I Will Not Read Your F-ing Script: Why Josh Olson is an Idiot

http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/archives/2009/09/i_will_not_read.php

I'm going to take a break from writing about my novel (two last chapters, yay!) to comment on a blog post I've come across several times in the last week.

Screenwriter Josh Olson has written a little piece for the Village Voice entitled "I Will Not Read Your F-ing Script." Who's Josh Olson you say? He's the screenwriter of A History of Violence and someone who is too busy to read your script. Especially if you can't construct a proper sentence in the English language (I'm sure that applies to many of us). He complains about being asked to read scripts by acquaintances now that he's made it to the big time.

I have a major problem with this blog. There is a reason he seems so funny and original by saying "fuck this" and "fuck that" and "I am too busy for this." It's because everyone else has some tact and acknowledges the foundation of making it in Hollywood.

The fact of the matter is that screenwriting, along with many other trades here, is not merit-based. This is a well-known fact. Unless you are born with connections, you need to spend equal amounts of time writing and meeting people who can help you. Some people can do this with ease, perhaps already starting at Harvard and USC, and other people struggle with not coming off like a douche bag for trying to make connections.

How did I get my job writing for an animated superhero show on PBS? Through connections! A friend of a friend! An acquaintance. Every single writer knew the head writer. There was no job board. There's no application process. And this is PBS.

So, while saying "I will not read your fucking script" may come off funny, I take offense. Not because this man won't read my script - in fact, there are plenty of scripts I wouldn't want to/have time to read -but because his seventh grade tactics wins him fans, as though he is pointing out some great truth.

I agree, it is a sad thing that screenwriting here is not merit-based. It is part of the reason why I have moved on to writing a novel this year, despite the fact that I had gained a lot of interest in my TV pilot last year. Make no mistake - this is a town about who you know and what you can get them to do for you. Many good people - talented writers with moral compasses - leave because they can't stomach constantly asking people to do stuff for them. The ones who make it - unless daddy is Francis Ford Coppola - I guarantee you spent their time busting their ass with every single acquaintance and that, with the combination of good writing, eventually paid off, even if that means only one person said "Yes I Will Read Your Fucking Script."
Hmm... I wonder who read Josh Olson's script?

There are hundreds of great writers who would succeed if only they could get to the right person. Making an example of someone who isn't familiar with grammar is another stupid tactic.

Oh, and Josh? I won't watch your fucking movie, so I guess we're on the same page.