Do Screenwriters Need A Portfolio?

Normally I use this blog to share my advice and perspective from my decade-plus career as a story analyst. But I’m a writer as well, which is a discipline where I definitely don’t have all the answers. This post, therefore, is more of an open-ended musing on ways in which I think writers can be more creative and strategic with their industry-facing presence. I have some experience pitching a television project and working with an agent, but I’m far from seasoned in that department, so I would greatly value any comments or feedback from my fellow scribes.

They say you need two scripts to break in as a writer. One that opens the door, and a second that proves the first one wasn’t a fluke. That’s rather obvious advice, as you can’t make a sale if you don’t have the goods. What’s talked about less is what happens after you’ve got your undeniable samples. What do you do then?

The answer here is both daunting and liberating: there is no one path. A lot of “what comes next” depends on you and your writing. If you’re focused on low-budget horror, it might be in your best interest to go the indie route and raise money for a short proof of concept (a decent idea in any genre by the way) or even go all the way and make your feature. But if self-producing isn’t an option for you due to finances, geographical location, or your preferred genre not lending itself to a cheap production, then you need to convince other people to invest in your vision.

That really is the name of the game. In a crowd full of writers elbowing each other trying to squeeze into a teeny tiny opening in the gates of Hollywood, how can we differentiate ourselves? We need a way to market ourselves in a way that’s clear, concise, and memorable.

Recently, one of my mentors gave me the advice that I should make a pitch deck, not for a specific project, but for myself as a creative entity. This would be a sleek, easy-to-understand deck that’s ten slides or less which introduces myself, the specific niche of my genre (grounded sci-fi) and highlights one or two projects and any notable awards or recognition they’ve received. It’s kind of like a visual resume or portfolio. For someone like myself who doesn’t yet have any produced credits, it shows two things: That I’m a professional who takes the job seriously, and that I can clearly and passionately communicate the genre, themes, and perspective about which I write.

The other important thing we can do is to just put ourselves out there and meet as many people as possible. In my experience, I’ve found that most people genuinely want to help others and will do so whenever possible. If someone needs to staff up a new show with writers, they’re going to think of people they know first. A lot of writers focus so much on writing a perfect script that they neglect the networking aspect of this job. You could write a masterpiece that scores a 10 on the Blacklist and wins competitions, but if nobody has ever heard of you, it might surprise you how few doors those accolades open.

This is a business of relationships and reputations. The longer I’m in it, the more I feel like the skill distribution for writers who find steady work is forty percent writing ability and sixty percent personality – being likable, easy to work with, and professional are winning traits that make people hirable in any industry, but especially in this one. 

I’m sure there are dozens of other creative ways to market yourself that I haven’t thought of. I would love to hear from my readers on this one. If you or someone you know has found success as a writer, how did it happen? What tips would you give your fellow writers?