Customer Reviews

The Savvy Screenwriter : How To Sell Your Screenplay (And Yourself) Without Selling Out!

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Wonder why all reviews are done within a week of each other Oct-November 2000?

Susan Kouguell's book is a superb resource! In rich detail, she leads the reader through the process of marketing one's work, mapping out the tasks and the people involved. Her book is wonderfully balanced with empathy for the writer's vulnerabilities and clarity about the industry's expectations. Ms. Kouguell teaches difficult lessons in a gentle way, leaving the reader to feel hopeful and informed. I unequivocally recommend this book to any writer who is taking that brave step of putting his or her work out into the world.

Thomas Moore Winner, Edward Albee Foundation, Blue Mountain Foundation

How about everything you ever wanted to know about selling your screenplay in one fantastic book. Sound too good to be true? It IS too good to be true and it exists! THE SAVVY SCREENWRITER is clear, concise, helpful, engaging, and *humourous. Throughout, Kouguell recounts her own adventures during her novice days in the business. Biblical in its wisdom, reading the THE SAVVY SCREENWRITER is akin to having someone in the biz reaching out, taking your hand, and leading you through what can seem like (and IS) a daunting process. Daunting no more, enigmatic no more, Susan Kouguell demystifies the scary endeavor of breaking into the business by providing the tools, savvy, and "know how" necessary to succeed. Thank God for this resource. I can't recommend it enough.

This is a how-to book that is as informative as it is entertaining. There are bookshelves full of screenwriting how-to books, but this rare volume tells you how to market and sell yours. It's an insider guide to Hollywood and off-Hollywood that will save you the pain of years of trial and error. Kouguell, an experienced screenwriter and script doctor, has drawn on her own experience, as well as the expertise of players from Miramax to Paramount, to show you how to polish your submission, write a killer query letter, hone your synopsis and pitch, pitch, pitch. Screenwriters: Read this book before you write another word!

I was fortunate enough to take one of Susan's screenwriting classes. Although I would've liked to handcuff her to my computer so as to solve all my screenwriting problems, I couldn't. Enter the SAVVY SCREENWRITER. Now Susan is constantly with me, to answer questions on everything to do with the screenwriting business. Some books focus on the screenplay alone, others on getting into the business. However, very few combine both in an efficient way, and share personal anecdotes. These are especially important if you are an industry virgin, and haven't a clue about what's going on. This book warns you about the perils of the business, and also tells you how to navigate its seas. The SAVVY SCREENWRITER is also an enjoyable read. It is witty, humorous and never sleep-inducing. I would recommend it highly for all screenwriters, whether amateurs or veterans. It is a versatile book that will appeal to both, and both will learn much from it.

The Essential Tool for the Screenwriter Ms. Susan Kouguell is that rare and invaluable combination of a brilliant writer and the experienced producer of films. Often, the people in the film industry who have her knowledge do not have the skill to convey it clearly through the written word. Others, who are more able writers lack her broad experience in the world of screenwriting and film production, and therefore lack her detailed understanding of the intricacies and pitfalls inherent in the long and complex path of the screenwriting and selling process. In the Savvy Screenwriter, Ms. Kouguell has succeeded in explaining these intricacies and pitfalls down to the smallest detail and it is usually these details, so easily overlooked by both the novice and even experienced screenwriters, that can make the difference between a screenplay that gets sold and one that never sees the light of day. Anyone who has chosen this path as his or her profession owes a great debt to Ms. Kouguell for her major contribution to alleviating some of the frustration and overwhelming disappointment that is inevitable in this tantalizing and potentially rewarding field. Review by Duffie Bart, Screenwriter

My screenplay, "Chloe" has made the quarterfinals in the 2000 Nicholls Fellowship Screenwriting Contest. Perhaps, if I had the "Savvy Screenwriter:..." when I wrote "Chloe", I would be one of the five finalists. Hopefully, next year I'll accomplish this goal with "Savvy..." by my side.

Elizabeth Mantis