Screenwriting : Network As You Write by Maurice Vaughan

This is so important! Thank you for sharing, Maurice Vaughan! You should always be networking, at every stage. Building relationships can always help, both creatively and to make you better prepared for handling the business side of things. People need support, collaboration, community, mentorship, etc.

It's always helpful to join a writers group where you read scripts weekly and give notes to each other. Practicing giving notes and contextualizing what works or doesn't work for you in other's scripts helps your writing so much, while hearing how others give notes and contextualize other's works adds so much perspective and general ideas of how others think or may interpret different styles of writing. Then, when you have your work ready, you have a group of people you mainly can trust and you get where they're coming from when they provide feedback. Plus you get to make friends along the way! There's a couple great forums on Discord that have weekly writers groups where I've met lots of new friends and networked while i worked

You're welcome, Ashley Renee Smith. You're right. I see networking as building relationships/making friends/hanging out. That makes it easier to do.

Great idea about joining a writers' group, Pat Alexander. Like the Writers' Cafes and Coverage Reports in Stage 32's Writers' Room. I've been trying to attend more Cafes and Reports. Trying to work them into my schedule.

Great tip! I’ll be checking out this link tonight! Thank you for sharing.

You're welcome, Candina Ann.

If anyone wants to jump in to the writers group I run, we meet on Zoom every other Tuesday, 6:30 pm Eastern time. Any skill level welcome! Https://rwwny.org

Great tip

Thank you Maurice Vaughan

Essential to start as early as you can. Networking is like planting seeds, you can't expect results overnight.

Thanks for the invite, Mike Boas.

Thanks, Jason Boyer.

You're welcome, Mark Deuce.

Exactly, CJ Walley. And a lot of times we don't have to mention our projects when networking. People we network with will just ask us about our projects.

Seems folks who actually work/make $ never talk about what they're working on. All hush hush. Backroom chatter until contracts are officially signed. This writer I follow on twitter was publicly looking for a job for months but this week he retweeted a deadline article about a tv series in production, and he said he's been on the project for weeks & he can talk about show now. Lol.

I dont know how ppl network without saying what they working on while secretly working.

It's easy to network without saying what we're working on, Dan MaxXx. The key is to not discuss projects and talk about other things instead (movies, sports, experience, industry stories, past projects, life, etc.).

It's so common in the industry, that most people respect the confidentiality Dan MaxXx. Even with my friends, we'll often say the details we can and omit the ones we can't. Such as, "I'll be working on an HBO project for the next 6 weeks, I can't wait to tell you all about it when I can." or "I'm developing a new project with a bestselling author that I'm really excited about. I hope it gets to a stage where I can share the book with you all." Maybe even, "We're talking to a GREAT actress for a role in the film we're developing. I hope we can attach her so that I can tell you who. You're all going to freak out!" It's a way that we can connect and share what's going on in our lives, without saying anything that can get us into trouble.

I like to communicate with fellow screenwriters but I am not very good at networking. I guess it is because I am not really trying to meet people to sell a screenplay or get hired and I don't like to talk about what project I am working on. However I do understand why some other other people find it worth their time so each to their own.

Dan Guardino, you don't have to look at networking as a means to an end. It's a good thing that you're not interested in connecting just to sell something or get a job. Networking when done right is about building a relationship. Full stop. It's about making connections with people who have similar interests. If that naturally leads to something over time, then that's a great thing. But it shouldn't be the reason for initiating a conversation with someone. People want to work with their friends, not someone who talks to them because they need something.

Dan MaxXx, it's definitely all part of the game. I don't like to talk about anything until it's a done deal because you can pretty much guarantee you'll jinx it.

I watched someone on Facebook brag about going to Hollywood to work with some huge stars and it was obvious he was being drawn into something that was total BS. When none of it materialised, the poor guy ended up deleting his account through shame.

CJ Walley 1000% agree. Generally ppl who talk openly about what they doing are not making income.

Dan MaxXx, it certainly shows who the braggarts are too. The guy in question was constantly blowing his own trumpet and went out the way to tell me of his 'success' when I'd been publicly saying I was going through some bad stuff at the time.

This all said, I do know producers/directors who feel they have to have a project lined up to talk about should they be doing any interviews. Something that's already out there on IMDb with them credited. I don't know exactly where that all stems from but the fear of not appearing to be working is real.

Thanks for sharing....You are Hooping right now....

Great Advice Maurice Vaughan

You're welcome, Miquiel Banks. NBA level hooping?

Thanks, Mark Deuce.