THE ICE PICK

The Writer Got Screwed (But Didn't Have To) : A Guide to the Legal and Business Practices of Writing for the Entertainment Industry, by Brooke A. Wharton. New York: HarperCollins, 1997. 288 p. ISBN 0-06-273236-6. $14.95.

If you are interested in writing for Hollywood or have hopes of seeing your work produced as film, TV, or interactive entertainment, you might want to take a look at this book. Written by an entertainment and copyright lawyer, this is a frank assessment of the pitfalls and dangers that await the unwary (and even the wary).

Included are discussions on copyright--what can and cannot be protected and how to go about keeping your work from being stolen from you. Along the way, Wharton explodes many myths, including the one that if you mail a script to yourself--the so-called "poor man’s copyright"--the postmark proves the date you wrote it. She calls that "a waste of valuable postage."

She warns against discussing your ideas with anyone. Ideas are not protected by copyright.

Wharton also explains how you can avoid libel, explains what the Writers Guild of America is and what it can and cannot do for you, and defines exactly what a valid contract is and is not. (Is a contract scribbled on a cocktail napkin a contract? What about an agreement over the phone?)

She explains the differing roles of agents, lawyers, and managers in your career, and how to get your work noticed and purchased if you don’t have or can’t get an agent.

The book covers writing for films, episodic television, TV movies and mini-series, as well as for interactive entertainment. Interviews with noted writers give valuable and practical advice on everything from pitching your ideas and "breaking in," to writing with a partner and problems with contracts.

Also included are a glossary of terms; lists of competitions, fellowships, and internships; a partial listing of WGA agencies; a list of organizations that provide access to attorneys, legal information, and cheap (or even free) legal seminars for writers; and an excellent index.

Recommended for anyone interested in screenwriting.

{Published in GPIC, the Oklahoma Science Fiction Writers Newsletter, Oct. 2000. Reprinted in SF & Fantasy Workshop Newsletter, Mar. 2006.}