[.ca] Author! Screenwriter!: How to Succeed as a Writer in New ... (ISBN 1593375530)

Career Advice for Writers from the Top:
Over the years, I've read as many books as I could find about how to write nonfiction book proposals, find agents, publicize books, and develop a platform for my writing. In all that time, I haven't seen a book nearly as good as Author! Screenwriter! for taking an overview of career management for those who want to produce writing that will appear in print and might also be produced on television and in the movies. This is the book you most need to read. From the vantage point of having led many outstanding writers to great careers, Mr. Miller wisely describes the state of the industry and the core of what you need to do to increase your chances of a long and successful career. He has helped sell over 1,000 books, sold over 100 options based on those books, and produced a number of films himself. Where else can you get such advice? I don't know of anywhere else you can look to find out the perspective of one man with all of these experiences and connections. To me, the best parts of the book were the brief samples from various proposals that are included from page 139 through to the end. I could feel myself falling in love with these concepts because of the great ways that the ideas were expressed. Seeing these proposals made me realize that proposals can perhaps sell best by simply presenting the book through a brief story. Study these proposals: They are like gold! Six proposals are for nonfiction books (biography, true crime, relationship self help, cookbook, speech writing how to, and a health book about people being cured of fatal diseases without medical interventions). There are also one fiction proposal, a television series proposal and script, a television movie and dramatic series proposal and treatment, and a novel coverage for possible production. These proposals involve top writers like Vincent Bugliosi, Jay Bonansinga, Roy Guste, and Dr. Albert Marchetti. I also just watched Mr. Miller's film by the same title that's available on DVD from his agency's Web site. That film is a perfect complement to the book, and I strongly urge you to buy and study both. I tried to find the film on Amazon.com but couldn't seem to turn it up. The film lasts over two-and-a-half hours and features Mr. Miller interviewing top editors (Michaela Hamilton and Lou Aronica), producers (Mark Wolper and Jon Sheinberg), best-selling authors who are clients (Jay Bonansinga and Raymond Benson), screenwriters (Richard Walter of the UCLA film school and Alan Roderick Jones), new writers who are clients (Rhodi Hawk and David Margolis), and experienced writers who are clients (Dr. Steven Holt, Satoko Kitamura, and Walter Maksym). Mr. Miller asks key questions to elicit advice that will be helpful to anyone who wants a better writing career. There are 28 interviews in all. Some are multiples of the same person, each one addressing a different aspect of their careers and experiences. You could travel around talking to people for the next ten years and not gain as many insights as you will from this fascinating film. Peter Miller is the self-described Literary Lion of the world. After reading his new book and seeing this terrific film, I'm sure you'll see why he's king of the literary jungle. Don't be too optimistic about getting access to him aside from the book, film, and appearances at literary conferences: Mr. Miller's agency receives almost 500 query letters a week. Obviously, they cannot represent more than a tiny fraction of that number in a year. Having talked to Mr. Miller in person, I was impressed that his writing and film dialogues are typical of the man. Most other literary managers and agents I've met who wrote books for writers turned out to be quite different, and less impressive, than their books. With Mr. Miller, there's no difference.