Why Our Pro Reviews Are Interest-based vs. Force-Fed
We strongly recommend writers first exchange feedback with other members on the site. This is a great way to get an idea of where your script ranks among other scripts in the industry, what changes you need to make, and if it is worth your time and money to pay for a Pro Review.
In our system after you pay for a Pro Review, your script will be added to the Pro Reviewer Queue. This is a script library where all of our Pro Reviewers can then search for a script they would like to read and get paid for reviewing. This means that your script may not be picked up right away, even though you have paid for a Pro Review.
Normally, in a paid feedback system a reviewer would be force fed a script to review. This allows for quicker turnaround time and more scripts reviewed overall. Initially you would think that’s a good thing. But after much thought and consideration, we decided to do pro reviews differently. You may be asking why? Our answer is:
As always, for the sake of the writer.
As writers ourselves, we have met several industry pros and gatekeepers (their assistants), that we would not want to review our script. Not because we don’t think our script is good, or because we have anything against the pro, but because we know that our script’s genre or style would not be of interest to that person. Whenever it’s possible, it is best for your script to be reviewed by someone who actually has interest in it.
For example
If you have written a romantic comedy, you don’t want a pro to review it who’s only interest is in horror. They will probably have several notes about how the happy ending was boring and there were no monsters involved. That is of course an over exaggeration, but what we do know is that you as a writer want the best chance for your script.
The best for your script is for it to be read by someone who is interested in your script’s specific genres or was intrigued by your logline. If instead your romantic comedy is reviewed by someone who loves rom coms, they are more likely to enjoy it, give you helpful feedback since they are fans of that genre, and are more likely to recommend it.
What does this mean then if they don’t pick up your script?
If the Pros in our system are not choosing to read your script, this can tell you a few things.
You may need to rewrite your logline.
Your logline is one of the most important ways to pitch your script. The goal of a logline is literally to catch someone’s attention. So, if you are not catching their attention with your logline you might want to consider punching it up. You want it to be short and to the point. But also paint a picture in the person’s mind that answers the simple question: What’s this script about?
The Pros may not be interested in your idea.
You might want to relook at whether or not your idea is as strong as you thought. Also, if it is a marketable idea. We recommend you ask a few fellow writers you trust to take a look at your script’s logline and idea to see what they think. If they think it’s strong maybe give it a little more time. If they don’t think it’s strong then, we recommend you submit a different script in its place.
You may want to submit a different script.
Sometimes all it takes is for an idea to be seen at the right time. If you have another script available, we recommend submitting that script instead for a Pro Review. See if it receives more interest than the script you currently have in the system.
What to do if it’s been a few weeks and your script still hasn’t been picked up?
If you don’t want to do one of the suggestions above, let us know! We will happily reimburse you for the cost of your Pro Review.
