Trending Lounge Discussions

That’s a powerful concept it immediately pulls you into both the emotional and philosophical side of storytelling.

The idea of a machine discovering (or simulating) a “heart” opens the door to some really deep questions about identity, consciousness, and what it truly means to feel.

The real hook, in my opinion, is how you reveal that transformation what moments make the audience question whether it’s programming or something more human.

I’d love to explore this further with you and help shape it into a story that truly resonates on both an emotional and cinematic level.

Only if the machines are made by someone with a heart themselves.

How did the live pitch go?

Not as well as I would have liked. It was my first live pitch. She was gracious and smiled. She gave me some constructive criticism at the end. I was too detailed. She wanted more of a synopsis and what the protagonist's goal was. I think I got everything I needed in, but not smoothly. I learned a lot just listening to her.

Well, congrats on getting the first one in!

Congrats on getting the first live pitch in. Even if it didn't go as well as you would've liked, you can look at it as a learning experience. Hope you get the opportunity to do more pitches in the future!

This one was SO GOOD! I loved it! Highly recommend

Thanks Raven Riley I hope you have the best week! x

Hello Francesca,

Thank you for sharing your work — it’s great to see a team focused on bringing projects to international audiences.

Dubbing and localization play a key role in expanding a story’s global reach, especially within today’s streaming landscape, and I find that aspect of the industry very compelling.

I’m currently developing projects with an international scope, so I would definitely be interested in exploring potential collaboration opportunities at the right stage.

Let’s stay connected — I’d be glad to continue this conversation as things evolve.

Wishing you and your team continued success.

Best regards,

Ana Cristina

Hi Ana Cristina, it sounds good, let's keep in touch for future need and cooperation, have a stunning time, kind rgds, Francesca

Hi Francesca,

Thank you! I really appreciate it and look forward to staying in touch for future opportunities and collaborations. Wishing you a wonderful trip!

Best regards,

Ana Cristina

Hi Chass, I saw your post about 'You Were Never Here' the 'Backrooms' inspiration is a really compelling angle for a novel. I'm an eCommerce developer who helps authors set up independent Shopify stores. Have you considered selling signed copies or digital bundles directly to your readers? It’s a great way to keep more of your royalties compared to the big retailers. Happy to share some ideas on how to set that up if you're interested

Michael Dzurak Appreciate it! The Backrooms has inspired some incredibly creative storytelling—it’s a great example of how a simple concept can evolve into something much deeper.

I completely agree, Chass! That evolution from a simple concept to something much deeper is exactly why 'You Were Never Here' has such high potential for a dedicated brand.

Because your work has that atmospheric, immersive 'Backrooms' vibe, you have a unique opportunity to offer exclusive digital bundles or limited-edition physical copies that generic retailers just can't showcase properly. I'd love to show you how a custom Shopify store could serve as a professional 'home' for your world while ensuring you keep more of your royalties. Happy to chat more if you're interested.

Hi Chen,

I really enjoyed reading about the origin of You Were Never Here that feeling of being lost in a space that should be familiar but isn’t… that’s a very specific kind of psychological unease, and you’ve built a strong concept around it. The mall-to-Backrooms transition, especially, is the kind of hook that should pull readers in fast.

I got curious and looked it up on Amazon to see how it’s being received and I noticed something interesting. There are little to no reviews at the moment.

From experience, that usually isn’t about the writing. it’s a visibility issue. The kind where a book has the right ingredients (and yours genuinely does), but it hasn’t yet triggered the signals Amazon relies on to start showing it to the right readers. So it ends up sitting in a kind of quiet limbo… which is ironic, given your theme.

What stood out to me is that your concept already aligns with audiences who actively look for this kind of psychological/spatial horror but without early traction (reviews, engagement, positioning), those readers simply never see it.

I’ve worked around this exact problem before helping authors shift from “invisible” to dis-coverable with a few targeted adjustments (nothing gimmicky, just aligning the book with how readers actually find and trust new work).

If you’re open to it, I’d be happy to share a couple of specific ideas tailored to your book no obligation, just a second set of eyes from someone who understands both the creative and the marketplace side.

Either way, I think you’re sitting on something that deserves more visibility than it currently has.

Best Regards,

Elara Wright

elarawrites133@gmail.com

I would take the word Backrooms out of the title/subtitle and marketing. The Backrooms video series is the creation of another person not associated with your work. A better term for the genre would be “liminal space.”

Nice to meet you here, Christian. Right now I'm juggling several projects. First and foremost one of my screenplays, The Tattered Book, has been picked up by a producer. It's in that nebulous phase of pre-production. Thankfully my producer (Mark Holmes--Holmestead Entertainment) is interested in having me take part in the pitching to investors. I am learning so much!

I just had an international facetime table-read for a different screenplay, Aunt Jane's Nieces, which went very well with solid feedback. The opinion was this should be made into a series.

How about you? What are you working on?

Greetings and Welcome, Christian A.

I am currently revising an adventure script. Tropical island, storms, danger, and romance.

My primary project now is a female-driven, feature adaptation of Mary Welsh Hemingway's autobiography. It is an epic project told through the eyes of a Yale doctoral student who has chosen Mary's book for her dissertation and finds that their life experiences correspond across time to the point they become companions at the intersections through magical realism.

yess

Greetings, Christian A.

I've completed the pilot episodes of the adaptation for the first four books in my series into the first season of a high-concept psychological sci-fi thriller TV series (20x60). Currently I'm awaiting the results of the review process for the requested materials and simultaneously continuing to work on a sequel to the book series with a new, large storyline, with the potential for a second season.

