Customer Reviews

The First Time I Got Paid For It : Writers' Tales From The Hollywood Trenches

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Maybe I missed the fine-print or something, but this book isn't what I was expecting, really, or what I was looking for. The book doesn't get three stars because it's bad -- it's not a bad book -- but because I think, well, the title is a sort of false advertising. When I picked up the book, I was expecting essays by successful writers about how they broke into the business of screenwriting ... inspirational-type stuff. Instead, what the book contains are stories about:

"The first time I ...

"... sold a tv-pilot after working for fifteen years as a staff-writer for a highly successful television show."

Or ...

"The first time I ...

"... adapted one of my highly sucessful stage plays into a screenplay."

And so on.

Many of the personal essays are interesting, some are funny, and the book is worth reading, if what you want to read are the kind of mildly amusing, sometimes hopeful essays contained in this book. If what you want is a book of essays by highly successful screenwriters about how the broke into the business, you'll find little (although some) of that here.

This book is a hoot! The tone of this compilation of short essays by Hollywood writers ranges from thoughtful to irreverent to downright hilarious. The title is somewhat of a misnomer since not all chapters tell about a writer's first sale. Chuck Lorre tells of the first time he was fired from a writing job (for defending a remake of "Beany and Cecil" from the eventual creator of "Ren and Stimpy.") Carl Reiner skips telling about his extensive television and screenwriting but focuses instead on the sale of his first novel. Delia Ephron covers the sale of several books as well as how she came to be a screenwriter. Peter Casey, already a successful television writer, relates the miraculous meeting when he and his partners pitched the idea for "Frasier." While these essays provide glimpses into the Hollywood machinery and a few of its gears, facts and advice are scarce. You won't learn how to navigate the "trenches" by reading this. Instead, you'll be entertained by the irony, good humor, and storytelling presented by this large group of talented writers. Because each piece lasts for only three or four pages, you can dip into this book for a few minutes at a time and read passages out of order. Don't skip any, though, because you might miss a gem.

For anyone who's ever wanted to get paid for it, you ought to read this book. Especially wonderful for those who follow the Who's Who of Hollywood writers, and how they struggled. The foreword by William Goldman is especially charming as is the closing anecdote by Steve Zaillian, which I found touching. Audrey Wells' tale is flippant and funny as is Pamela Gray's.

I'm a screenwriter. Not a big name, no big successful movies or TV shows yet, but I'm working on it. This book isn't the endless parade of "how I won the lottery in Hollywood" tales that some people want...but that's because it reflects the reality of a career in screenwriting.

Truth is you need skills AND luck AND connections. It's a tough gig, it really is. Million-dollar screenplay sales are very rare these days. Only about 5% of the scripts produced bewteen 2000 and 2004 were written "on spec" (that is, a screenplay some writer sat down & created, then turned around and sold as a completed piece of work). Most work is done as a "hired hand" in one form or another. War stories like these are a useful reality check for anyone thinking about taking up the career. If you LOVE to write, it can be a great job. If you want to get rich, buy lottery tickets, your odds are better.

Also check out Wordplayer.com and SamAndJimGoToHollywood.com for realistic tales of struggle.

Very spotty. Some good pieces in here that offer nice anecdotes and wisdom, and a LOT of worthless filler that offers pretty much nothing. Doesn't offer near the level of insight I had hoped for and expected, and was even pretty boring for gossip. With the exception of six or seven excellent essay, it's a bunch of writers who repeat the same story over and over again: "I used to not get a lot of writing work, then a friend helped get me a job, and now I write a lot."

Yawn. Save your money.

One of the things I'd like to do in my life is write a screenplay. I haven't actually done it yet, and I have no idea what the process is like. But this book was a very interesting read. It has given me a renewed sense of hope. Some of the writers' stories in this book are like fairy tales to the hopeful screenwriters, and some of the stories show the reality to us. Reading these has helped me learn what to expect--because I understand that most of these writers were lucky, and that's a lot of what it takes to make it in Hollywood. Let's hope I have it.

Also, I must point out that the forward by William Goldman was worth the price of the book all by itself. I thought I was going to die laughing. I think I read the whole thing out loud to my roommate.

All in all, this is a wonderful book, with many memorable and hopeful stories.