Marketing, Promoting and Selling Yourself Part 1

There comes a point when you need to market yourself as a screenwriter.  It's no good having the work if you're not prepared to put your name out there.  With the rise of the internet it has become that much easier to advertise yourself.  Especially if getting to L.A. and Hollywood seems out of reach for the time being.  The internet is a good place to start promoting and selling yourself as a writer.

After a few years of writing I decided to create a website as a way of showcasing myself and my work.  It's a great way to market yourself, it also gives people an idea as to who you are and what you have to offer as a writer.

It's pretty cheap nowadays to create your own website and buy a domain name.  Personally I think it's a worthwhile investment and shows that you take yourself seriously as a writer.
There are plenty of websites out there that charge fees such as InkTip and MovieBytes etc for the privilege of showcasing your work.  But why pay them when you can do it yourself?  I'm not saying you shouldn't use these services, in fact, if you have the funds to do both, why not? 
It certainly won't do any harm.

Let's look at what's available for free in the way of websites.

There are four websites where you can showcase your work and get feedback.

• Trigger Street Labs
• Circalit
• Talentville
• Zoetrope

You can use these sites to showcase your work and get feedback from other writers.  Especially if you find it impossible getting feedback.  Here you'll find like minded individuals who'll give their honest opinions on your work.  You may not always like what you hear and what they tell you.  But getting feedback is key to improving as a writer.  Anyway, I'm going off on a tangent.  Let's get back on topic.

But is that enough?

There are other sites where you can set up accounts for free to market yourself.

• Facebook
• Weebly
• WordPress

These are just a few. 

Once you've created your website and are happy with it, you may want to buy yourself a domain name to add that professional and personal touch.  Apart from your domain name you certainly don't need to splash out lots of money on getting someone to design a website for you.  You can do it yourself.

What about paying sites to market your work?

There are plenty out there and if you have the funds to do it, why not?

InkTip
MovieBytes

What about getting your work to somebody that can do something with it?

Due to circumstances and to kick start the new year I'll be joining a couple of websites to promote myself and my work.  There is a cost to these sites.  Only a small cost and if you can afford it, do it.

If you have a large portfolio of work under your belt then it's probably worth doing.  If you're just starting out and have a few screenplays under your belt then it's probably not worth doing just yet. 

Build up that portfolio of work, keep writing and keep getting feedback to improve your work.  The more you write, the better you'll get.  Practice, practice, practice!

Shooting People:Independent Filmmakers Network

Production Arts Group

Both of the sites above charge a small fee for an annual membership.  If you have plenty of work under your belt and you have  a good work ethic then you should give it a go.  It's another way of marketing and selling yourself.  Being Proactive.
If you can afford it, give it a go.  It certainly won't do you any harm.  Just make sure you have a large body of work under your belt first. 

Always remember, they'll be asking this if they're interested.

'What else do you have and what are you working on at the moment?'

It's alway good to be working on a project or projects.

Hopefully you will find something useful here.   This doesn't mean you should change what you're doing.  A writer should be spending 95-99 percent of the time they have available to them to WRITE.  That's what you love and that's what you want to do.  To be a professional screenwriter.
So you must write.

Possibly 1-5% of the time available to you should be used in marketing yourself and your WORK.  Because at the end of the day.  It all comes down to the writing and what you have to offer as a screenwriter.  You need to be in this for the long haul. 

It's a marathon - not  a sprint.

In Part 2, I'll try and show you what you actually get when you join these sites.  What information you're allowed to put on the homepage and that type of thing.  Hopefully do some screenshots.  That probably won't happen until the new year, possibly sooner.