Do You Want To Write For Creative Screenwriting Magazine?

Do You Want To Write For Creative Screenwriting Magazine?
An Invitation From The Editors To Pitch Article Ideas

We welcome article pitches and ideas. To pitch an article to us, please read the instructions on this page, especially what we want and don't want, and then please fill out the "Pitch An Article" form.

Do not email article pitch ideas to any of our editors unless specifically requested! Unsolicited pitches emailed directly to editors will be deleted; this form is the way to pitch and be considered. The reasons we use this form are discussed at the bottom of the page.

Have the following ready to cut and paste before you start to pitch an article:
A synopsis/synopses of the article you are pitching.

The lead paragraph of your article based on the facts as you know them today or what you think they are. The facts may change as you research, of course. We're looking for adherence to our style and ability to write a magazine lead paragraph. NOTE: in the "lead paragraph" field of the form, do not write anything other than the lead paragraph. Do not give us a note or an explanation -- put only the lead paragraph itself in this field.

Your bio, in our style, as it would appear on our "Contributors" page. (Download an issue below and look at the format; do not give us a 200-word bio.)

A working knowledge of our magazine and the types of articles we seek, as outlined below.
You'll need an issue or two of the magazine for guidance on our style. You can download these three issues:

November-December, 2008 issue
January-February 2009 issue
January-February 2008 issue

Read the contract summary and the terms under which you are pitching an idea. Don't submit if you don't understand or if you don't agree with the pitching terms.


Kinds Of Articles We Want And Don't Want: Please Read Carefully

We urge you to first study the content of our magazine for the kinds and quality of information we seek.

We DO Want These Kinds Of Articles:

More "Know Your Show" Articles: We want more articles on what individual TV shows want and how to scope them out and spec them. Important: study prior "Know Your Show" articles in our Jan-Feb. 2008 and Jan-Feb 2009 issues so you know what we want.

Retro Features On Well-Written Classics And Their Writers. Examples: we have run retrospective articles on the writing of "The Fisher King," "American Graffitti, " "Silence of the Lambs," "A Fish Called Wanda," "Back to The Future," "Raiders of the Lost Ark," and the original "King Kong." Especially useful: a retro piece on a prior great work by a writer whose latest is about to be released.

How-To Articles 1: anything about the art, craft, business, and legal issues of screenwriting and the screenwriting life. Caveat #1: it must be a new subject we haven't covered or a new angle or useful expansion on what we have covered. Caveat #2: You will need solid credentials or you must interview someone with solid credentials for a how-to piece.

How-to Articles 2: excerpts from your book. Important: see the "Excerpts from your book" sections of the writer contract.

People & News Articles ("The Buzz," etc.): news about screenwriting and writers, events, what people are talking about. New ways to gain exposure and sell. "Breaking in" articles.

Mini Book Reviews: A paragraph on each of a few new screenwriting books. The New Yorker's "Briefly Noted" is like what we want. Similarly, we might buy objective reviews of software and other writing tools.

A New Topic For Us: Writing For Niche Movie Audiences. What is a niche? Here's a rough definition: if a movie is on only one screen in town or in your part of the city, it's probably a niche movie. Straight-to-DVD is a writing niche. Other niches include gay-themed films; films aimed principally at the African-American or Hispanic middle class; indie films on "serious" subjects aimed principally at an over-30 audiences; and low-budget sci-fi, horror, and comedy-horror (some of Roger Corman's output, and much of that of Troma Entertainment, for example). Kinds of articles we want: how writers sell to these markets, success stories, pay rates, features on writers who "graduated" from niches to big-time studio fare.

Also New--What Producers Are Looking For And Talking About: We don't mean yesterday, and we don't mean "in general." We mean what kinds of scripts, or which scripts in particular, are hot RIGHT NOW. We want to know both what just sold, and also what is being sought. Example: in the wake of "Marley" and "Hotel For Dogs," are heartwarming scripts about dogs hot, or is it too late? If you can do this kind of article well, we might want a regular commentary. Important detail: see the "Reporter pay" section of the contract.

Also New--And Difficult: What Are Bankable Actors And Directors Looking For? We all know that a project has a better chance of moving forward if a "name" actor and director are "attached." OK -- so what kinds of scripts are actors and directors with at least some cachet seeking these days? Caveat: the hard part is reaching them and landing the interview; don't pitch an article on someone you don't have a way to reach. And ABSOLUTELY do not approach anyone and say you're writing for us before an assignment is actually made.

