Script Evaluation
Query Evaluation
Script Format Help
Screenwriter's
Bible
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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 or One Sheet Evaluation
6. Mentoring and One-on-one Consultations
7. Short Script or Partial Script Evaluation
--- How to Get Your Material to Me
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Your goal is to sell your screenplayYou'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
Hundreds of Dave's clients and students have sold their work., improved their careers, or have otherwise broken into the writing biz. Two have won Nicholl Fellowships and one a National Play Award. Read their stories.
I am rated in the top 5% 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 mentored writers for over three 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 seventh edition, is one of the top-selling screenwriting books in the world.
As Dr. Format, 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 or Zoom story conference allows you to follow up on the written evaluation and get the answers you need to revise and sell your script.
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. If you want the analysis sooner, my RUSH service (#4 below) is available. Once the evaluation is completed, I will email it to you so that you have it instantly. If you’d also like a hard copy, simply request it.
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.
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 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 For You: only $455 Turnaround: 3-4 weeks. Scroll down to Item #4 below for "Rush Service." See below for the “SAVE $10 – SUBSCRIBER DISCOUNT.”
Announcement from Dave Trottier
For scripts over 120 pages, add an additional $4 per page for each page over the 120-page limit.
SAVE $105: Send me your script and query letter (or one-sheet) together for an evaluation. Fee: $600. For You: only $495. If you wish, send your query any time after sending your script.
Announcement from Dave Trottier
SAVE $10 - SUBSCRIBER DISCOUNT: If you are a subscriber to my ViewsLetter, you qualify for a $10 discount! Just add the script evaluation to your shopping cart; then click the “Continue Shopping” button, return here, and add the discount to your shopping cart. If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now for my FREE ViewsLetter, and then order the evaluation and take the discount. If this will be the second evaluation of the same screenplay (with revisions), then add the $10 SUBSCRIBER DISCOUNT to your shopping cart and change the quantity from “1” to “3.” That’s a $30 discount ($10 for being a subscriber and $20 for the second evaluation). |
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 30 minutes. 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 For You: $935 Turnaround: 3-4 weeks. Scroll down to Item #4 below for “Rush Service. See below for the “SAVE $10 – SUBSCRIBER DISCOUNT.”
Announcement from Dave Trottier
For scripts over 120 pages, add an additional $4 per page for each page over the 120-page limit.
Announcement from Dave Trottier
SAVE $80: Send me your script and query letter (or one-sheet) together for an evaluation. Fee: $1,075. For you, only $995.
Announcement from Dave Trottier
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SAVE $10 - SUBSCRIBER DISCOUNT: If you are a subscriber to my ViewsLetter, you qualify for a $10 discount! Just add the script evaluation to your shopping cart; then click the “Continue Shopping” button, return here, and add the discount to your shopping cart. If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now for my FREE ViewsLetter, and then order the evaluation and take the discount.
If this will be the second evaluation of the same screenplay (with revisions), then add the $10 SUBSCRIBER DISCOUNT to your shopping cart and change the quantity from “1” to “3.” That’s a $30 discount ($10 for being a subscriber and $20 for the second evaluation). |
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. For You: $275 Turnaround: 3-4 weeks.
Announcement from Dave Trottier
For 1-2 week RUSH service, see #4 below.
4. RUSH SERVICE
Get fast 1-2 week Rush service on any evaluation you order, or 2-7 day service on query letters and one-sheets! Simply add the script evaluation service you wish to your shopping cart, click the "Continue shopping" button, and then add this Rush Service to your shopping cart.
RUSH FEE: $100.
Announcement from Dave Trottier
5. QUERY LETTER OR ONE-SHEET EVALUATION
Query Letter. You should spend as much time on your query letter as you do 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 written pitch. Now you can get my evaluation of your query, my assessment of its marketing potential, and recommendations for its revision.
One Sheet. If you are about to pitch your script idea or story to a producer, agent, or company rep (at a pitch fest, for example), and anticipate leaving behind a "one sheet" as your calling card/story synopsis, get it evaluated in advance of your pitching opportunity. Some screenwriters submit one=sheets in lieu of a query. The basic difference between the two is the query is shorter and seldom includes the story's resolution.
FEE: $125. Turnaround: 2-3 weeks.
Announcement from Dave Trottier
SAVE $10: If you are a subscriber to my newsletter, you qualify for a $10 discount!
Announcement from Dave Trottier
6. MENTORING AND ONE-ON-ONE CONSULTATIONS
I provide several mentored courses, a one-on-one script development program and one-on-one consultation.
7. SHORT SCRIPT or PARTIAL SCRIPT EVALUATION
Have you written a short film or video script and desire a professional analysis? Or 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 or your short film script for scene structure, characterization, dialogue, and format.
FEE: $10 per page. Turnaround 2-4 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
dave@keepwriting.com
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 you or phone you so that you know it has arrived. Once done, you can relax while you wait for your evaluation.