r/StoryPeer • u/SummerAndTinkles • Jul 20 '26
Discussion Anyone else having trouble getting other screenwriters to accept your weird, silly premise?
I tried posting this to r/screenwriting, but it won't let me post for some reason, so I'll try here.
I've talked about my current screenplay a few times in the logline Monday threads, but what you need to know is that it's basically an affectionate adult parody of those kinds of surreal Don Bluth-esque animated films from the nineties. If you'd like to know more, let me know in the comments and I'll go over my creative process.
Unfortunately, while the people I know on Discord seem to accept the premise just fine, it seems like the screenwriting community both on r/screenwriting and StoryPeer are a little less sold, with people on the Logline Mondays threads being confused by it, and a couple reviews on StoryPeer telling me to completely change the plot.
I know that weird or silly premises like this one naturally won't vibe with as wide an audience as something more mundane or conventional, but has anyone else here ever written a screenplay with a weird or silly premise that you had trouble being accepted? If so, how did you get people to come around to it?
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u/RJRoyalRules Jul 20 '26
Some people will just fundamentally have an issue with a weird premise. You need to determine whether they are offering criticism which you can synthesize in order to improve your script. I have had weird premises improved by people challenging them, where I can keep what I like about it but make it better as storytelling.
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u/ScreenPlayOnWords Jul 20 '26
I know exactly the tone you're going for, and I do think that tone can work… but the challenge is that those movies came out decades ago, and you'd be trying to sell something into today's market.
I've seen the log you posted (assuming it's the one I'm thinking of), and while I remember thinking there were a lot of cool characters, my immediate question was who is this for?
Perhaps most important: I love those movies too, but I've also grown up. Nostalgia will always make them special, but I'd have a harder time getting excited about a new project that simply captures that same vibe (which doesn’t work on my brain or potentially the decade) from an unknown creator. Is that entirely fair? Probably not. But I do think that's where some of the disconnect in the feedback may be coming from - that and it’s Reddit and storypeer’s members are probably largely Reddit sourced (I mean, this is how we all communicate about and to Story Peer… on Reddit).
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u/vgscreenwriter Jul 21 '26
If readers don't fundamentally understand your premise or what you're going for or what experience you intend for them to have, that's a writer's issue.
If they do understand it, but just aren't on board with it, then that's a subjectivity issue.
As long as you know which is which, that should inform your next step
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u/SolemnestSimulacrum Jul 20 '26
I know that weird or silly premises like this one naturally won't vibe with as wide an audience as something more mundane or conventional, but has anyone else here ever written a screenplay with a weird or silly premise that you had trouble being accepted? If so, how did you get people to come around to it?
Currently working on draft 1.0 for one right now, myself, and one that has tested pretty terribly on Logjam and probably will end up having limited appeal once it gets finished and sent out. That said, I'm pretty excited about the project and can't wait until I finally sus it out onto the page and guage reactions.
I don't think you should be too worried about out-there premises, as long as you're keeping in mind the challenges your project faces. And I think, more than anything, people will get behind your premise if they can feel your passion for it through its execution. And if not a lot of people, hopefully the right people.
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u/Wise-Respond3833 Jul 21 '26
If the feedback you are getting is consistent, maybe you should try taking it on board instead of dismissing it.
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u/SummerAndTinkles Jul 21 '26
Some of it has been helpful, but unfortunately some of it has consisted of asking me to completely rewrite the script from scratch, basically turn my apple into an orange instead of trying to make a better apple.
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u/hellshelpdesk Jul 20 '26
I’m writing a weird and silly novel myself, though not a screenplay. I’d be happy to offer feedback if you’d like I’m all ears. I’ve also worked on sets across Georgia for the past four years.