Hi Ken! Thank you for your service, both in the Army and during your long career in law enforcement. Relentless Valor sounds like a project with immense heart, and a 'Band of Brothers' style streaming series is exactly what audiences are craving right now.

I specialize in helping authors like you build the digital infrastructure needed to support a creative project of this scale. Since you are focusing on the writing and the vision, I’d love to help you with the 'Home Base' side of things so you can monetize the journey while you build it:

Patreon & Ko-fi Strategy: You have a lifetime of research, photos from battlefields, and stories from your law enforcement days. I can help you set up a platform where supporters pay a monthly fee to see your behind-the-scenes research, draft chapters, and script progress. This creates a revenue stream that funds the development of your screenplay.

Pitch Materials & Research: To get a streaming series made, you’ll eventually need a 'Series Bible' or a pitch deck. I can handle the deep research into target producers and streaming platforms that look for military-themed content, ensuring your work gets in front of the right eyes.

A Passion-First Partnership: I am so driven to see stories like yours told that I work on a 'success-first' basis. I don’t ask for a fee for my time, I only ask for a small budget to cover the essential digital tools (hosting, research software, etc.) needed to build your platform. When you thrive and succeed, then we can discuss my work, but for now, I just want to help you get this story to the screen.

You’ve spent a lifetime studying history; let’s make sure this next chapter of yours is the most successful one yet!

Hi Mary, In the course of my life I have found it more fruitful to have one on one chats. So, I can be reached at 513-502-2052, or colk8f90@gmail.com thanks much, stay safe, have a blessed day, Ken

For me, it's all about the plot, nothing but the plot. A story without a solid foundation is a stillborn story.

Who offers other opinions?

Hi Harold Ferré I am not understanding how your comment relates to the post. Can you explain how a bad plot makes you afraid you can't pull off playing your character?

Congrats Lori Peters .

Congratulations Lori!

Thank you all so much!!

Good job!

AWESOME!!!!

Nicely put.

So true. Structure is king, but sometimes overlooked even if the character, hook, concept etc “rock.” A script reader can pass on a script, even if it fits the producer’s remit, and is good on many levels. Problems, edits & changes down the line, are not cost effective. if the film were to be made.

Debbie Croysdale That’s a great point — especially around how much can slip through if the underlying structure isn’t doing its job early on.

Edits can refine, but they can’t always rebuild what wasn’t designed to hold in the first place.

That’s where I’ve been focusing more recently — trying to solve problems at the structural level before they show up later as “fixes”.

Appreciate you bringing that angle in.

Using flashbacks to add a few more episodes to a TV series is a particularly annoying trait.

As a generalization, that’s wrong. However, he may be responding to your implementation of flashbacks Maybe your FB scenes don’t inform the narrative well.

Each scene should have a purpose, and I think of flashbacks either answering a question set forth by the previous scene or asking a question that will be answered later.

I love the film Out of Sight, which uses flashback scenes to answer questions about character relationships and set up plot points — at the time we need to know information.

The original Highlander does this as well, revealing the exposition related to immortals a piece at a time.

Someone mentioned Godfather II, which I love, but that’s a bit different. That’s two stories being intercut, not a single narrative. There are thematic ties, but it’s not working the same way.

I believe some flashbacks are needed. You don’t have to get rid of all of them. Wish you luck with your script.

Flash backs, used as lazy writing to “simply inject” a flagging script fails, but I never dismiss them per sae. Flashbacks can work extremely well, in a well thought out script, particularly so in a non linear structure. Flashbacks range from simple to complex in nature. Classic vintage noirs can have dream sequences, or a narrator showing/telling backstories. Any genre can have a parallel narrative, two or more stories, where flashbacks serve different purposes. Eg; One story in the present & one in the past, double relationship line both past & present, to highlight disturbances, crises, or crucial time jumps, or a story in the present solves a mystery of the past. An above post gave a great example with Citizen Kane, the enigmatic outsider is dead, but little by little, the truth is uncovered by a detective asking questions of the living. Later, in Bridges of Madison County, flashbacks used letters to convey the past. Aside many more recent films, there are multiple TV serials where even simple flashbacks, add emotional beats & reveals.

Everyone has their own preferences, and I understand how frustrating or confusing it can be to get this kind of feedback. There are plenty of movies and tv shows that successfully use flashbacks: Memento, The Secret Life of David Gale, Arrow, and The 100 just to name a few.

I think the key is ask yourself these questions whenever you get feedback:

- What's the feedback under the feedback? What is this person trying to say to me?

E.G. if you reread your script, looking specifically at the flashbacks, are they organic? Are they fluid and sensical? Are they triggered by something? Are they seamless based on what happened right before? Or are they hard shifts without thoughtful transitions?

- Is this a taste preference or a craft issue?

Taste is a huge part of who we are as creatives, including readers and coverage professionals. It can be difficult to separate feedback between craft and taste. Some people will never like flashbacks. Others will be obsessed. But what matters is the craft feedback and being able to identify where you think the feedback is coming from will help you sort what's helpful.

Not all criticism is helpful. Sometimes, we need to take the harsh criticism to heart so we can grow. Part of our path as writers is learning what to absorb and what to release.

I have not Michael Dzurak. That’s one of those movies that I kick myself about and ask why I haven’t seen it yet.

Hard to believe that 2029 is only 3 years from now. Where are the flying cars?

Yes, and this is a fascinating part of our writing. We think we are simply writing fictional worlds, but somehow we are also describing something hidden inside our soul or deep within the subconscious mind. Leonardo Ramirez

Exactly Leonardo Ramirez, I like that theme especially. Do you think themes can affect the audience range of a project?

Well said and true Meriem Bouziani!

Absolutely Dwayne Williams 2! I also think that because of our uniqueness, we can hear the same theme differently.