🎬 A Producer’s Bloody Honest Note to Writers Said With Love and Respect

I say this with total respect.

You can be a brilliant writer, but if your concept doesn’t grab, no one is going to read your script. That is the brutal truth. Most scripts don’t die because of bad writing. They die because no one cared enough to turn the first page. You might have beautiful dialogue, deep characters, and clever twists, but if the idea doesn’t hit fast and hard, it is already over. Here is what every writer should do before starting to write a script

Start With the Hook

Ask yourself one question: Would this idea make anyone stop what they are doing and say, “Tell me more”? If not, it is not ready. So before you write an entire script, pitch the pitch first. Test it with fellow writers, producers, or strangers. If people lean in, great. If they don’t, refine it or move on.

Test the Concept Early

Don’t guard your idea like it is gold. Pitch the logline, not the screenplay. See what lands. Watch faces. Excitement is instant. Silence is feedback.

Simplify the Focus

One clear premise. One emotional drive. If you need five paragraphs to explain your story, you don’t have a movie yet. You have homework.

Build Everything Around It

The concept is the spine. Every character, every theme, and every twist must connect to it. “Don’t let the air out of the balloon,” Billy Wilder said. He was right! If you succeed in that, you have a hit.

Finish What’s Worth Finishing

A strong concept is worth your time. A weak one is not. Be ruthless. Your career will thank you.

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I am saying this as a producer who truly wants to see great scripts get made. Producers want to say yes, but we can only do that when an idea hits us emotionally and instantly. So before you write 100 pages, make sure your one line already does the heavy lifting. That is the difference between a dreamer and a doer.

Thank you,

Daniel Maze