Screenwriting : How I Accidentally Wrote a Great Script for Breaking-in without writing a good pilot for a TV show -- Tony Tost by JJ Hillard

https://practical.substack.com/p/how-i-accidentally-wrote-a-great "That's why I say: if 100 out of 100 industry readers think your script is professional quality, you probably won't break in. But if 3 out of 100 industry readers think your script is the best thing they've read all year, then you've got a really great chance at breaking in. And it doesn't matter what the other 97 readers think." "In almost all of my industry meetings, the unspoken question hanging over me as a writer is this: am I someone who the other person can hire in the future to adapt some property they control?" "As a rule of thumb, when you're breaking in, you probably want to do one of two things in your breaking-in script: 1. Find a unique way to tell a time-tested type of story. (TRUE DETECTIVE, etc) 2. Tell a unique story in a simple, direct voice. (LOST, etc)" "If you're having trouble getting traction with your breaking-in script, I'd consider trying to answer these two questions: What's a genre or archetypal story that you love that you could provide a unique spin on? What are the unique elements of your background and/or identity and/or life experiences that would make industry insiders curious about you?"