The value of peer-based script reviews

The value of peer-based script feedback

by Ben Cahan

Peer-based feedback or professional script coverage?

Here at Talentville, one foundational core of our community is script feedback from other members, who are for the most part also aspiring screenwriters.  Some may be quite experienced, with one or even many completed scripts, while others just beginners, yet to type Fade In for the first time.  No matter their level of expertise, every member is asked to contribute to helping us find the best of the best by reading and reviewing/critiquing screenplays uploaded by other members, thus providing feedback and comments so the authors can get a feel for how real-world readers judged and felt about their script.

Our members are not Coverage Professionals…so what!

The first thing to understand about feedback from others like us (those who aspire to a career as a screenwriter) is that all feedback is good feedback, whether positive or negative.  We can choose to take reviews from other amateur writers seriously, or we can ignore the criticisms we do not agree with, but we need to always keep an open mind for points well made and story ideas we perhaps didn’t think of.

On the financial front, remember that the cost to have a feature length screenplay covered by a professional, whether a reader on our staff (we provide coverage services) or through other widely available coverage sites, starts around $100US and goes up from there, depending on the experience level and reputation of the reader.  That can get expensive quickly for anyone wanting a variety of reactions from a variety of readers.

When choosing peer-based feedback here at Talentville, the hard costs are very little, with member reviews being paid for using TalentDollars, our internal play-money currency that is earned by doing reviews yourself…a give and get economy.  Complete 5 reviews and you will essentially get enough TalentDollars to buy 5 reviews of your script, from the other members.  And it is our view that while most amateur reviews may not measure up to the rigor and quality of a paid-for coverage professional, that lack of quality can be made up in sheer volume, all without breaking the bank.

So, what should you be thinking about when you get reviews from other writers?

First, Keep an Open Mind

This is rule one for peer-based reviews and coverage.  While some reviewers will do the minimum, perhaps just skimming the script, most will try to do their best to point out things they loved and things that they didn’t like so much.  Their written reviews are partly for the community, but mostly they are for you, the author, trying to in their way help you make your script as good as it can be.  Keep that in mind when reading even the brutal, critical reviews, it very well may be that some of the points they make, even as they bash your writing and your story, might form kernels of ideas for making your script better.

Going further on those tough-to-take critical reviews, another worthwhile strategy is to revisit those reviews days or weeks later, when you have cooled down, to judge with a clear head what points might have real merit, things you might just consider seriously in the next rewrite (and there will always be more rewrites!).

Second, Look for Trends

When reading script critiques and reviews written by folks we do not know, whose level of expertise may likewise be unclear, the second thing to keep in mind is that one review (good or critical) will not mean nearly as much as three, or five, or even ten.  Remember, the reviewers are screenwriters, even if unproduced and unknown, most with at least some knowledge of structure, plot points, character arcs and the like.  If they all point out similar flaws, or conversely if they all praise a certain aspect of the script, such as the dialogue or the setup or the underlying plot, or even the visual nature of the writing, then you should take note.

The key is to look for those things that get mentioned over and over, which is why volume is King when it comes to peer-based reviews.  If multiple reviews focus on the characters, or the underlying story, or even the finale, that means the same things came to mind with different folks, and that consistency should get your attention.  In the same vein, if one reviewer dislikes a particular element while the others love it, that might just mean that one person missed something.

So, save the coverage money for when your script is ready for coverage

The journey from writing the first draft of a screenplay to when it is truly ready to get considered by agents, managers and producers tends to be a long one, for most of us anyhow.  How and where we get feedback on the script, and what type of feedback, followed by what we do with that feedback to keep improving, tweaking and polishing, those are decisions we all must make for ourselves.  I would propose that getting feedback from other writers is a great way to find out where you stand without costing an arm and a leg. 

When we, as readers or reviewers, sit down to begin reading a new script, whether one written by a family member or one assigned to us to review at Talentville, we want to love the script. We want to be engaged, we want to see you know what you are doing, we want to be able to envision the movie in our minds as we turn from page to page.  We’re not out for you to fail, we gain nothing from that.

It is my belief that before it makes sense for you to start spending money on your script, whether for coverage or to get entered in screenwriting competitions, you should make it a goal to get a bunch of really positive feedback from your peers, from other writers in the same position as you.  If you can sell us on your script, if you can get us to buy in and believe, you will know that your script is more likely to pass the test of those in the Industry who are paid to say no.  Of course, if ten folks read it and all ten think it needs more work (as will mostly be the case in the real world), then take note of those reviews and get to re-writing!

--Ben Cahan