Also New: Writers Of Foreign Films. If you can land an interview with the writer or writer-director of a significant foreign film which did or might influence the U.S. film market, by all means pitch the story to us. Caveat: be prepared to deliver what you propose.

Also New: Writer Interviews On The Movies We Missed: For example, if an indie film is a surprise hit or highly acclaimed, and we didn't cover it in a feature or one of our "Now Playing" articles, then we might run an interview with the writer.


We're Willing To Read A Pitch On, But Less Likely To Accept:

A feature on the writer of an upcoming major studio release. Yes, this is the bread-and-butter of our magazine. But we already have staff writers whom we trust to write these articles.

A "Now Playing" article. Ditto: generally, our longtime regular writers handle these articles.

But if you believe you have something new to offer, do give it a try.

This Is A Tough Sell, But You Could Try: What Went Wrong With This Movie? Was It The Script? This is a potentially new topic for us, but a difficult "sell." Many movies sink both critically and/or at the box office. There was plenty of time to fix them, but they weren't fixed. If the story was the problem, interview the creative participants and tell what went wrong.

A Real Long Shot: "Anonymous Abbie's Advice To The Scriptlorn." (That's just a working title.) The idea is simple, the execution extremely difficult: People write in, "Help--what do I do about"... anything having to do with scriptwriting. You research and find the answer. We see great difficulties with this kind of column: the potential workload vs pay we can afford, the quality, the potential to go stale after a while, legal issues (people getting mad about what they perceive are "wrong" answers and blaming the columnist for their decisions, etc.). But it might be worth a try as an experiment.

Finally: Your Great Idea For An Article, Series, Or Column. If it doesn't fit any of the categories above, we will consider it.

We Very Emphatically and Definitely DO NOT Want:
"My story as a struggling, aspiring screenwriter." Yours IS a worthy struggle. And yes, we do know it is difficult. But two timeless news adages apply. One is, "'Dog bites man'" is not news; 'Man bites dog' IS news." The other is: "News you can use." That is, this is not a grief group; we want content that helps writers succeed.
Untested advice from sources without the credentials to give advice. Producers, produced directors and writers, screenwriting teachers, script analysts, and studio readers have credentials. If you're an unproduced writer, your credentials probably will not "sell" your story to our readers.
Press-junket or press-conference interviews with writers. We do our own one-on-one interviews; we normally assign them in house; and we time them to movie releases.
Scholarly journal articles or film theory. Our principal audience is working and aspiring film and TV writers, not scholars.
Fan-magazine articles or articles that read like fan magazine articles. Our readers are writers who seek professional insights on every topic that will help them improve and advance. If a sentence does not meet that standard, it shouldn't be in the article.
Gushing, fawning praise. Nor disparagement. Of Hollywood, writers, directors producers, or movies in general. We are not looking for your opinions about a filmmaker. We want filmmakers' perspectives, how-it's-done ideas, and artistic choices. (This is boldfaced because many of the first 25 article pitches proposed exactly this kind of adoring article. No, no, no, no, no!)
Movie reviews, long book reviews, or DVD reviews.
Weak writing, poor grammar, spelling mistakes. This is a magazine for writers. They get upset with us for bad writing.
Meandering or long and ponderous lead paragraphs. Know or learn how to write a magazine or hard-news lead.

Know Our Style And The Kinds of Information An Article Should Contain

We seek certain kinds of information and a deeper understanding of the subject than you'll find in a consumer magazine. The best way to understand what Creative Screenwriting wants is to study the magazine.


Know What Deadline You Are Writing Against

Here are the deadlines.

Next: Read The Summary Of Our Contract And Article Pitching Terms, Then Pitch

Use the "click to pitch" button below or the headline above or click here to read a brief summary of our writer contract and our terms for pitching, then go to the Article Pitch Form.

Why Do We Require This Form Instead Of Letting You Email A Pitch?* Here Are Nine Reasons:

1. By going through this process, you will have a much clearer idea of what we want and don't want.
2. This process captures all the information needed to evaluate your pitch, all at once.
3. Your pitch becomes available immediately to all our editors when you submit it.
4. The information is also there for our bookkeeping department to pay you, our advertising department, and our legal advisors for contracting purposes.
5. Your pitch won't get lost or buried in email, and our editors will have access to it 24 hours a day.
6. It spells out the contract terms. You will know what the deal is before you pitch.
7. It will show us that you can (or can't) write a magazine lead in our style.
8. It captures your bio for the "Contributors" page of the magazine so we don't have email you later when we're on deadline.
9. It eliminates those exchanges of email seeking whatever bits of information might be left out of an emailed pitch.

Click to Pitch