHARACTER above all else.

Despite what many concept-uber-alles “gurus” may tell you (“REINVENT A FAIRY TALE!”), good character work *will* make you stand out.

I can tell you that most of the open jobs I have gone in to pitch on have had a common requirement: “The characters need to be stronger.”

https://twitter.com/Courier12/status/562423010963906561

That’s not to say you will *get* work, so don’t misquote me. There is no certainty when it comes to landing a job in this town.

But you *will* find the doors to those jobs opening up so that you get those opportunities.

On the other hand, being a spec monkey who places quantity over quality will get you two things…

A lot of free water bottles and vague promises of “We’ll work together on something.”

(You will probably get that a lot even with a great script, but one that barely passes the acid test will never get you more.)

Remember, it’s a long game. Much longer than you think it will be. Go forth and do all writers proud.

I agree with everything Mike says in this Twitter rant. Most scripts I read that don’t come up to the standard of what it takes to make it in Hollywood are undercooked. The writer could have spent more time, in some cases a lot more time working with and developing their characters (especially) and as a result found new and interesting plot possibilities.

Again my mantra: Start with character. End with character. In between, find the story.

Follow Mike on Twitter: @Courier12. Also his writing partner Nick Creature: @CreatureAmongUs.

Mike and Nick are currently at work on a graphic novel adaptation.

Mike and his writing partner Nick Creature (@CreatureAmongUs) landed on the 2013 Black List with their script THE MAYOR OF SHARK CITY, , and the two are currently at work on a graphic novel adaptation.

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