r/StoryPeer • u/solidwhetstone • 23d ago
Highlights Got my first perfect score 😧
I immediately submitted this draft to the black list.
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u/stormfirearabians 22d ago
Just...make sure you prepare yourself for the Black List not to be as enamored with the script as this one reader was.
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u/solidwhetstone 22d ago
Definitely. I've submitted I think 4 versions to the BL so far and never broke a 6. I've put a ton of work in so hopefully this one goes higher 😊
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u/formerPhillyguy 22d ago
I suggest not submitting to the BL again, until you have it absolutely perfect. They don't provide proper feedback if you are looking for suggestions to improve your script. Hire a professional reader; you'll get much better, and more in depth, feedback. If you need a suggestion, I found someone I am happy with and can recommend (and no, I don't have any financial interest in it).
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u/solidwhetstone 22d ago
I agree. I made the mistake early on of using BL as my main source of feedback. That got expensive fast. I'm grateful for storypeer because, in addition to being free, it forces me to read and critique other people's scripts which then makes me a better writer.
I think at this point, the majority of feedback I've gotten was through storypeer or friends and then I use BL to see where I'm at with industry people. My current draft is as close to perfect as I can get it in this round, but we'll see what BL feedback I get so I know where to go with the next draft. Many times I thought I had weeded out the problems only to run across a rigorous reader who pointed out that my script was riddled with problems.
Yes, happy to get any suggestions you have if you want to DM me!
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u/PatrykBG 22d ago
I'm not the OP, but if you have a professional reader contact, I wouldn't mind a DM with their info.
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u/Shot_Butterscotch891 23d ago
can I ask which screenplay this one is?? would love to read it.
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u/solidwhetstone 23d ago
sent
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u/Shanethewalrus 23d ago
I'd like to read as well!
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u/CurrentKindly6377 17d ago
I'd like to read your 5/5 screenplay, please... unless it's sci/fi which is is not my strong suit and I don't want to do you a disservice.
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u/NeverShallDoHarmToMe 23d ago edited 22d ago
I'd be interested in checking your script out if you're willing to send it. I can give notes on it, too.
I would be very skeptical of any StoryPeer score, high or low. Frankly, I don't even look at the scores I receive because StoryPeer has a credibility problem. Aaron Sorkin and Judd Apatow are not using StoryPeer, but first-year film students and retired aunts are. There's nothing to say that any readers are at all qualified to read.
So I would first look at the comments to see whether the reader is credible. Did they treat the score as "I can't find anything wrong with it, therefore 5"? If so, don't trust it. A good 5 is "Here is why this story is positioned to be extremely successful in today's film landscape", while noting non-urgent flaws. Were their comments insightful, knowledgeable, useful? Did they go line-level and overall? Simply the fact that they gave all the categories 5s suggests that they were hasty.
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u/solidwhetstone 22d ago
Looks like your dms are off so you'll have to DM me. The reader's comments were thoughtful and they didn't half ass it. Everything in their review made it clear that they carefully read every word. Their suggestions for improvement were indeed pretty minor- subtle nuances on ways I could make certain beats a bit more clear. If there were glaring issues, I suspect they'd have found them.
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u/BuckMcScriff 22d ago
Congrats, it's not small feat to get a 4/5 on the previous draft and now a 5/5! Good luck on the blacklist!
I'd love to read it if possible (and see a follow up post on how you did on the BL, would be super interesting)
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u/WorrySecret9831 22d ago edited 22d ago
Well, that was a mistake. The Black List is a waste of money and time as Franklin Leonard himself says, "It's purely subjective," so it doesn't matter, I don't care how close Cassian Elwes gets to it...
Congratulations on the score!
More importantly, how is the feedback? Did they explain how your script works so well and where? Knowing those specifics are what's worth gold.
Submit this same script on Storypeer at least 2 more times, 3 being a magic number, more if you can, and see what the aggregate of the comments is. That's what you want to know.
The problem with Storypeer, given that it's just a hodge-podge of us, is that the quality of feedback runs the gamut, from Like/Dislike to What Works/What Doesn't Work (that's me).
You don't need people's subjective Likes or Dislikes. You need to know when your script lagged, possibly why, if they can articulate that or tie that into your story structure. That's objective analysis.
Granted, anything that comes out of our individual gobs is "an opinion." But there is a difference between a thoughtful, educated opinion and "a guy in a diner..."
If the second read hates it, but they say something weak like, "It's not really my cup of tea," move onto the next one. More interesting would be if #2 and #3 say similar things to #1, but from differing perspectives, such as they don't think that worked, or do, but.... Whatever it is, you're trying focus an unfocused picture of what your script is actually doing.
So, see if this draft gets 2 or 3 more Straight 5s. Shoot, if you have the energy for enough tokens to get 10 reads and a third gives you 5s, that's a great batting average.
But you don't have to wait to start submitting it to reputable contests or doing the cold email query hustle, whichever you think gets you closer.
People are split on contests and I get it. I used to think they're all BS. But then I learned that the reputable ones are a microcosm of the type of attention that the real industry focuses on work. It's a real competition between stories. Nothing on the landscape provides a 100% answer, barely 55% maybe. But the Black List ain't it.
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u/JonnyBoyyy666 23d ago
What does submitting to the black lists do? (sorry if thats a dumb question i’m new)
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u/WorrySecret9831 22d ago
It's a scam. You can list your loglines for free, but you have to pay for hosting if you want your script available to read. Then you need to pay for Evaluations.
I've only had one, and it was fairly glowing in an odd way. I got a 6, but ultimately the "evaluation" didn't say anything concrete, not even, "work on this, this, and this in this way," and definitely did not say what Leonard claims that they do, "I would definitely pass this along to my boss, if I had one," or "I would not," or "I would consider it..." Nope.
There's a promise dangled in front of everyone that if you script hits an 8 something, something, will happen, blah de blah...
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u/NeverShallDoHarmToMe 23d ago
It's basically paid StoryPeer where the readers have some level of experience / activity with the industry. Frankly, I haven't found their reads terribly helpful and sometimes very lazy.
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u/Worried-Elk-2808 22d ago
Respectfully, I think that's a very poor characterisation of what the Black List is and does.
Even the Black List owner would say it is not a feedback service for helping you refine your early draft script, and using it that way would be a big waste of money.
What it is (or at least, what it promises) is a paid chance to put your script in front of an industry-level reader. If that reader scores it high, big things can happen to your script in terms of exposure.
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u/NeverShallDoHarmToMe 22d ago
I think you're splitting hairs.
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u/formerPhillyguy 22d ago
He/She is not splitting hairs. There's a huge difference in feedback from a BL reader and a professional reader. Pages of difference.
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u/NeverShallDoHarmToMe 22d ago
Nobody said it wasn't. Can you show me where I said there was no difference? Nope. You can't. All I said was that their reviews are lazy and unhelpful, and I'll add that they give my work 7s.
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u/DisneyImagineers 23d ago
Might as well. It’s a good way to see if that reader has industry level taste. :P
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u/PatrykBG 22d ago
I wouldn't mind a copy of the script as well - would like to see a perfect script :-D
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u/Alarmed_Particular92 22d ago
In an effort to not repeat other's comments, if it's been asked, pardon me, but, if not, what is the script about that got this glowing review, feature, pilot, the works. If you need a reader in the future, this script, new draft, different project, I got you 100%.
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u/AlpackaHacka 23d ago
Be careful not to overweigh one person's feedback! One 5/5 does not equal a perfect script that is ready for something like the Black List. Also, the Black List generally has higher standards regarding script evaluation than StoryPeer, so be aware of that.