Do I need to have a Paypal account to send payment?

Nope. We use Paypal's services for our credit card processor. That means you can pay with your regular credit card OR with a Paypal account if you have one. There is no need to signup with Paypal.

It's been a few days and I HAVEN'T RECEIVED MY COVERAGE!  What do I do?

Please make sure that your email program or webmail is not blocking or filtering out our email address screenplayreaders@gmail.com. If our email is being blocked by your spam filters, and you haven't left us a telephone number, we can't get through to you.  As a very last resort, if it's been a few days and despite our best efforts, we're still unable to get a hold of you, we may try to get your coverage to you by either snail mail (if you've provided an address) or by posting your coverage on a private folder on our website with the address of http://screenplayreaders.com/yourlastname  This page will have your coverage, as well as a reminder to unblock our email address from your spam filters and our office telephone number.

I sent in another draft, but your coverage report didn't change! What gives?

We warn all our writers who resubmit their scripts that if your script hasn't changed significantly, DO NOT RESUBMIT IT FOR COVERAGE. It's a waste of everybody's time. We have a limited roster of readers, and they sometimes get the same script back to them to cover.  But they don't know that the script hasn't changed until they're already well into it.  Changing some character names and revamping a scene or two doesn't mean your script is any different, nor that our synopsis and comments should be either.

Why should I go with you guys and not some other company to cover my script?

Because we're fast, we're affordable, and we're good.  Screenplay Readers consists of a small handful of extremely talented, experienced screenwriters, story analysts, script doctors, and film industry professionals -- REAL PEOPLE who have REAL WORLD experience in dealing on both ends of the screenwriting angle. Our analysts have worked for agencies such as Media Artists Group and festivals such as the Silver Lake Film Festival and the Sundance Film Festival.

Why should I have my script covered before I submit it to agencies / studios?

As a writer, you already know this - the competition for screenplay sales is huge. If your script is not up to professional industry standards, you simply cannot even compete. A spec script from an unknown writer is an almost impossible sell. You're up against writers that are already entrenched and making millions of dollars, why should any studio or production company or agent go with an unknown? When your script is submitted to an agency or a studio, it gets covered and entered into a database. That means the details and quality of your script is forever logged into a permanent database for the studio or agency to refer back to. If your script isn't the best it can be, and it's submitted, then your script is likely to be dead in the water at that particular place.

Will getting my script covered by Screenplay Readers improve my script?

No. That's up to you. What we offer is our honest, and sometimes brutal insight, which can sometimes be painful for you to hear. You may disagree with our coverage and analysis, but we will never just tell you what you want to hear. We believe the only way writers grow and become better writers is if they're willing to take a good hard look at what can be improved and be honest with themselves.

What exactly is a "coverage report?"

A film industry-standard coverage report is usually 1-3 pages and consists of three parts: (a) the basic information about the script (author, genre, page count, logline) and a brief ratings area for different categories of quality (plot, characters, setting, theme), etc. (b) a synopsis of the film usually up to a page in length, and (c) an analysis page, containing the reader's comments and opinions on the script's strengths and weaknesses.  Similar to coverages, but more comprehensive, script notes are much more detailed notes. SAMPLE SCREENPLAY READERS COVERAGE

Are you fair to the screenwriter in your coverage?

"Fair" to us means not sugar-coating our comments and notes. Yet, we try to be positive and keep our criticisms in the constructive realm at all times.  However, our notes can be brutal as well.  Remember - we love scripts and know what makes them work, but we're just people with opinions, just like you.  If you don't like one of our readers' opinions, ask us to try another one on your next submission, or take advantage of some of the many other coverage services out there, such as My Script Needs Help, Sunset Script, Script Shark, and Script-Fix.

Will my script get read even though it doesn't look right?

Maybe. But the odds are definitely stacked against you. No one worth any note (that we've ever known or heard of in the film industry) has ever picked up an unprofessional looking script and read it, let alone passed it on to their boss with a recommendation. It simply makes you look bad as a reader if you champion a sloppy-looking script.

Can I request a specific reader?

Of course! If you've like a certain script reader's style of coverage, you can request that script reader again, but keep in mind that that script reader may not be available for a while, so your turnaround time may be longer.

I don't trust the internet for payments. Can I just send an actual printed script via the regular US mail?

Yes. To send in a hard copy, be sure to include an extra $10 for handling.  And money for postage if you want your script back.  Our address is Screenplay Readers / 2658 Griffith Park Blvd. #199, Los Angeles California 90039. Make sure the check is made out to Screenplay Readers.

What is WGA Registration?

WGA Registration is an official way of letting the people who come into contact with your script know that there's a copy on file with the WGA. To register your script with the WGA, you send a copy of it to the WGA along with their requested fee, and they keep the script on file for a certain amount of time. This offers some minimal, basic protection in case of a dispute over your script, but not much. For more information, contact the WGA directly at http://www.wga.org

What is a conversion?

Conversion is the process of converting your existing script from one data form to another. For example, taking a script written in Microsoft Word and converting it to Final Draft.  A writer may want this when she starts working with a new program, or collaborating with another screenwriter who uses a different screenwriting program.

What types of scripts are hot right now?

If we knew that, we'd be eating grapes on a yacht in the Caribbean.

What are your office hours?  Do you work weekends?

We're a regular office with regular hours and we're in Mon-Fri, 9-5PM Pacific Time. Most of the time, we work weekends, but some of our readers are not always available on weekends. 

What are your qualifications? Are you guys working screenwriters?

Our script readers have experience reading scripts for numerous companies, festivals, and producers. Sundance, Silver Lake Film Festival, legendary film producer Roger Corman (Little Shop of Horrors), Playboy Television, and more. Two of us have sold scripts and are working screenwriters, but all of the script readers and script doctors have worked either in development or for production companies or agencies.

There are dozens of other talented working writers on the internet that offer screenplay coverage services, but nearly all of them charge way more, and have a much, much longer turnaround than what we provide at Screenplay Readers. And when an agent or producer gives a script to an assistant to cover, that agent or producer doesn't want to wait weeks to get the coverage.

Keep in mind, most coverage in the film industry is not provided by self-appointed "script gurus" who hold seminars, but by the assistants - the people in the trenches. The coverage we provide is the closest you'll get to what actual, real-life readers at agencies and studios (who are largely underpaid and underappreciated) would provide.