Dave Trottier’s
Market-Focused
Script Consulting Services
Absolute honesty at reasonable rates
- A portion of all purchases goes to charity -
Services and Fees
1. 14 Point Analysis
2. Master Evaluation & Consultation
3. Read and Chat
4. Rush Service
5. Query Letter Evaluation
6. Chat with Dave -- One-on-one Consultations
7. One-sheet or Synopsis Analysis
8. Pages Evaluation -- analysis of portions of your script
--- How to Get Your Material to Me
Your goal is to sell your screenplay
You've spent months writing your script and now you're eager to present it to prospective buyers. But is it ready? Considering the large time and money investment you've made (and are about to make selling it), it makes good sense to be sure of where your script stands and how to position it in the marketplace. My goal is to help you prepare it for market.
7 reasons to send me your script
Dozens of my clients have sold their work. Two have won Nicholl Fellowships and one a National Play Award. Hear their stories.
I am rated in the top 6% of the "Cream of the Crop" category of Creative Screenwriting's report "The Best Movie and TV Script Analysts and Consultants as Rated by Screenwriters." And my average fee is lower than the average fee of those same top-rated consultants.
I am a produced screenwriter who understands the market.
Coaching is my game. I have taught and motivated writers for nearly two decades. Although I have succeeded as a screenwriter, I think my greater talents are in analysis, coaching, and helping you reach your potential.
My book, The Screenwriter's Bible, now in its sixth edition, is one of the top-selling screenwriting books in the world.
My evaluation includes notes on your formatting. I am the only script consultant that provides this bonus service, that I know of.
Each full script evaluation comes with a one-on-one story conference with me. That telephone story conference allows you to follow up on the written evaluation and get the answers you need to revise and sell your script. If you are overseas, an emailed story conference can be substituted for the telephone conference.
Absolute honesty at reasonable rates
Most written evaluations are completed within 3 - 4 weeks of receiving your material, so there's no long wait for a response, plus I will email and snail mail you a copy of my analysis. If you want the analysis now, my handy-dandy RUSH service (#4 below) is available.
Payment - MC, Visa, PayPal and Discover
Use my handy shopping cart to pay with MasterCard, VISA, PayPal, or Discover. Just click on “Add to Cart.”
I evaluate each script myself
I have no assistants helping me evaluate your script; I do it all myself and reward myself with ice cream afterward. Each script is carefully read, sometimes twice. I endeavor to be direct, clear, and realistic; and – according to my clients – my criticism is both constructive and motivating.
How to get your script to me
See instructions at the bottom of this page or at the end of the checkout process.
SERVICES AND FEES
1. 14 POINT ANALYSIS
My 14-point analysis consists of the following:
A ratings page that presents the standard pass-consider-recommend “box score” along with specific grades (excellent, very good, good, fair, and poor) of your script in 14 key areas: story structure, character development and motivation, dialogue, formatting, heart/relationships (emotional impact), conflict, commercial appeal, characterization, theme, believability, originality, foreshadowing, conflict and action.
A development notes section of 5-6 pages that focuses primarily on the specific areas that need the most help. The evaluation will be conducted and written by me alone.
A story conference of up to 20 minutes. Anytime after you receive the written evaluation, simply call me to discuss your project and/or ask questions. The agenda is yours.
A free copy of my book Double Your Creativity in 3 Hours. If you live outside the U.S., you’ll receive the ebook version.
A portion of your purchase will go to charity.
You’ll find instructions on how to get your material to me at the bottom of this page.
FEE: $475. Turnaround: 3-4 weeks. See below for subscriber’s discount..
For scripts over 120 pages, add an additional $4 per page for each page over the 120-page limit.
SAVE $65: Send me your script and query letter together for evaluation. FEE: $590. For you, only $525.
SAVE $10 - SUBSCRIBER DISCOUNT: If you are a subscriber to my newsletter, you qualify for a $10 discount! You can subscribe on my home page.
If this analysis will be my second evaluation of the same script, take another $10 discount (by changing the quantity to 2 after you “Add to Cart”).
For 1-2 week RUSH service, see #4 below.
2. MASTER EVALUATION & CONSULTATION
My deluxe master service consists of the following:
A ratings page that presents the standard pass-consider-recommend “box score” along with specific grades (excellent, very good, good, fair, and poor) of your script in 14 key spec writing areas: story structure, character development and motivation, dialogue, formatting, heart/relationships (emotional impact), conflict, commercial appeal, characterization, theme, believability, originality, foreshadowing, conflict and action.
