How do I get an Agent? Part 2

This is the second part of the article "How do I get an Agent?" Here's the website address:

http://www.scriptmag.com/2011/06/20/primetime-how-do-i-get-an-agent-%E2%80%93-part-one/

This is a very informative and inspirational article. It makes me want to write because he says to constantly be writing. This part in the article stood out for me:

"I often talk to writers who say they have 10 episodes of a Web series they want to sell. But simply having a work, even a work that exists in an accessible space, like the Internet, doesn’t give it value. It must prove it can generate a significant number of viewers and/or dollars. It wasn’t Justin Halpern’s hilarious Tweets that earned him a sitcom deal … it was his 700,000 followers — developed in less than a year."

I have a blog called www.badcb.blogspot.com. This showcases my writing. I also have this The Vertex Fighter blog, which really showcases how I'm studying and learning about the TV business. It shows my experience and knowledge and how hard I try to get into this business.

Here's the article:

"3) Create a property with marketable value.

Agents need writers and properties they can market or sell, and while this is much much much easier said than done, you may be able to attract representation if you create something with real marketable value.

This does not mean simply writing a script you believe is “worthy” of selling.

This means creating something that generates visibly tangible value (read: “significant dollars and/or eyeballs) … and then trying to attract an agent.

The Whitest Kids U Know

The Whitest Kids U Know began as a college sketch group touring New York comedy clubs. They began generating a large, rabid fan base … and eventually scored a TV series on IFC. They’re now repped at APA.

Mindy Kaling, currently a writer-producer-actor on The Office, burst onto the scene when she co-wrote (and starred in) Matt & Ben, a stage play that toured the country, received rave reviews, generated real box office receipts, and gave Mindy a spotlight as a writer and actress. She eventually signed with UTA.

Maxim writer Justin Halpern’s Twitter feed, Shit My Dad Says, racked up over 700,000 followers to become the basis for CBS’s 2010-2011 sitcom, starring William Shatner and produced by Halpern. He’s now repped at ICM.

I often talk to writers who say they have 10 episodes of a Web series they want to sell. But simply having a work, even a work that exists in an accessible space, like the Internet, doesn’t give it value. It must prove it can generate a significant number of viewers and/or dollars. It wasn’t Justin Halpern’s hilarious Tweets that earned him a sitcom deal … it was his 700,000 followers — developed in less than a year.

Obviously, these people are exceptions to the usual rules. But as a writer-producer, your job is to be constantly writing … and if you do create the next Matt & Ben or The Whitest Kids U Know, agents will come knocking.

What you can do: Be constantly writing, creating, pumping out new material … and getting it in front of audiences. Sketches, plays, books, shorts stories, articles, local reality or game shows … anything you can put into the world to gather an audience and generate dollars.

Write a successful play, produce a festival-winning film, sell and publish a hilarious memoir. Or …

Become a stand-up comic like Wanda Sykes, who used her stand-up to land a TV-writing job on The Chris Rock Show before becoming famous as an actor and performer (she’s now repped at WME). Found a satirical newspaper like The Onion (now represented at CAA). Invent creative ad campaigns, like GEICO’s Cavemen commercials, created by Joe Lawson, which went on to be a short-lived ABC series … and launched Joe’s TV-writing career; he’s now repped at WME and writing on Modern Family.

Not the most direct path to an agent, but he might get you there.

Again, this path is much easier said than done … but create a property that proves to have real value, and Hollywood representation will come calling. In fact, I don’t believe you can follow this path because you hope it will bring you representation; I think you follow this path only because you’re burning to write or create whatever it is you feel compelled to create. The focus must be on the work … and creating a work of quality and passion … not eventually landing an agent.

In other words, I wouldn’t recommend this path because you think it’s a quick, easy shot to a “career”; most people’s work never produces the kind of attention necessary to become Cavemen, The Onion, or Shit My Dad Says. You have to be writing and creating because you love it … you love the process, the struggle, the thrill of seeing your work come to life … not because you’re strategizing a career and believe this is the most probable path.

The most viable path is to be constantly writing, creating new material … and working in the industry, learning and forming relationships, meeting agents, execs, writers, and producers.

Anyway, I hope this helps! Next week, we’ll continue … talking in detail about where and how to actually meet and connect with agents, when and how to ask them to read you, etc.

Until then, please feel free to post comments and questions below… or email me at chad@chadgervich.com… or Tweet me @chadgervich."