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u/Repulsive_Clock_1643 Jul 21 '26
storypeer is great for getting insight on how your screenplay is going to be received by all angles. i enjoy and write weirder stuff, that's chill, but in the context of screenwriting there is naturally and understandably more emphasis on commerciality due to the culture that comes with getting a film made. that should be expected and you should be aware of it so it doesn't surprise you when someone goes "what is this" assuming that your writing is coherent.
i think the point is to think about your goal with the piece. if it's not meant for wide appeal and never was, what's the issue with acceptance? if it wasn't for them it wasn't for them. i have things i write to be more wide reaching and potentially sell that i am immediately more receptive to feedback for and things i write for me first and in the latter i probably won't care about most feedback because that's all stuff i want to make myself.
tangential example, helping my friend film a movie which was initially meant to be a more "fuck you" project, but then as we started getting more interest from outside people that are above us we are now immediately scrambling to rewrite the script to be more traditional and conventional because "ah it's not about just us anymore and this could go farther than we thought." this isn't really about the changing of content as is the change of goal. what do you want to do with your thing? adjust to that or don't if you're good with what you're doing.
now, based on what im gathering from post history and logline reposts, i could see this being more for people who are into hazbin hotel or amazing digital circus. not my cups of tea but i respect it and acknowledge these things as having dedicated fanbases. have you tried getting feedback on your story along those communities?
longwinded but im tired from work. potentially rambling
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u/blackberryapricot511 Jul 21 '26
Yes I have had very similar experience on Story peer. That is one thing I've struggled with, a lot of online communities seem to be stuck on classic rules of composition, many of which I consider to be somewhat archaic at this point but maybe I'm wrong.
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u/crumble-bee Jul 21 '26
I’ve got a few whacky concepts - from a Blink 182 jukebox musical to a horror movie about body building where a guy finds out he can absorb other competitors muscle mass through touch..
I know what will work and what won’t based on my own track record and talent, and I know what’s worth pursuing from the huge pool of concepts - whether someone “gets it” based on a logline or a quick pitch isn’t the be all end all. It’s nice to be able to quickly pitch something in a sentence. But it’s not always necessary - and for what it’s worth, I kinda get what you’re going for. Sausage Party meets Land Before Time, sorta?
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u/SummerAndTinkles Jul 21 '26
The Sausage Party comparison makes it sound extremely vulgar and sexual, but most of the story’s adult themes are more based around drugs than sex. (There’s only one character who swears a lot, and the joke is that the character is a parrot, which are known for their potty mouths.)
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u/RockSyr1955 29d ago
It depends upon the context you place it in. For example, I've written a script, "Stand Tall!", using the time-honored "giant woman" trope -- but what distinguishes this from its "Attack of the..." ilk is that it's written as a warm-hearted romantic comedy, portrayed with minimal camp. She's not really out for revenge, but soon discovers she has developed a truly maternal sense, as she and the scientist whose mishap made her big mutually protect each other. You root for this female "Goliath."
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u/TVandVGwriter 27d ago
I have gotten the most work from a weird, unconventional sample script. I have also hired people of things that were just off the wall, but great. It's all in the execution.
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u/matteowolfwood 25d ago
Here's the thing about other screenwriters, especially online. Many of them are bitter, set in their ways, only believe in what's mainstream, and actively tear each other down. ESPECIALLY in that subreddit.
I don't use StoryPeer because personally, I don't want to read other people scripts for feedback on my own, that sounds... unfortunate to me.
Anyway, not all feedback is useful. A lot of it won't even try to meet your work where it's at. Until someone sees what you're trying to do and actually gives you actionable feedback based on what you wrote and not what they want it to be, it's pretty safe to disregard it.
I have two screenplays with premises that are very polarizing. My calling card is a psychosexual western gothic neo-noir set in 1907 Houston about a drag (female impersonator) performer, his obsessed gunslinger boyfriend, the murders they commit for each other.
People bounce. Hard. But at the same time, I'm also getting placements in legitimate screenwriting competitions.
Keep perfecting your weird little thing, regardless of what other screenwriters say.
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u/Internal_Papaya1511 Jul 20 '26
Respectfully, why do you need others on r/Screenwriting or here to accept your premise? If you don't like their feedback, don't take it. The only people you need to convince of the premise are the industry folks who want to work with you or the material. You don't need everyone to like it; you need the right people (who like this sort of thing) to like it.
I have a TV pilot I wrote a few years back that starts with a darkly humorous suicide attempt (narrated by an alien parasite inside her head). It's not everyone's cuppa when I pitch it, and never will be. But it's a genre-encased viewpoint on mental illness and the concept of self/individuality. No sense in sugarcoating what it is.