A thorough, market-wise written critique of 10-12 pages. I will tailor my comments to your individual script. My exhaustive evaluation will help you strengthen your story structure, bring your characters to life, improve your dialogue, correct your formatting, and enhance your commercial prospects. It will be thoughtful, specific, and incisive. And I will point out the pluses and minuses of your script, give specific examples, and present you with possible solutions to problems. The evaluation will be conducted and written by me alone.
A telephone story conference of up to one hour. Once you digest my evaluation, then you may call for a story conference to discuss the analysis, the script, the market, or just brainstorm new ideas—whatever you need whenever you need it. You provide the agenda for this one-on-one consultation (which I normally bill at $150/hour). I promise to be friendly; I enjoy being your mentor.
A copy of Dr. Format Tells All and Double Your Creativity in 3 Hours. The fully updated Dr. Format Tells All contains all of my columns written for Script magazine from 1997 to the present. I’ll send you both books free at your request.
A portion of your purchase will go to charity.
You’ll find instructions on how to get your material to me at the bottom of this page.
FEE: $950. Turnaround: 3-4 weeks. See below for subscriber discount.
For scripts over 120 pages, add an additional $4 per page for each page over the 120-page limit.
SAVE $70: Send me your script and query letter together for evaluation. Fee $1,065. For you, only $995.
SAVE $10: If you are a subscriber to my newsletter, you qualify for a $10 discount! You can subscribe on my home page.
If this analysis will be my second evaluation of the same script, take another $10 discount (by changing the quantity to 2 after you “Add to Cart”).
For 1-2 week RUSH service, see #4 below.
3. READ AND CHAT
If you don’t want a written evaluation, but you want some comments as to where your work stands, I will read your script, followed immediately by a 20-minute phone conversation with you concerning my impressions. Feel free to ask questions during this “chat.” (After the 20 minutes have elapsed, if you want to continue the discussion, you can buy additional minutes at $40 per 15-minute period.)
FEE: $295. Turnaround: 3-4 weeks.
For 1-2 week RUSH service, see #4 below.
4. RUSH SERVICE
Get fast 1-2 week Rush service on any evaluation you order, and 2-7 day service on query
letters and one-sheets!
RUSH FEE: $100.
5. QUERY LETTER EVALUATION
You should spend as much time on your query letter as you do on your script's key scene. Your query letter is your prime "break-in" tool. Agents and producers generally will not read your script until they have first read your query letter. Now you can get my evaluation of your query, my assessment of its marketing potential, and recommendations for its revision.
FEE: $115. Turnaround: 2-3 weeks.
SAVE $10: If you are a subscriber to my newsletter, you qualify for a $10 discount!
6. MENTORING & ONE-ON-ONE CONSULTATIONS
I provide several mentored courses and one-on-one consultations.
7. ONE SHEET OR SYNOPSIS EVALUATION
If you are about to pitch your script idea to a producer or agent, and anticipate being asked for a "one sheet" or one-page synopsis, get that written synopsis evaluated in preparation for your pitching opportunity.
FEE: $125. Turn around 2-3 weeks.
SAVE $10: If you are a subscriber to my newsletter, you qualify for a $10 discount!
8. PAGES EVALUATION
The first ten pages must hook the reader. Do you want to know how your first ten or twenty pages read to an agent or producer? Or are you having trouble with that action scene at the end? Let me evaluate any number of pages for scene structure, characterization, dialogue, and format.
FEE: $11 per page. Turnaround 2-3 weeks. When you “Add to cart,” change the quantity from 1 to the number of pages you are sending me.
HOW TO GET YOUR MATERIAL TO ME
After you add your order to your cart and go through checkout on my secure server, email your script (and/or other material) to me at . Attach it is a PDF document (preferred), Movie Magic Screenwriter file, Final Draft file, or Word Document.
If you prefer to mail your script to me without going through checkout, you may simply send it with your check or VISA/MasterCard information to the following address:
Dave Trottier
4456 Manchester St.
Cedar Hills, UT 84062
801-492-7898
If you send your script to me by overnight mail, waive the signature to avoid an unnecessary delay.
Once I receive your material by email or snail mail, I will email your or phone you so that you know it has arrived. Once done, you can relax while you wait for your evaluation.