If you are a screenwriter who's work has been optioned and then developed by a production company or studio, or you are still anxiously waiting for your lucky break and want to know what peaks and pitfalls lie ahead on the rocky road to success, then you will I am sure appreciate this article. With the benefit of hindsight.. I would have.

That's what we all like to hear, someone in the industry who appreciates our hard work and wants to invest a considerable amount of money into us and our fantastic new project. But remember that word "invest" - it derives from "investment" and whether you like it or not, no matter how creative you are, when you first start out.. that's all you are.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not being pessimistic about our industry, I love it and wouldn't want to be doing anything else with my life, I'm just a realist who believes that the movie biz is not perfect, and without grounding yourself at the very start you may be setting yourself up for a fall. Expectations can motivate us, hell, if we didn't dream of the stretched limo and premieres we probably wouldn't even get out of bed let alone turn on the computer, but sometimes we should really just enjoy the process and treat anything else as a bonus.

Whether you've written a treatment, a spec, an outline or even just pitched your idea, getting from that initial stage to actually being paid is no mean feat. But when you finally get money (not just compliments) to develop your work you are truly on the road to glory - or are you?

Ask yourself a question, "Is the studio in it for the same reasons as you are?"

Answer: YES! MONEY!

Unfortunately that's the bottom line. We all forget, perhaps down to selective memory, that show business is in fact a "business". A financier is not going to invest money into you unless they feel they will make some in return. Seems only fair. But that's what a lot of fledgeling screenwriters do not realize, and that's what drags them into all kinds of psychological conundrums, personality conflicts and stomach-churning politics that should really be left to Congress.

Sure, it's so easy to get caught up in the hype of your apparent success when you have just signed a "potentially" lucrative contract and now have a bit of money in your pocket. Before you know it, you're planning parties, booking the world cruise and taking a trip down Rodeo Drive for some cool new clothes to put into those trendy designer bags you've always wanted. So go ahead, lap it up, you deserve to bask in the glory for a while, just so long as you never forget the rules - because you can bet your bottom dollar the studios won't.

ACT TWO: Development

Okay, so you get millions of notes from ten different people on how the next rewrite should proceed and you do your best to decipher these notes, their hidden meanings and work out ways to please everyone at once without losing focus on the original concept.. all the time knowing you will also have to provide a fresh spin on the tale. And to add to the mess, sometimes the development team do not always know what they want - until they see it.

But whatever happens, always remember that part about not losing focus on the original concept. Did you hear what I said? Don't lose focus! Yep, this mental note should be nailed to your head and firmly secured with both hands, because if you dare to forget it, your screenplay will surely reap the sins of its absent-minded creator.

At the end of the day, rewriting should be fun, so long as you can be objective about your work. On the other hand, if you find yourself reading that first draft without bumping into any character flaws, questionable plot points and scene pacing problems then you are either the "Son of God" or perhaps just a little too bias. The trick is finding your own writing style, learning how and where you work best and above all trusting your intuition. Because it's this intuitive instinct that will guide you through the development maze and hopefully get you out the other end unscathed.

If you can spot inadequacies in your own work and then correct them, you will gradually gain greater confidence in writing and at the same time know when someone's suggestion is good or bad for the piece. The worst thing you can do is dismiss a producer or executive's point without a very valid reason. And believe me, if they are as objective as they should be, they know when you are talking sense, and when you are just being precious.

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