The business of selling a script is complicated. Query letters, and whether or not to send them, continue to be one of the most debated topics within the screenwriting community, even among those who already know how to sell a script. Some teachers and industry experts will tell beginning writers that sending query letters is an effective strategy, and some will say don’t even advise wasting your time, since producers won’t read them. The truth of the matter, as with most things in life, lies somewhere in between these two extremes.
If you know how to sell a script, you already know that the more important the person, the less likely they are to read a letter. If you’re trying to get in direct contact with a major studio director, or even a development executive at a large studio, there’s a good chance they won’t read your query letter. However, if you find an executive at a smaller production company, you have a much better chance of having an industry insider read your query letter and accompanying script. The trick here is finding producers who read the cards, and of course that takes time and research to find out.
If you’re selling a script, then your query letter should essentially answer four basic questions:
Do you have a commercially viable project that people would be willing to pay to see?
Is this person a skilled writer?
Do they understand how the business of making movies works?
Does this project fit the market in which the producer is actively participating at the time?
Most query letters are poorly written, so one of the best ways to know how to sell a script is to make sure yours isn’t, as it will stand out on quality alone. Here are a couple of things to keep in mind when constructing your query letter so that you present yourself as a professional:
Make sure you try to get your reader’s attention in the first sentence of the letter.
Don’t overdo your welcome: make the letter as precise as possible.
Please provide a brief one or two sentence biography about yourself and your previous work.
Make sure your contact information is clearly written and easy to find.