So just a quick update on where we’re at with this year’s fundraising.
THE GOOD:
We’ve raised almost twenty thousand dollars.
That’s really amazing.
Several writers who've donated/submitted have already established a relationship with Dan based on his response to their work. Not sure if anybody has officially signed yet. Feel free to post if you have.
Thanks to everybody who’s gone above and beyond to support this great cause.
THE BAD:
Anybody who donates/submits from now on will need to also submit a submission release form. I’m surprised this hasn’t come up earlier but it’s come up now and that’s the way it’s going to be.
Once you donate you should contact me to let me know and I will email you the form. You should then sign it and scan it and submit it along with your logline and script. If you don’t have a scanner, I can email the release form to you and you can snail mail it to Dan directly. When he receives it he’ll let me know and I’ll contact the person and give them the okay to email their script and logline.
If we do this again next year everybody will be required to submit a release form when donating/submitting work for Dan to consider.
I say “if” primarily because of…
THE UGLY:
I wasn’t going to post about this because I really didn’t want to let one bad apple spoil the whole bunch but now I’m realizing it’s not just one bad apple. It’s one really bad apple, a few kinda bad/annoying ones and the rest pretty awesome apples.
If the plug does get pulled on this in 2013, though, the awesome apples will know why.
Of course, I’ve had to deal with the few people PMing me and basically grilling me about the fundraiser. Asking me who actually got repped off of it and if they could like interview them before donating and all this (even though Ryan Riley posted about his experience signing with Daniel and Benderpsink in the thread). That happens every year a few times and is really no big deal. In fact, if anybody has those concerns I want them to PM me and I’ll do my best to address them. I won’t say it’s not annoying. It is. I mean you’re making a donation DIRECTLY to the American heart association. From one paranoid writer to another, there are no Nazis hiding in the walls on this one.
This year, I got a few people who ignored all instructions and attempted to call Dan directly. Also annoying but innocent.
And then I got the all-timer. A lady who first emailed me to question why I didn’t send her an email immediately confirming that I received her script and wondering where her "feedback" was.
I replied letting her know when I received the script and also letting her know when it was forwarded to Dan. I then explained that she doesn't get feedback for her donation. She gets considered for representation by Dan and Benderspink -- just like my post says and just like John August and Craig Mazin pointed out in their podcast.
I also explained that being a single dad, having a full-time job, and pursuing my own writing career really limits my time and I really can’t be sending confirmation emails all day – I also pointed out (keep in mind I also explain all this on my donation page and tell people to email me directly if they need a confirmation or do a "read receipt" on their initial submission email) that I’ve never had an email routed to my junk folder and check it regularly. I finished the email by asking for her patience. My tone was probably a little curt and dickish because I can be a bit of a dick when people do dumb things but whatever.
She then proceeded to email and imply that this is all…a scam? That me and Dan have some evil plan to…raise money to fight heart disease and stroke?
She also emailed the actual American Heart Association staff listed on the Heart Walk website ranting and raving about this.
Unbelievable and even after all that she will still get her script fairly considered by Dan. I didn’t tell him about it. I’m praying she didn’t send him an email attacking his character and integrity, too.
I know I shouldn’t spotlight this crap but I don’t need this kind of stress so I'm venting. I am literally getting nothing out of this (let's be real karma doesn't exist, if it did I wouldn't be stuck in this coal mine). I personally gain NOTHING except MORE competition as a repped, unsold writer working his ass off to either sell a script and/or land a WGA assignment. I’m only one rung on the ladder up from you guys. I really can relate to the skepticism and paranoia and loneliness of this pursuit but some of it is just too much. It's borderline insane even.
I was starting to get to the point where I was questioning if it was all worth this type of aggravation but then the American Heart Association staffer that the lady sent the crazy email to sent me this…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VoP73f-Oh4
And I realized it was.
Okay, back to figuring out how to incorporate submission release forms into this…
Thanks again to all of the awesome apples for all your support.
Be patient. Dan is getting to scripts as quick as he can.
THE GOOD:
We’ve raised almost twenty thousand dollars.
That’s really amazing.
Several writers who've donated/submitted have already established a relationship with Dan based on his response to their work. Not sure if anybody has officially signed yet. Feel free to post if you have.
Thanks to everybody who’s gone above and beyond to support this great cause.
THE BAD:
Anybody who donates/submits from now on will need to also submit a submission release form. I’m surprised this hasn’t come up earlier but it’s come up now and that’s the way it’s going to be.
Once you donate you should contact me to let me know and I will email you the form. You should then sign it and scan it and submit it along with your logline and script. If you don’t have a scanner, I can email the release form to you and you can snail mail it to Dan directly. When he receives it he’ll let me know and I’ll contact the person and give them the okay to email their script and logline.
If we do this again next year everybody will be required to submit a release form when donating/submitting work for Dan to consider.
I say “if” primarily because of…
THE UGLY:
I wasn’t going to post about this because I really didn’t want to let one bad apple spoil the whole bunch but now I’m realizing it’s not just one bad apple. It’s one really bad apple, a few kinda bad/annoying ones and the rest pretty awesome apples.
If the plug does get pulled on this in 2013, though, the awesome apples will know why.
Of course, I’ve had to deal with the few people PMing me and basically grilling me about the fundraiser. Asking me who actually got repped off of it and if they could like interview them before donating and all this (even though Ryan Riley posted about his experience signing with Daniel and Benderpsink in the thread). That happens every year a few times and is really no big deal. In fact, if anybody has those concerns I want them to PM me and I’ll do my best to address them. I won’t say it’s not annoying. It is. I mean you’re making a donation DIRECTLY to the American heart association. From one paranoid writer to another, there are no Nazis hiding in the walls on this one.
This year, I got a few people who ignored all instructions and attempted to call Dan directly. Also annoying but innocent.
And then I got the all-timer. A lady who first emailed me to question why I didn’t send her an email immediately confirming that I received her script and wondering where her "feedback" was.
I replied letting her know when I received the script and also letting her know when it was forwarded to Dan. I then explained that she doesn't get feedback for her donation. She gets considered for representation by Dan and Benderspink -- just like my post says and just like John August and Craig Mazin pointed out in their podcast.
I also explained that being a single dad, having a full-time job, and pursuing my own writing career really limits my time and I really can’t be sending confirmation emails all day – I also pointed out (keep in mind I also explain all this on my donation page and tell people to email me directly if they need a confirmation or do a "read receipt" on their initial submission email) that I’ve never had an email routed to my junk folder and check it regularly. I finished the email by asking for her patience. My tone was probably a little curt and dickish because I can be a bit of a dick when people do dumb things but whatever.
She then proceeded to email and imply that this is all…a scam? That me and Dan have some evil plan to…raise money to fight heart disease and stroke?
She also emailed the actual American Heart Association staff listed on the Heart Walk website ranting and raving about this.
Unbelievable and even after all that she will still get her script fairly considered by Dan. I didn’t tell him about it. I’m praying she didn’t send him an email attacking his character and integrity, too.
I know I shouldn’t spotlight this crap but I don’t need this kind of stress so I'm venting. I am literally getting nothing out of this (let's be real karma doesn't exist, if it did I wouldn't be stuck in this coal mine). I personally gain NOTHING except MORE competition as a repped, unsold writer working his ass off to either sell a script and/or land a WGA assignment. I’m only one rung on the ladder up from you guys. I really can relate to the skepticism and paranoia and loneliness of this pursuit but some of it is just too much. It's borderline insane even.
I was starting to get to the point where I was questioning if it was all worth this type of aggravation but then the American Heart Association staffer that the lady sent the crazy email to sent me this…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VoP73f-Oh4
And I realized it was.
Okay, back to figuring out how to incorporate submission release forms into this…
Thanks again to all of the awesome apples for all your support.
Be patient. Dan is getting to scripts as quick as he can.
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